Episode 08: Man vs. Pitch black: 1-0

These last days, I have been feeling stronger and stronger.

On the 18th (Wednesday), we went back to Marion des Roches to finish some projects. Sans Pompe (7A+) was the first one. It had rained on the eve and everything was slippery. I gave it a try and fell on the first move. I got frustrated and very, very cranky but thanks to team spirit and healthy competition (I wasn't letting my friends send it without me), bada boom!

After more than an hour on Mise en Boîte assis and an almost successful last try, the night started settling in, and we went back to Bi-Steack. I was given 30 minutes to send it but wasn't feeling it so I only tried the difficult move. Surprisingly and after only 3 attempts, I got the move right twice in a row! It is now only a matter of time.

Friday: back to Demoiselles for Les Guérilleros. It hadn't rained for more than 36 hours but the rock was wet and, even worse, glue-y. Everything was covered with that same substance. After sending a somewhat easy and expo 6A, Le Casse-Gueule, I walked around in pursuit of unopened boulders. I had been eager to open for a few months but had never had the chance. After some wandering, I found five cool problems and got to work: Hic, Trickery, Grease, Slabby and Ray of light. The videos are available on my channel. You can find the info on my bleau.info profile and on the "Route setting" page of this blog. As it turned out, the first problem had been opened after all but it was worth the effort.

On Saturday and after having spent session after session on the same projects, we wanted to explore a new sector. The Petit Paradis subsector is too expo so we headed towards Oiseaux de Proie. A friend had told me about a feasible 8A (Bicarburation). The problems on that rock are simply beautiful: no crimps, just slopers and 2-finger holds.
First was Fatwoman light en traversée (7A). Nice line but largely overgraded. We downgraded to 6B+.

Then came Fatwoman (7A). Same line but with a different exit. It took us some time to find the beta but then sent it quickly.

À l'Endroit (7A+) was a pure joy. The problem seemed exceedingly easy but the first moves were hard. I had to go all Hulk to send that part. The second part is around 6A+. After figuring the first 10 moves out, I tried to send it and fell on the last move; the rock had not been brushed for some time. I thought I had missed my window of opportunity but ten minutes later and with a "what the hell" attitude, I gave it one last try. This time, I strolled on it, around it, in it, you name it.

Sunday was Marion des Roches again. I started with Les Guérilleros. The rock was, once again, very slippery but it was calling out my name. "Come and get me, a**hole, come and get me!" I gave it one try and was able to finish two thirds of the trav. On my second try, I went all the way up to the next-to-last move and fell while trying to hold onto a sloper. Had the rock not been wet, I would have sent it. I tried another four or five times but kept falling around the end. The good news: I am now very comfortable with every single move and can send the lower part in a matter of seconds. Next time this Siren is mine.

After a day's rest, I went alone to Aprémont Ouest to settle a score. I had tried Crazy Horse (7B) in April and had almost sent it so I was quite confident this time: I am 3 kilos lighter and twice as strong and experienced. I was in for a big surprise... I couldn't send a single move! After more than 15 tries, I sent the exit moves twice but it was ugly as hell.

Concept (7A) is a nice line. The crux is technical and I had to teach my body how to to do it. I was trying to get as close to the rock as possible but that's exactly the opposite of what you are supposed to do in this case. It took me around 45 mins.

L'Arête Dorsale (7A) is a nice trav. The first part is around 6A+ but the end is nasty. As soon as I sent the last moves, I tried to sent it but fell on the crux. I was getting a bit tired and wanted to find something shorter.

Attaque des Aplats (7A) is all about slopers. These slopers are very easy to hold and I thought I could flash it but the beta is really weird. I didn't know what to do with my feet. It took me less than an hour though.

It was getting rather late and I headed back to the parking lot. From there, it would be a 45-minute bike ride through the forest so I needed the day light. But as I was going down the hill, I passed by L'Arête Dorsale and saw three German guys working on Concept (same rock). We started talking about that problem and I got motivated and wanted to give the trav one last chance. I tried the end, I got it right on my second attempt so I thought I could send it. Sitstart, shoe wiping and there I went! Thanks to these guys' encouragement and cheering on, I sent it very (keep telling yourself that, douchebag...) easily.

And this is where my adventure began. While I was giving the German guys some advise on a few sectors, it got quite dark and a few minutes later, I had to use my flashlight. By the time I reached the parking lot, it had gotten pitch black. So there I was, in the middle of the forest, just me, my bike, a flashlight and my map. Given that I didn't know the route, I tried the most direct trajectory. I turned right and started pedaling. But after 50 meters, I saw that the ground was not suitable for biking (and I've got a mountain bike, mind you). I gave it another try and went on for another 300 m but it got even worse. Back to the lot and onto another path. Same thing. The third one was better but I knew it would get bumpy after 2-3 kms so I was very skeptical. By then I couldn't see sh*t and my T-shirt could no longer keep me warm. Had I brought a sweater, I would have spent the night. I kept pedaling but even my 200-lumen flashlight couldn't handle the utter blackness. Reading the signs was very hard so I relied on my instincts and my map-reading skills. After 20 mins of pedaling on tree roots, rocks, cracks and fallen branches, I found a nice, paved path. I was safe! From there, I got to the city in 20-25 minutes.

The next day we went back to Aprémont Ouest. After sending Le Petit Phoque (7A), we looked around for other projects but almost everything was expo.

After that, we got to the Aprémont sector to try Knees (7A). We started with the 7B variant, Knees rallongé. I got the first crux immediately but given the distance of the holds, I couldn't get the next three moves right. After some tweaking, I found the right beta and sent the problem on my first try.

After walking a bit to see another project nearby, I went back to send the 7A variant, Knees. Oh yes, I flashed it! As you can see in the videos, I was very comfortable in the tough parts of the problem so the flash was no surprise.

I wanted to try another project, a mantle, but some light rain started falling and we were done for the day. At least this time I knew how to get back to the train station and I even beat my personal best: 37 minutes!