PETERBOROUGH MOUNTAINEERING CLUB SUMMER 2001 Three amigos in Paradise S7 British Bouldering Competition: Easter in Fontainebleau: PCW Competition: 6 Men and a dog!! Plus lots more... CONTACT EDITORS POINTS LETTER President: Clive Osborne Telephone: 01733 560303 E-mail: Just when you thought you’d been wiped off [email protected] the mailing list...along come the all familiar Chairman: Paul Eveleigh and welcoming pages of Take In to comfort Telephone: 01487 822202 you with the memory that you did pay your E-mail: membership this year, and yes! you are still [email protected] part of that warm and friendly body of climb- Treasurer: Dave Peck ers, walkers and adventurers of the PMC!!! Telephone: 01733 770244 E-mail: [email protected] We know you’ve all waited a long time for General this, and on behalf of a number of people I’d Secretary: Richard Ford like to apologise for there being such a long Telephone: 01778 342113 break since the last Take In dropped through your door. However I’d like to think of this E-mail: [email protected] period as a bit of “Tantric Editing” when New Members nothing seems to have happened for a long Secretary: Kevin Trickey time.... but having hung in there, (hopefully) Telephone: 01733 361650 the rewards will be great. E-mail: [email protected] Although our usual activities in the English Events countryside have been more difficult to pur- Coordinator: Rob Pontefract sue for most of this year, you’ll see from the Telephone: 01780 764333 articles in this Edition that a little crisis like Mobile: 07711 090999 Foot & Mouth hasn’t stopped everyone! E-mail: [email protected] There is also some important news for every Martina Harrison Tel:01733 349446 member of the PMC to be aware of about the Newsletter future of the wall. Editor: Kaye Burling Telephone: 01780 481232 Many thanks to everyone who has sent in E-mail: [email protected] articles and photos. Please don’t forget to Paul Rowlands Tel: 01733 757324 keep them coming though, as the newsletter can only ever be as interesting as the news E-mail: [email protected] sent to us. Take In will be issued quarterly Web Site now, with the autumn edition appearing in Editor: Matt Andrews November. Loads of time for you to put pen Telephone: 01773 570308 to paper, finger to pad, and light to film. En- E-mail: [email protected] joy the rest of the summer! Cottage Bookings: Robin Phillips The Editors . Telephone: 01248 811203 Take in! - The Peterborough Mountaineering Club Newsletter S7 British Bouldering Championships Saturday 24th March 2001 Having to register between 8.30 -9.30 meant an problem, followed by a 6 minute rest and then early start for the 2-hour drive to Hull, where onto the next problem and so on, until they `Rock City` was hosting the 2001 S7 British had all had there turn on the 5 problems rang- Bouldering Championships. Jack had been talked ing from 6a-6c. Jack put in a good effort but into entering by one or two people at the wall and only managed to actually complete 2 out of was looking forward to the experience of climb- the 5. It was while we were watching the ing with some of the best in the country. men’s final, that they posted the final results We registered at 9 o’clock and Jack had three of the junior competition. Flippin Blimey quarters of an hour to wait and warm up before Charlie!! He’s picked up two places and fin- the junior competition began. Three hours to ished third. Proud dad or what? We watched complete 12 problems ranging from about 5b-6b the rest of the men’s final and sat there in awe for this qualifying section of the competition. 10 as Malcolm Smith flashed up four out of the points for completing the problem on the 1st at- five routes, some of which nobody else could tempt, 7 for a second and 4 for a third, plus there manage at all. was the odd bonus hold available if you could not Ben Moon presented the prizes and I complete the problem. An hour into the junior cheered and clapped as Jacks name was called competition and the senior competition began. out and he went up to collect his prize. Glen Although the seniors were different routes, some Chapman another regular down at the Peter- of them were on the same wall panels, which borough Wall also competed, in the men’s meant that queues were forming on some of the comp. And came in 29th. Good effort Glen. problems. Unfortunately he ran out of time on his Unfortunately Glen managed to break his big last problem and only managed to get two at- toe during one of the problems, on a foot tempts at this 6b problem before they called time swap he slipped off and cracked his toe on up. another hold. The day was long and tiring, but After about 15 mins the results of the junior watching the likes of Malcolm Smith, Neil qualifying round were posted on the board. The Bentley and Jack Rowlands made it all worth- top six then went through to the finals later that while. afternoon. Blimey Charlie! Jack had come in 5th Final results: Men; 1 Malcolm Smith place, Bloody good effort lad! At 1.15pm all of 2 Gareth Parry 3 Nic Sellars the junior finalists were then put into isolation Women; 1 Lucy Creamer 2 Claire Murphy while they rebuilt the new routes for the final 3 Katherine Schirrmacher Boys; 1 Paul Smitton 2 Jamie Cassidy 3 Jack Rowlands Girls; 1 Emma Twyford 2 Jemma Powell 3 Rosie Shaw. Delays in route setting meant the poor sods were couped up for a good hour before the finals be- gan. They brought them out one at a time, where they had 6 minutes to try and complete each Take in! - The Peterborough Mountaineering Club Newsletter By teatime we were pitching the tent at GRAND PARADISO the end of a very beautiful valley sur- rounded by snow capped peaks, at Mike Pratt recalls an epic ascent in 1935m. I t would have been rude not to the Grand Paradiso National Park, in experience the local food and drink and north west Italy. so we did. The next day laden with heavy packs we One evening last autumn at the hut, having consumed a glass or so of red vino I became involved in an in depth conversation with Clive and Paul. Having put the world to right at least three times, the talk got round to the important things in life, hills and food. I remember agree- ing to try out a new venture and went to bed happy in the knowledge that my friends wanted me to accompany them to a new Mexican res- taurant. It didn’t quite click why we were de- laying the visit to the summer, but by that stage climbed 840m up a well-graded path to of the evening even getting out of a cubicle was the Rifugio Vittorio Emanuelle. We ar- a serious intellectual exercise. rived in time for lunch, booked in and Some time after Christmas Clive asked if I had relaxed in the superb sun taking in the arranged insurance. Not wanting to look stupid splendid views. The dinner that night was I said that I had. I assumed that the chilli was brill and dinner bed and brekkers cost more stimulating than most ethnic foods. A approx £20 per night. Beer was £2 a pint little later I was asked to attend the wall to as was the wine. practice Prussik techniques. By now I knew We had decided that we needed to accli- that I had enrolled for something entertaining matise and so the grand idea was to spend and my natural curiosity got the better of me. two nights at the hut and in the interven- By asking all sorts of obscure questions I estab- ing day go for a walk on the glacier to lished that I had agreed to climb a biggish Ital- gain experience. ian mountain. The proper climbers, guides and heroes Everything was set up and it was agreed that I alike had brekkers at 4 am and set off for would collect Clive at 3.45am on Saturday the summit. We booked the late brekkers from whence we would meet Paul to go to at 8 am and after a leisurely meal set off Stansted for the 7am flight. Things did not for some exercise. As we were not climb- start well when Clive woke me at 4 am to see ing the summit we took little or no hard- where I was, or words to that effect. A p rompt ware and very little water. drive to Clive’s and a slower continuation got When we reached the glacier I made a us to the airport on time. serious mistake in that I allowed Clive to lead. He justified this by saying that he possessed the largest St Christopher and it was his rope. Both of which are highly convincing arguments. The glacier goes up a very large gully at a reasonable an- gle and then up a steep slope. After about an hour we met a Geordie munroist that we had met the previous night and who was determined to climb the hill on his own. It had taken him 2 1/2 hours to the summit and probably 1 1/2 hours down, seriously quick.