Milestone.

In the midst of chaos, exhaustion, overworkedness, and random drama, I managed to accomplish something special this morning. No, I didn't sell my house, get rid of some of my insane amounts of stuff, finish the brief I need to write or the 2,500-page record I need to review, do laundry, or bake a pie for my women's gathering tomorrow night.

I did, however, nail my first trad lead in Eldorado Canyon.

OK, so it was a ridiculously easy climb (rating it 5.4 would be generous) with great holds, great stances, and great protection, but it was pretty long, pretty exposed at the top, and plenty exciting. I was so focused on finding good gear placements that I never managed to get nervous, and my climbing buddy concluded that all my placements were solid and only one was even a little questionable.

For a long time, I've been afraid to try trad leading. I've dabbled a few times with placing gear while on top rope, but I don't really trust my eyes or - more important - my understanding of physics. For the past two seasons, though, I've been seconding a lot more on trad routes because Steve's such a solid lead climber. Pulling the pieces out has helped me gain a deeper understanding for where and how to place them, and my overall climbing ability has improved enough that I feel pretty solid on moderate routes. I'm comfortable leading sport routes up to 5.9 on most crags, and am consistently climbing 5.10s clean as a second. Anyone else with these credentials would have started trad leading long ago, but I've kind of avoided it and Steve hasn't pushed me to try.

I've long recognized that it would be good if I could comfortably lead moderate trad routes, since this would enable us to do longer routes where switching leads is helpful, if not essential. Plus, I feel like I can't really call myself a serious climber unless I can take full responsibility for everything happening on the rock. So today, I was climbing with a friend who's patient, low-key, experienced, and supportive, and the moment felt right to give trad leading my best shot.

I still need to work on building anchors (this route had a fixed anchor at the top) and making sure my cam placements are perfect. Still, I did it clean, solid, and reasonably fast, and pretty much everything I placed was bombproof.

Damn, I feel good!

P.S. Upon request, I will provide a post translating the climbing lingo sprinkled liberally throughout this entry.

Comments

[jdz]

Good job Mad! Climbers continually impress me... the amount of athleticism and strength and FOCUS thats needed to do that sport at even a totally recreational just-for-fun level is at this point far beyond what I have... I've given it a few shots and had a lot of fun doing it, but have never really gotten the hang of it!

I must say, I am a little jeaous of the climbing (and for that matter whitewater and skiing) oppurtunities you guys have out there! Everything I've done here has been at the climbing gym or on the buildings on campus (which I later found out campus police don't exactly appreciate...)!

By the way... lovin' law school :)