Autumn colours

914, eat, drink, sleep, drive....

Great footage of a 914 belting 'round Laguna Seca in the States- watch out for the corkscrew corner.. Overtakes Lotus Elise, M3 Beemer, S2000 Honda, Ferrari, I loose track! Flat 6 motor wailing within an inch of it's life. For petrolheads only - automotive heaven:



I want a bigger engine and uprated suspension- NOW!

Sunday

couldn't have been more different. A day at the local sport crag Dinbren. Lee got onto his 8a project Elite Syncopations. He's been working this route for..... well, quite a while- but Sunday saw the best progress he's ever made- and I caught it on camera :¬)



My day was spent in the same place, but mainly in the company of my Spanish friends- David, Olga and Ricard. Our day revolved around working Climb High my 1st hard route (7a) from earlier this year, and my current project Technicolour Yawn (7a+). Though only a grade harder than Climb High, it's a completely different route: steep and powerful- not my style at all. So for me it's a real epic climb, right on the edge of what I can do. When I 1st tried it, I couldn't manage more than 1 move at a time, and only on a top rope. Today saw me lead it for the 1st time with a rest in the middle, and then my 1st ground to top clean ascent on a top rope. My red point attempt is nearly there. ( the video is longer, and less exciting than the one above I'm afraid- and no, I shouldn't have worn grey)



We finished the day with delicious pints and food at The Rose and Crown- really social- perfect :¬)

GOGARTH

is the name of one of the best known sea cliffs in the UK- it has quite a reputation- very big, very serious routes. It's trad- so no comfort of bolts- just a precarious abseil down to the crashing waves, and then the climb back up. Very commiting. The weather was perfect- blue skies and sunshine were not deemed serious enough- so brooding clouds and churning black water were served up. Some of the best climbing since my trip to Cornwall- the whole experience totally vivid. Days like this make you feel utterly alive.

View from the top of the cliff on the tip of Anglesy towards the Llyn peninsula

How's that for a way to start the climb?

End of the first pitch- half way up - Lee sits comfortably on the edge of a 100ft drop.

This shot's not faked- I am 180ft up a cliff standing on ledge the depth of a matchbox.

Just in case it wasn't feeling serious enough- there was a rescue of a canoeist about 6oo metres away.

After the climb we mooched around the corner to the main cliff- it made ours look quite small...

Go on, enlarge the photo and see if you can spot the climbers that Lee's pointing at...

Driving home in the RS4

last week

Sarah trims Hector- I saw him on my 1st day out with Sarah a year ago. That 1st visit he was going to be shot, as he was so lame and in so much pain- conventional shoeing had no more options left. He's been barefoot since that day. Now he's returned to his hunting yard, and has gone hunting this weekend- it's experiences like these that give me total belief in the practise of barefoot trimming.

Autumn sun

Well, despite it being almost November, today was warm enough for a spot of sun bathing- I guess global warming has it's positive side. Absolutely cracking day to be outside climbing. I finally managed to lead my 6c called Cold Turkey, and Lee worked his 8a Elite Syncopations at Dinbren. After finishing up there for the day, we called at Trevor Quarry to climb a couple of the new sport routes. Even the drive there and back was a pleasure.

Bit of a contrast from last weeks storm dodging

Lee ties on ready to face Elite Syncopations: the warmth is actually quite sorporific

Trevor Quarry is one of the few man made crags in the valley- it still has a great atmosphere.

We're only about 2 kms from the Hall where I garden.

The Departed:

believe the hype.
Twists and turns, great performances and flawless direction. Not a nice film, but it's a gangster movie- what do you expect?

Last few days

Here's a few piccies I've taken in the last few days:

View from Dinbren Saturday- changable weather made for a geat atmosphere

Oops, looks like rain on the way

We screeched to a halt on the way back from the crag to catch images of the incredible rainbow- hippies at heart really - barefoot in the rain :¬)

the way home tonight

Sunset over the river Dee

A lone cloud captures the sun for a moment

Just one more...

Please indulge me- I had to share this climbing video: it's pretty inspirational stuff

More photos from Austria

Get Your Own! | View Slideshow

Chris Sharma

Is one of the worlds top climbers, here's why:

Books n Movies

Book I'm reading at the moment: The Revenge of Gaia, James Lovelock, very good so far, but rather frightening (exactly the intended reaction I think).

Update on Gaia: Put simply, one of the most significant books I've ever read. Everyone should read this- you may not agree with everything Lovelock says, but I guarantee you'll see enough strong evidence for dramatic global heating to start you thinking- and maybe make you realise it's not someone elses problem. Lovelock isn't just scare-mongering- but is also offering some ideas for us to survive.





Films I've seen recently:


A Scanner Darkly - surreal drug induced science fiction- superb. One of my favourite directors.





Volver - another surreal treat- entirely warm and human- Spanish director Almodovar on top form.





The Black Dahlia - Please don't waste your money, get LA Confidential on DVD instead.

Österreich

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Austria

Is the name of the country where the friends I've just visted live. Most people call it Austria.




I've been friends with Christian and Babs many years, and have been out to visit lots. I've been made to feel so welcome, that I regard them as my Austrian family; I love them loads :¬) I'll add more photos and text soon, but for now here's a few of my favourite images from the weekend:

Christian and Babs new house- (I helped to tile the roof !)

Bubbles in Stansted Airport

Autumn leafs outside Christian n Babs new house

Sunset on Sunday, the hills around Stainz

Babs Grandad rests here- he once cooked the best meal I've ever eaten- baked potatoes and venison cooked in garlic- much Schnapps and beer was consumed during the preparation and eating of this meal- I've never been so drunk and stuffed by midday, and then gone mountain biking with no helmet- a memorable day. Thankyou Willi

Saved the Best 'til last: Christian and Bab's daughter, the beautiful and charming Laura (who has yet to master the art of applying lipstick :¬)

Countries I've visited

create your own visited country map
or check our Venice travel guide

I'm actually a bit disappointed by how little of the world I've seen- feels like more :¬)

Uncle Bob

This weekend I visited my dad's uncle in Somerset with my parents. Bob doesn't fall into the same category as the average aged relative. The most common look you'll receive from Bob is a conspiratorial cheeky smile as he drops his latest lewd or controversial comment- so a visit is no chore. It was his birthday, and he'd organised a party at his local pub The George (where he's a regular, and known as "Young Bob"). We had to go for a short "walk" at lunch time prior to the party (which "happened" to swing by The George for a quick jar), and then on to the main event (at The George) where we stayed until 10:30pm, enjoying a very convivial dinner with his family and friends. Over the last two days Bob's discussed Wi-fi, laptops, politics, religion, education, cranked up his £4,000 hi fi and made breakfast and lunch for my mum, dad and I. All of this after organising his own party, and drinking pretty much the same quantity of booze as me.
He's my role model- I want to be that animated and having that much fun when I'm 89 too :¬)

phone call

Sometimes I call up Ben at the studio, and his boss John says he's busy. Last time I called he was most amused to tell me that Ben was "inconvienienced" and couldn't come to the phone, as "he is in a body bag". Ben is a studio photographer, and in his career has variously had to shave a leg for a foot shoot and manicure his nails for a hand shoot. This time however he was to pose as a cadaiver- which just required being very still. Some people have boring office jobs- not Ben :¬)
(thanks for the lovely BBQ Sat night, and a great bike ride Sun- had a cracking weekend :¬)