UKC

Ricky Bell has climbed another hard new route in Northern Ireland, this time from the ground up.

The Thing in the Forest weighs in at E7 6c and Ricky first tried it about 12 months ago.

Read more at http://www.ukclimbing.com/news/item.php?id=50669

In reply to UKC News: Great stuff, I wonder how many new E7+'s Ricky has now put up and repeated. For those of you who haven't seen it I can recommend the film 'Underdeveloped' - it's basically ricky and his mates having a giggle but it has some great climbing and some damn good giggles too....

Is it me or in this photo does it look like he's soloing?

In reply to SGD: By my reckoning, nobody has established or repeated as many routes of E7 and above in Ireland as Ricky. In fact, I can only think of 3 E7's here that he hasn't done.

In reply to SGD:


I think he is. I was a little confused by the film, in which he is soloing and falls off. Guess it's an early unsuccessful ground up attempt?

In reply to UKC News:

Bon, Bon, Bon! Like his style. Not only has he done loads of FAs at E7+, but his new routes are all really cool looking.

In reply to UKC News:
Yay, Ricky Bell is possibly one of the most inspiring climbers out their currently!

In reply to Queequeg: The clue is in the title of the video "Bouldering out the lower section"

In reply to PBrennan:

Check out the next vid to see a view looking up the rest of the route to the top....

vimeo.com/7916500

In reply to mcclown: You gonna try it steve? What with your love of skyhooks and all....

In reply to UKC News: Good stuff. I think that that look is Blue Steel, not Magnum.

In reply to UKC News:

Cool, gives me renewed hope for getting in some Irish rock over Christmas, always seems a bit ambitious at this time of year. Nice one Ricky!

In reply to PBrennan:

Hmmm now who is Chillax and how does he know my dirty secret.

A bit beyond me, maybe some day, it's probably quicker for me to get there than it is to go to Dalkey :P

In reply to UKC News: Brilliant, inspiring stuff. Looks like nice rock.

In reply to UKC News:

Forget e7, the quick clothes changing trick is amazing!

In reply to andy moles:
Likewise... Home for about a week before Christmas, it'd be great to get out to Fairhead or the Mournes - not sure which'll be colder!

Pete.

In reply to PeteH:

Mournes has to be a better bet I'd think. Some of the crags dry quickly (south facing tors especially, though they're also high and exposed) and you can catch the sun. Fair Head will be cold, dark and seeping!

I climbed on Bearnagh and Hen last year and Cove the year before, all of which were pretty chilly. Who knows, maybe there'll be a big freeze and some of the winter routes will come in

In reply to UKC News:

bon effort ricky. Andy's attempt also sounds very close. Killerscapes photos are also cracker. What's perhaps most impressive about this ascent is that Ricky is still in the relatively early stages of recovery from a bad tendon injury a few months back and hasn't really been training!

Pete and Andy - off topic but you'd be keen to try and get routes in at fairhead over the winter. We've all done it at one time or another but it just isn't good fun. If you're going to do it ab in for single pitches and leave duvet jackets at the belays. You're better off bouldering at FH over winter to be honest. There's loads of good stuff up there now.

You have a much better chance of a nice day in the mournes if you can find somewhere with a bit of sun and out of the wind - you'll have just about perfect conditions. Days like that however are few and far between and you usually have to brave a few miserable days before your efforts are rewarded.

Good luck.

In reply to UKC News:

I just want to point out that the Cooley mountains are in county Louth which is south of the border in the Republic not Norn Ireland.

In reply to Punter S Thompson:

After talks at number 10, Gordon Brown in a bid to save his job reluctently submitted to UKC big wiggs demands to have the border realigned. I fear Gordon Brown may not have gotton round to telling the Irish - I smell trouble.