UKC

There's a low quality, but entertaining video of Franco Cookson attempting the first Side-runnerless ascent of the E6 7a ** at Tintwistle Knarr, 'O'Gradey's Incurable Itch'.

A fair amount of pre-amble, the interest starts at 2:30 on the video:

vimeo.com/21420505



Thanks to Glossop MR team.

In reply to Olduser123:

Great Odin's Raven! That's a biggy. Hope he's ok.

In reply to Olduser123: Ouch, glad he is ok though!

In reply to Olduser123:

Effort there franco. Glad to hear your okay. So ... When you heading back?

In reply to Olduser123:

Nice video, nice trou, especially liked the two minutes of atmospheric silence at the end.

Is Franco OK?

In reply to Andy Moles:

Looks like you can read about it on his blog

http://francocookson-climbing.blogspot.com/2011/03/ogradeys-on-lead-h9-6c7a...

In reply to grubes:


NEVER!

I'm lucky to have only got minor injuries and there'll be no more death-routes attempted for a long time. The moves are amazing, but not worth the danger of trying to lead it.

Think I might stick to the top rope from now on...

Thanks

In reply to Olduser123:

Yikes - good effort, especially trying it in his PJs. Hope he's ok.

In reply to Franco Cookson:

Qu: what did you think as you were falling?!

In reply to Franco Cookson:

Bet your glad you dint try it that wet day me, you and dan headed up there now.

Anyway give it a few weeks you will change your mind and find a new project

In reply to Franco Cookson: That was fairly gnarly! Gnarr at the knarr!!

+ points for the cat like bouncing off various features on the way down.

Shame you buddy stopped filming!

Glad to hear you (almost) walked away from it!

In reply to Franco Cookson:
Nice to hear you are ok, I'd be careful of top roping though it is awfully dangerous; I got a nasty rope burn on my armpit in an horrific top-rope accident. (Horrific in the sense that someone saw me top roping). There is always sport climbing if you get desperate.

In reply to Olduser123:

You are incredibly lucky to have got away with that with no breaks! I fell about that height last year (probably less) and broke 4 bones in my back and shattered my ankle.

Still, good video though. Glad to hear you're ok.

In reply to Franco Cookson

The first E9 groundfall?

Glad you're okay, hope it doesnt put you off your stride.

In reply to Olduser123: Holy sh*t Franco......glad you're o.k. Hope the tender bits get better soon.

In reply to Franco Cookson:

You must bounce well!

In reply to Jus:

Franco - glad to see you survived. Awesome footage.

You look pretty light. It must be a big help to be light when you take a fall like that.

In reply to Jamie Bankhead:

Salvaging victory from the jaws of defeat?!
Glad to hear you're OK Franco and that you accept how very lucky you were. Take it steady for a bit now, I guess.

In reply to Olduser123: impressive

In reply to GuyVG: also, good reactions to get upright off the ledges to the right!

In reply to Olduser123: How's your belayer franco? Looks like he probably hurt himself too throwing himself backwards and you landing on/near him?

Good effort, Jack?

In reply to Dave Warburton:


Thanks for the kind wishes everyone. I'm remarkably fine- was almost contemplating some bouldering today, but I think I'll rest the ankle up a bit.

I'm aware I'm very lucky and I don't intend on testing my luck in the same way in the future.

And yes, big respect to Jack Rotheram. The mentalist threw himself backwards off a ledge without thinking, missing the mat and hurting his shoulder. This undoubtedly stopped me seriously injuring myself. And thanks to Jack Metcalfe for sorting out the ambulance- as has been said, I felt ok, but my helmet was badly dented and we thought it would be best to be on the safe-side.

Top notch helmet like!

In reply to Franco Cookson:



Hope you have binned it and treated yourself to a nice, shiny, new one.


That you were wearing it suggests you might have something inside it worth protecting! Hope it all stops aching soon, and you probably don't need any of us to tell you to be careful in the future.

Were the pegs hand-placed?

In reply to Franco Cookson:

You're a lucky man with some speedy cat-reflexes and a speedier belayer! Glad to hear you weren't badly hurt.

Impressive stuff closing that barndoor and keeping it all together first time your foot pops, I thought you were off at that point.

Is there a year or two of hard sport in your future I wonder
jk

In reply to TobyA:

No, i was there when they were placed, they looks and sounded good, and held well with some bounce testing.

One of them actually snapped rather than popping, or so Franco tells me. Scary stuff!

In reply to Olduser123: Inspiring and scary! Very good effort

In reply to TobyA:


Binned it?? Hell no keep that bad boy as a hall of famer!!

Glad you're ok Franco.

In reply to Olduser123: Franco, that second peg, wasnt the quickdraw placed weirdly through that? Kinda looks the wrong way round to me, like if loaded it would torque the peg rather than hang straight. Wonder if thats why it snapped....

Anyway, good try, glad to hear youre alright, looked like a hellish move.

In reply to Olduser123:

There is nothing entertaining about watching someone come pretty close to death.

I am sure the Glossop MR team will welcome your donation though.

In reply to Dan Lane:


Yikes. That sounds disturbing!

In reply to muppetfilter:

Do you ever wake up in the morning and wonder when you became such a humourless bastard?

Just wondering, like.

In reply to TobyA:

New pegs aren't supposed to snap though there was a case years ago of the heads breaking off one make (can't remember which) when whacked hard. Also worth pointing out (too late!) that pegs in vertical cracks should not be used for free climbing protection.

Chris

In reply to Olduser123: Shocking trousers! Glad you're ok Franco.

In reply to Olduser123:

vimeo.com/21420505

"It's kind of a lost... or more like an ignored idea, the idea of a magnificent failure rather than a kinda, mediocre success" - Peter Croft


Glad to hear you walked off from that one Franco!!

Got more balls & talent than i'll ever have...

In reply to Cragrat Rich:


Hobbled off or whatever! (you know what I mean)

In reply to Dr Avid:
Looks to me like the peg was placed 'upside down' with the eye 'up' rather than 'down'. The way the clip then goes into that eye it looks like there would be a really strong rotational force on the head of the peg rather than a force 'through' the width of the peg the way its designed to work.

In reply to Andy Say: I think that is a fair assessment.

In reply to Andy Say:

Either way, thats out me right off pegs.

In reply to victim of mathematics:

That's a bit rich from you fella

In reply to Rat know-all:

Good God I just realised it was muppetfilter you were responding to.
An contest with two losing sides.

In reply to jonny2vests:
You just gotta use stuff the way its supposed to be used...

BUT there will always be situations where you can't

In reply to Olduser123:
Totally gripped just watching never mind being on it. How you kept your balance the first tie you started to barn door is beyond me, top effort fella clearly another future Brit talent.

In reply to Andy Say: Ye I guess with the peg placed hole upwards, whichever way you place the QD will have more of a torquing effect....

In reply to Olduser123: what sort of pegs were they? knifeblades? lost arrows? How old? What were the placements like? There must be plenty of people doing routes with pegs and trusting them to hold falls like that - I'm sure the climbing community can learn something from this event.
BTW, good effort Franco - I'm sure many others would have 'gone for it' like you did given it went well on TR.

In reply to Franco Cookson: I hope you havent broke them pitons I gave you?

In reply to Andy Say:

For those discussing pegs, this may help. Doesn't answer whether the peg was placed correctly, but shows that it was at least clipped right (and which type it was):

http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?pid=8621887&l=ef9571685c&id=61891...

In reply to monkeyboyraw:

Eh? He's a CURRENT Brit talent

In reply to Rat know-all:

My apologies for any offence caused.