UKC

'Falling off really isn't an option anywhere on this route' - Mat Wright tells us all about Magical Thinking, his new E10 route at Pavey Ark.

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Amazing effort, sounds proper scary! Without trying to stir a hornets nest, from reading the description and the fact this route is a no fall zone all the way once leaving the gear and gets the same tech grade as lexicon why does it get E10 as opposed to E11? These grades seem so hard to understand how they’re graded but I can’t quite get my head around why it’s less? 
 

either way looks and sounds incredible! 💪🏻

It's two French grades easier.

The question we all really want to know is 'why the sunglasses, especially in the Lakes?' and 'how the heck can you climb E10 in sunglasses?'

I've climbed in sunglasses before and honestly, my perception is totally radged. 

Oh god yes! Forget about the grading debate  the question everyone wants to ask but are too too scared.

Whenever I have tried to wear sunnies on hard (for me) trad they become like leaky swimming goggles as the slowly fill with dripping sweat, I think the last time I flung them off mid route in a fit of desperation. 

The price you pay for looking sexy on the wall

Hopefully Mat can come on and join us and answer the question, but like you and Paul I have definitely wondered about the glasses! My best guess isMat needs to wear glasses and has some very effective photochromatic glasses - that just happen to look really dark when outside in any sunlight? I teach a kid who comes into class after break wearing what looks like really dark sunglasses (which technically they're not meant to wear in school). I now know, but probably at the start of the year told him a couple of times to take his "sunglasses" off. You give it a few minutes inside and the sunglasses go back to clear. It's quite impressive actually. So maybe Mat's are like that?

The photos of Hubble have him in a pair of specs so this would make more sense than trying to look cool!

I suspect you are right, I also just remembered I made a similar rubbish joke when Mat did a hard new route in Torridon a while back. So as a (now ex) glasses wearer I'd like to say sorry Mat. 

Thanks for the support all! Much appreciated - to answer the question regarding sunglasses, I permanently wear sunglasses outside, even if it’s cloudy as I’m light sensitive and get headaches if I don’t have them on! 

my specs turn dark when the suns out.

unfortunately at my age they just give the impression that I may be blind…..😎

I hope you remembered to put that into E-Grader.

Of course, it’d be rude not to! 

Can anyone explain why this has got a load of down votes? I must be missing something because to me it looks like a good route, climbed honestly, in a style consistent with most (all?) new routes of this grade. I didn't think Mat came across badly in the interview. What's the issue?

Dunno but it'd be good to see the line a bit more in the photos rather than just close ups, as it's hard to appreciate. Hard to tell from the photos if it's a king line or an eliminate on a side wall with constant risk of landing on an easy ramp.

Ah, good to know I'm not alone on that front, on anything but the gloomiest cloudy days i need sunglasses if I'm outdoors for any length of time for the same reason!

There was a lively thread about Lexicon where he got a lot of likes and dislikes for his opinion (like marmite perhaps). So, could be people are remembering that debate and still have muscle memory from thumping that dislike button!

Sounds like an ideal case for a pair of these:

“Joo Janta 200 Super-Chromatic Peril Sensitive Sunglasses have been specially designed to help people develop a relaxed attitude to danger. At the first hint of trouble, they turn totally black and thus prevent you from seeing anything that might alarm you.”

― Douglas Adams, The Restaurant at the End of the Universe

The principle seems to work for that blind guy who did the Old Man Of Hoy. I'm sure that he would stop immediately in horror if he could even watch the videos.

Maybe all the shouting?

It's making me chuckle imagining the interview being done in person.