UKC

Pete Whittaker and Tom Randall - AKA The Wideboyz - have knocked a staggering two-and-a-quarter hours off the previous record for the Staffordshire Nose challenge. Despite temperatures of 21 degrees Celsius, the pair climbed all 31 routes in just 2 hours, 44 minutes and 28 seconds, surpassing Pete Bridgwood and Andi Turner's previous 2014 record of 4 hours 58 minutes and the Wideboyz' own personal best of 5 hours 53 minutes by an astonishing margin.

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In reply to UKC News:

Inspiring. I'd love to do this challenge one day, if I'm ever good enough. Although maybe cheat and do it over a long weekend.

Interesting reading Tom's blog from a few years back...

"With some good decisions and some planning I reckon the time can easily go to 7 or 8 hours and maybe less if some risks are taken."

In reply to UKC News:

Amazing effort!


One question, was flicking through western grit and noticed Joe's Hanging Crack a Joe Brown E3 on Roaches lower tier that isn't included in the list. Does anyone know a reason for this?


Cheers

In reply to kermit_uk:

Hah! If that's what I think it is, then it's the upgrade of something long mentioned in guides to have been climbed by JB at HVS but left unnamed. After narrowly escaping with any skin at all left on my hands after a desultory solo attempt a few years ago, I'm glad to see the thing being given a more realistic description.

I think the answer why it isn't in the course is that the course was designed before the publication of Western Grit. It probaby should be, though. Back you go, boys, I'm afraid!

jcm

In reply to kermit_uk:

I think the main reason is that it wasn't in the original list, and seems quite forgotten. I think even Joe Brown's recollection of it is quite limited, although I did once hear a rumour that he said it was the hardest crack he ever climbed...

Needless to say, it could maybe be included in future ciruits although maybe at the expense of removing routes which were only aided by JB.....

In reply to andi turner:
Yeah both roaches and western grit were published in 2009 but it only appears in WG and is described as the hardest offwidth he ever did.

Not trying to diminish efforts as have set this as a future challenge for myself, albeit just in a day. So was flicking through the guide and noticed it.

Looks like a great day out regardless!

In reply to johncoxmysteriously:

Not the only missing route from the list.

En Rappel (as described in the current guides) is not Brown's route. It is a combination of the first section of Blizzard Buttress (Arthur Brown Junior's route from 1927) and the final section of a Joe Brown route originally called En Rappel Varient in the 1961 guide .The first section of En Rappel Varient climbed the starting crack of what is now used by The Better End, moved right and finished up the wall above Blizzard Buttress.

In reply to johncoxmysteriously and kermit_uk:

Where do you guys think this Hanging Crack thing is? There's one at Wootten Lodge (and a much more recent boulder problem at Ramshaw) but I'm blanking on anything that fits on the Lower Tier either in the old guides or Western Grit.

In reply to Dave Garnett:

To the right of Teck Crack apparently. It's on the UKC database.

EDIT: http://www.ukclimbing.com/logbook/c.php?i=199293

In reply to 1poundSOCKS:

I had always thought it was because it was a boulder problem or something like that.

Whatever happens ALWAYS blame Andi Turner. That's my motto for life. If he denies anything then I shift it to Mark Sharratt

In reply to Tom Randall - Lattice Training:


10m! Maybe in your world.

Although people have suggested jumping off the belay on Valkyrie as a sensible way to retreat.

In reply to Tom Randall - Lattice Training:


And especially appropriate in this case, since Andi did write that section of the guide. In his defence, it is mentioned in passing in the description of Skydivin', and it does also get a bouldering grade (V5, and it's a roof crack - so it would hardly have detained Pete and your good self by more than a few seconds...)

It seems to have first appeared in Gary's edition: "The short roof crack between Lightning Crack and Teck Crack has been climbed at E3 6a, reputedly by Joe Brown".

I'd take refuge in the 'reputedly' if I were you. If you had to climb every problem 'reputedly' climbed by Joe, the challenge might take a bit longer.

In reply to Tom Randall - Lattice Training:


That's my motto too! Up until now it's always been right aswell...