can't sleep 'cause I'm THINKING about CLIMBING

Dave Graham on Petrichor 8C (V15)   Petrichor 8C is a boulder problem in Rocklands, South Africa, first solved by Dave Graham. What's special about it is that, apart from small crimps and compression climbing, the method of the first  ascensionist included a bat hang, i.e. a double toe hook above your head. It's a clear choice when going from two bad opposing holds, which are possible to hold using compression between them, to a jug. It's really hard to let go of one hand, unless you can change it for a foot, for instance using a heel hook, to maintain tension on the other hand. But so long as you squeeze both holds, you can move your lower limbs around, all the way above your head. Once you have two feet toe hooking on a big hold you can basically let go with your hands.

How often can we see a top climber explaining a route they are working on with something that goes along this line: "the headwall is not that hard, but it's technical climbing". They spent several sessions polishing the heel hooks, the toe hooks, the timing of dynamic moves, the nuances of generating momentum on the meat of this overhanging beast. They did the final slab second go. It had three bad footholds and a weird crossover move on sharp crimps, but this is the technical climbing, not the overhanging part. I just don't get the logic here.   A sketchy slab and a straightforward overhang. Or the other way around? Photos by Sophie Grieve-Williams and Hu Chen on Unsplash .   To be honest, sometimes I'm not sure what people mean by technical climbing. There are so many different techniques, is it like anything but ladder climbing? It's even used in contradictory contexts, some people say "it's technical" when it's easy climbing, others wh...