What I Learned From My Fall Project

On a day in late November, I took the draws down from my fall project. I’d had three great one-hang goes, but the route doesn’t get much sun and was pretty much out of season until the spring. It was fun to have a bigger project for the first time in a while, and I definitely learned a few things, which I’ve been reflecting on as the spring climbing season gets closer.

1) It’s amazing how subtle climbing can be. There are things you don’t pick up on when climbing routes that are within your comfort zone. When you strive for the ones that are close to your limit, however, you start to really understand how micro adjustments can have a huge impact, little beta like which direction to put draws, what hand to clip with, where and how to rest when it’s not obvious.

2) Refining beta is important. I think I started going for the send a little too soon. It took me a while to figure out the beta on this, and I think I only really got three tries in where I had an adequate understanding of what to do. Though you could argue it was even fewer.

3) Longer term projecting isn’t going to be my thing any time soon. I enjoyed trying this route, and the first couple of times I went out I kept the warm-up routine varied. Soon, however, I got sucked into the routine of doing the same four warmups and two burns on the proj each time I went out. There’s a lot of rock I haven’t climbed, and moving forward I think I’ll strive for more balance, and continue to focus mostly on routes I can do in four to six tries.

4) I got strong. The final route of my warm-up routine felt pretty casual on the last day, when at one point I would have been happy just to send it cleanly. Doing the hard moves on my project made everything else mellow by comparison.

5) It was so wonderful to have a hard project I wasn’t worried about getting hurt on. I had a good run this fall and it felt amazing to be trying so hard. That hasn’t happened often in my climbing career. The day I pulled the draws, I was, of course, a little bummed I didn’t send, but that was completely overshadowed by how much gratitude I felt, for the fall season, and for the whole year. I was fortunate to climb many different places, and I’m more confident in my abilities, and more in love with rock climbing, than I’ve been in a long time. Maybe ever.

And while we’ve had some big life changes this winter, I feel fortunate to be riding this high point into them, curious to see where it all leads. Now, time to get back to training for that bouldery crux!