up up and away

Have you ever had a day just go so right? A day where you couldn't stop smiling? I had a day like that on Sunday. Climbing has been a little frustrating lately. Actually, working out in general. Just haven't had the time. So, on Friday, Ob and I went to Vertical Hold and tried a couple climbs. It began in a very frustrating way with some climbs that I think were really badly rated (the 5.9 felt more like a .10d). After the first two awkward climbs, I felt kinda deflated, like I had regressed so much. Then, we found a really fun climb (.10b) and both cruised it. It wasn't actually easy, but it had a nice flow to it. So, that made me feel better, and we tried a .10c after that by the same setter. I really like this setter. I think they have a good sense of ratings, a good feel for the flow of a climb, and they don't make them hard simply by making them reachy. They're technical, not just long. I fell once on the .10c, and decided that I really liked it. Ob had tried it because it looked fun, and he enjoyed it even though his shoulder kinda popped when he tried it. The funnest part for me was figuring out how to do the crux, which involved a very long reach or a rather unusual move to get your feet higher. So, with my left hand near my left foot, my right foot above those, and my right hand up high, I was able to stand up and grab the next hold. So, on Sunday, I went back and tried it again, and got it clean. My first clean .10c! I was so excited! I know to many good climbers, it doesn't sound like much, and most of my friends are .11 climbers and up. But there are milestone moments I think. When you look back, you can see improvement. I can see that change from my struggle up my first clean 5.8 to this moment. I can remember my first clean v2 that I actually thought was a v2. If you don't appreciate those landmarks, sometimes you forget them. I enjoy them. I try to get better too, but I smile when I think about them.

To complete my wonderful Sunday climbing, I also got a v2 that I had been working on and passed the lead test, which I hadn't wanted to take before because I didn't think I could clip fast enough. They changed the test, but that's ok. I still passed A lead test... even if it wasn't THE lead test...