So the pumpfest came and went...
The lead up to it didn't quite go as planned, the rolled ankle amongst other things put a stop to the idea of getting back into yoga and hard training. Although I wasn't feeling the strongest I still felt okay, so there was no reason not to participate.
I showed up a little late on the day (15 mins before the start and those 15 minutes were spent socialising) and didn't do any beta sneaking...I figured I'd just wing it.
Well it was a hard three hours of climbing - I wandered around, teaming up with various other climbers to work at the problems. This was the great thing about boulder comps it was a very friendly atmosphere and people were genuinely supporting one another. I was lucky enough to flash a few but at the same time failed on a fair share whilst being tantalisingly close to getting both hands on the final hold.
I was pretty stuffed with around 20 minutes to go and jumped on a problem with a sharp hold. Unfortunately there was a lack of footers on it and when I was coming around an arete my foot cut loose and off I came. Another thing that was off was a large flap of skin from the pad of my right ring finger and a tear to the middle fing. I taped it up and stupidly tried the problem a few more times...every time I got my right hand to the hold it would squish...suffice to say I didn't tick it. When I started to bleed through the tape I decided that was it, I was spent.
With the showcase of strong climbers in attendance, I was comfortable in the knowledge that I wouldn't be in the running for the finals. As the top five were announced I could relax and just enjoy spectating, the five problems for the finals looked to be in a different class, they were hard that's expected, but they were also quite long and thus super taxing. Mark (from Sydney) and Jay (whom I went to Rocklands with) were the only two who completed problems in the men's finals. Mark was handed the win on countback to the points in the pumpfest, but it was only by four points in it. Sam (from Sydney) took out dominated in the womens, but that was expected with the fact that she is one of the best female climbers in Australia. It was interesting to see how the pro's handled the finals, they took a lot more time reading the problems and knew when to call it quits to save energy for the next problem.
I ended up placing eight, better than I thought I'd do, with lots of room for improvement.
Oh and it also happened to be the hottest day in October on record for 13 years - 36.9 degrees Celsius (98.4 Fahrenheit).
Anyways I'm now in recovery from the comp and also the night of drunken revelry that was last night...which is a story for another time.
With the massive public rejection of the Vegemite iSnack 2.0, Vegemite are at it again and are now giving the public limited options instead of a free for all.
However, one does really have to question their marketing geniuses, especially when they are looking to the public to do their work. As we know just because people can be bothered to vote, doesn't really mean that they make the right decisions.
The choices are:
VEGEMITE CHEESYBITE
VEGEMITE CREAMYMATE
VEGEMITE SMOOTH
VEGEMITE SNACKMATE
VEGEMITE VEGEMATE
VEGEMITE VEGEMILD
I'm pushing for "Creamymate" because that's probably the one with the most mileage from a humour perspective.
Voting starts now through to the end of this weekend:
http://www.vegemite.com.au/vegemite/page?PagecRef=758
Let's make Creamymate a reality! :)
PS: Clear your cookies after voting if you want to vote more than once.
PPS: The age group "6 and under" option isn't allowed to vote..."7 - 14 years" states that you should ask your parents' or guardians' permission (and get them to tick a box), funnily the same message is given for "65+ years" age group.
Anyways I still went climbing in the gym last night, more to try the ankle out than anything. Well it held up okay and I'm sure it'll continue to as long as I don't fall on it.
I found I could actually keep the ankle strapped up and still fit the climbing shoe on so I'm glad that works. Had a few twinges on certain angles/footholds and compensated a lot more with the arms, but at least I can still train to a certain degree.
Two seconds of stupidity was all it took...Dark unfamiliar front porch, stepping off and missing the step = sprained ankle. Fudge!
Still angry at myself for not taking it easier, i.e. pulling out the phone to check where the step was or taking it easier.
Anyways ankle currently strapped and anti-inflammation gel applied. Wonder how long it's going to keep me grounded for.
:(
Well I've gone and done it. I've signed up to compete in the next Boulder Comp at Rockface.
http://rockface.com.au/BoulderComp2009EntryForm.pdf
Why? Well I'm not 100% sure myself. It's more expensive than previous comps and I know that I'm not in contention given the amount of strong boulderers I know.
Saying that though I do want to show my support for climbing and keep participation numbers up to generate interest, especially considering that the competitions here are few and far between.
I'm justifying it as a chance to have a great day pushing myself, being competitive and maybe get a gauge of how far I've come (and have to go).
With just around a month to go, I guess I should put some consideration into training. :P
In the meantime, I did manage a flicker of fame from the last comp - UCC1 in March (which was more of a fun thing than a serious comp). And by flicker I really mean flicker, blink and you'll miss it. :P
Went to an advance screening of (500) Days of Summer last Thursday.
Tagline is "Boy meets girl. Boy falls in love. Girl doesn't."
Not your average love story, the story follows Tom Hansen (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) meeting Summer Finn (Zooey Deschanel), he falls in love at first sight. Summer does not believe in relationships (as "real life will always ultimately get in the way"), still they become more than just friends. Interestingly it's presented in non-chronological format, along with the animated transitions and the quirky soundtrack, it's one of those movies that grows on you the more you think about it.
A clever, offbeat romantic comedy. Recommended viewing, even by this cynic. ;)
Slackness on the posting, after TFC's visit, but it's actually been really busy.
Let's see there were birthdays (mine included), visitors from the East, a trip to Broome, work work work, plus climbing is on the increase. Not to mention switching over laptops has thrown my posting mojo out.
Will be back with pictures soon.
Here are some pictures from two weekends ago when I went to Bali for some R&R.
My first time in Bali and only for three days!!!! What was I thinking??? Well I think it was generally thinking around the fact that it was cheap flights and there wouldn't be much to do there. Well there was more than enough to kep me entertained for the three days, with more places on the list for the next time I get back there.
