UKC

Twice this week I've visited popular climbing walls, which were rammed, as is the nature of popular walls... My climbing was appreciably worse, this is common and seems to span indoor and outdoor venues, for as long as I've been back climbing frequently.

Quantifiably Lots of people and noise seems to knock 1-2 grades off what I can lead O/S, and people actively waiting for a route I'm on, or watching me climb can easily knock 3 grades off. I'm kind of embarrassed by my relatively humble abilities (6a+/6bish o/s lead) and seem to rush, not think about basic things, fail to actually look at the route properly with people around moreover if a move I'm unsure I can make comes up I get flustered and tend to back off, all embarrased and a bit of a negative spiral begins.

Obviously for the most part I can just be antisocial and go with partner or small groups to comparatively quiet crags, but the fact that this is consistently an issue is a bit of a pain in the arse, As I'm increasingly faced with limted time to climb and a real desire to do something.

Any suggestions on how to not get put off by hustle and bustle?

In reply to KellyKettle:
I'm sure Dave Macleod covers this in 9 out of 10... I'm sure he was the same about himself.

In reply to KellyKettle:

Firstly I think it's great that you are so aware of what the issue is. Secondly, tackling this will be a journey of personal growth and development which will benefit you in all aspects of life and happiness. Thirdly, enjoy the journey. Start with deep breaths and meditation.

In reply to KellyKettle:

Was it you that said you have adhd? Hustle and bustle can be quite distracting for me in any situation. My favourite wall has lots of corners and different rooms so I can find a quiet bit somewhere usually. Other than that I try to focus on something else, but there is a point where if its too noisy I can't cope, although sometimes music is ok.

In reply to KellyKettle:

Keep climbing in front of crowds, actively seek it out until it doesn't become an issue. I had the same hang up and don't mind now. Keep it simple.

In reply to KellyKettle:

My solution was to accept I'm old and crap these days. Takes off all the pressure!

In reply to KellyKettle:

Maybe you just dont like crowds. I certainly dont!

There is nothing that needs to be fixed about that.

There are absolutely stacks of quiet crags and quiet parts of crags where you live.

As for climbing walls, sorry i dont have the answer,i generally cant stand the places any more and avoid at all costs.

In reply to KellyKettle:

Enter some bouldering competitions. Seriously. I too prefer to climb out of sight in peace and quiet, and especially at bouldering I'm easily discouraged if I don't get things quickly - will go and look for something else to do, and maybe come back and try again in another session if nobody's looking.

In a competition there's nothing else to sneak off and do and no other session either. And always lots of people trying /queuing for the same problem, so when you get you go you have to make it count, you *need* those five bonus points, and your "competitors" are showing the beta and are generally also friendly and encouraging.

In reply to KellyKettle: as mentioned earlier Dave Mc's book covers this in an effective way.

It is however a pretty standard sports psychology problem , and i guess you should be able to find some excercises to deal with this. However i am not up to date with sports psychology books and can't recommend one. Personally a long time ago I actually had sessions with a sports psychologist as I was getting similar competition stress. This will be pricey tho'.

Some comments - avoiding crowds is poor advice as you are dodging the issue, and if you fix this you'll get a strategy for fixing other problems fear of run outs etc., But also simply going to walls and hoping for a sudden change and to get magically use to it is a difficult and not especially effective method if you don't have some other excercises or whatever to help you