Thank you to everyone who entered this competition.

THE ANSWERS

Q. What is the inflated thickness of the Trangoworld Crash Pad?

18cm

Q. What is the Trangoworld Crag Pack named after?

A crag in Spain

Who was the first UK boulderer in the 1880's who was capable of one-arm pull-ups?

Oscar Eckenstein

THE WINNERS

Trangoworld/Allcord Competition

1st Prize - Geoff Goddard of Wetherby wins Trangoworld Crash Pad, Albarra Chalk Bucket, Knit Beanie – worth £340

2nd Prize - Steve Taylor of Wareham, Dorset wins Margalef Crag Pack, Albarra Chalk Bucket, Knit Beanie – worth £135

3rd Prize - Will Smith of Warwick Albarra Chalk Bucket, Knit Beanie – worth £55

Boulder Britain Competition

ashleyb89 of Hamilton, Glasgow.

Mark McDonald of Luton, Bedfordshire.

Paul Smith of Stockport, Cheshire.

Stuart Knott of Carlisle, Cumbria.

Liz Fowler of London.

Congratulations everyone.

We've got a great bouldering competition courtesy of Allcord, Trangoworld and Niall Grimes to start the New Year, all details below, over £600 in prizes and eight winners, but first some hot tips for bouldering in the cold.

Hot Tips For Cold Weather Bouldering

Winter can be prime bouldering season, when cold temps and dry sunny weather combine there can be no better conditions. But you have to be prepared and careful if you are to have a great time. The ground is often damp, and although friction can be at an optimum when the temperature drops, tendons and muscles can easily be damaged - it is also worth noting that high friction rubber can lose its stickiness if it is too cold. It's hard to warm up and many bouldering areas are off limits due to seepage and green algae. But with a little nouse it is all systems go for those who love bouldering.

Here are some tips borne from my experience of cold-weather bouldering.

What To Bring

• Wrap up well: although you don't want to impede athletic movement, a few extra layers help keep those muscles and your core toasty.
• Wear a base layer - wool is best for low movement bouldering. On top of that wear an insulated mid-layer, or a T-shirt and hoody, and an insulated outerlayer - a fluffy jacket, down or synthetic.
• Bring a woollen beanie or a skull cap, a pair of warm gloves (essential) and a scarf, wool socks and a pair of approach shoes.
• Bring a thermos of tea, coffee or hot fruit juice and a decent pack lunch.
• Bring some hand warmers. I like Little Hotties, you can get a two pack for about a quid fifty. They usually last all day.
• As well as your bouldering mat, bring some dry old towels to dry your shoes. The ground is often wet.
• Bring a basic first aid kit to clean and tape up any flappers or abrasions.
• And don't forget the obvious; chalk, chalk bag, extra chalk and brushes..... and a few friends.

Tactics

• Go for a short jog or jog on the spot for an initial warm up. Repeat if you get cold between problems.
• Warm up slowly on the rock and on big holds so as not to tweak tendons and to get the blood flowing. If you are projecting something hard, you often have to warm up again between each attempt. Cold fingers rip easily too and flappers are more common in winter.
• I usually take off my rock shoes between problems and put my socks and shoes back on to keep my feet toasty. You can warm your rock shoes by stuffing them under your jacket. At the same time warm your hands using your hand warmers in your pockets.
• Make sure your rock shoes are squeaky clean before attempting a problem. Have your mat at the base of the problem and give them a good clean with a towel (not your hands) before stepping onto rock.
• Eat and drink frequently, keep those energy levels high.

Choose your winter bouldering spots carefully, south facing, quick to dry areas are best of course. But don't discount the unobvious. Ask around for beta.

If you have more cold weather bouldering tips, add them to the thread associated with this article.

If you are new to bouldering, check out this great primer article: Beginner's Bouldering – How to get started

OK, now here's your chance to win some great bouldering kit. One of the questions is a tad historical, but you have John Gill to help you.

Bouldering Competition: Trangoworld and Boulder Britain

The new Trangoworld Crash Pad has just arrived in the country. It is a huge, hinged pad which uses air cushion technology as part of its impact protection mechanism. This is achieved through air dispelling chambers sandwiched between two layers (landing zone and ground side) of thick hard cell foam.

It is currently available at three UK outdoor shops: www.rockrun.com, www.theepicentre.co.uk and www.needlesports.com

Trangoworld/Allcord Competition

Allcord Limited, the UK distributor for Trangoworld is offering the chance to win some fantastic prizes from the boulder range of Trangoworld.

1st Prize: Trangoworld Crash Pad, Albarra Chalk Bucket, Knit Beanie – worth £340
2nd Prize: Margalef Crag Pack, Albarra Chalk Bucket, Knit Beanie – worth £135
3rd Prize: Albarra Chalk Bucket, Knit Beanie – worth £55

Boulder Britain Competition

In addition we have five copies of Niall Grimes' Boulder Britain to give away. Boulder Britain is a select guidebook to the bouldering in the UK. You can read all about it here: A New Guidebook: Boulder Britain .

All you have to do to win is answer the three questions below by Tuesday 17th January 2012. There will be eight winners.