UKC

No doubt the cold conditions of the past month or so have seen many of you venturing out into the Peak District to test the friction. Tonight's Friday Night Video comes from Sam Lawson of Lawson Beta Productions and is bound to make you head for some gritstone this weekend.

Read more at http://www.ukclimbing.com/news/item.php?id=69485

In reply to UKC News:

I like the "thank you for watching" at the end. Very polite

In reply to UKC News:

Thanks for sharing

In reply to UKC News:

Excellent work. Nice music too. More please.

In reply to UKC News:

uninspiring.

In reply to JonmapDL:

Are you serious?

In reply to Offwidth:

Good video, but surely you have to have a thing for lowball 7c grit bouldering to find it inspiring? The filming and editing's good and all that, and the climbing's a high standard that many UKCers aspire to, so it's a good video to put up. But for me personally, problems like Quine that happen below the height I'm sat at now on my sofa - indeed most of the problems on the video - are just not inspiring in the way that something like Careless Torque (other recent youf bouldering video) is.

(Although I think it's a slightly rude to voice a one-word negative opinion on something that's taken some proper effort to create and which is totally successful at what it is...but I could easily do the same when I'm having a bad day).

In reply to UKC News:

Nice one, cheers for the share!

In reply to Jon Stewart:

Yeah I agree with every word. Unfortunately the reality is the Peak is not that great a bouldering area. That's why there are many boulder problems like those in the video and far fewer that take really good, inspiring lines like Careless Torque. For me the lack consistently good, independent problems puts me off bouldering in the Peak (though if I was a better boulderer I might think differently).

In reply to Jon Stewart:

I'm just on the wrong wavelength for this stuff. The route description on the write-up the other night about a "majestic sweeping groove", or similar, made me snort. But, then, bouldering requires technique and talent and I have neither.

In reply to stp:


I'm not sure about this. The best individual problems I've done are in the Peak and Yorkshire - stuff like Crescent Arete, The Cube, NTBTA. Fantastic, independent lines, mini-routes with a beggining middle and end. They're just not packed together, you have to wander about a bit to pick out the really great stuff.

Where do you think is better?

In the UK, I think Yorkshire is better (and very similar, obviously) but other than that there are no contenders (although I've not climbed in Northumberland). And although Font is miles better, it's the quantity that does it, the quality isn't any better - I find the lines generally less impressive although they can certainly be very aesthetic with the weird brain features.

In reply to Jon Stewart:

In the UK I haven't bouldered that much. I suppose the best for me is Northumberland and from what little I've done Yorkshire certainly seems much better. To be sure there are excellent three star problems in the Peak district. But they're very spread out.

I really don't like problems where you have to know which holds are on and which are not, or have to be told exactly how a problem starts etc. The starting point for a good problem for me is something you can walk up to and see exactly where to go because the line is obvious.

The most bouldering I've done has been abroad. I spent a winter in Hueco Tanks which I really liked. Font of course is a wonderful place.

For perhaps a more inspiring video I thought this one about Joe's Valley which not only shows the problems but explores the climber's motivations is great (and the problems look very, very inspiring):

http://bit.ly/1ySJyzA

In reply to stp:

I don't think the Peak is characterised by crappy eliminates (although there are plenty if that's your thing). At the big venues (Stanage, Roaches, Cratcliffe/Robin Hoods, Burbage, Curbar) there are plenty of brilliant lines - but IMO for the best you have to stray into micro-route territory on the edges themselves rather than just looking at the classic boulder problems. Curbar for example has a boulder field with some mediocre but classic problems and lots of eliminates but up on the edge, there are stacks of really brilliant micro-routes: bouldering as good as any I've done.



Not really my thing - all a bit emotional and po-faced for me and the music didn't help on that front. But then, my favourite bouldering videos are 'instructional' for something I'm trying to do myself: this guy's made a few like this for the Peak, always handy for me...

youtube.com/watch?v=9g9OBvcEjgQ&