New Year, New Oppertunities

So, I'm not gonna lie, the end of 2010 could not have dragged on any further. At the beginning of December, I had competed in the second Dark Horse. Something was wrong that day; I was lacking the strength and power I usually possess. I thought that it was just a bad day, everyone has those once in awhile. A few days later it dawned on me that something must be terribly wrong.

I had gone to Farley the day after Dar Horse which may have been a terrible idea. I was spent and had no energy to climb. I was also freezing. I like the warmth and being in 20 degree weather, shivering, with torn down muscles definitely did not help my condition. The following week was no better. I was very sore and had no will to climb, which is very rare for me.

I soon realized that my muscle was not recovering from the Dark Horse. I got a bunch of blood tests done but everything came out negative. This was very frustrating because I still had no reason as to why I was sucking. The last week of December I had a week off from school and literally spent every day sleeping and eating. I realize now that these two very basic tasks were what I was lacking through December. I was not eating enough and my body was also trying to get used to the cold. Also, sleeping only 6 hours a day was not helping my condition.

As the Snooki ball dropped and the year 2011 began, I decided to take a new approach to my resting. I am my own coach and have been neglecting my basic human needs these past few weeks. Nationals is coming and there is no room for stupidity. I am telling you my tale of trouble so that you readers don't fall into this rut. NEVER ignore your body. The fact that I ignored my body's necessities to the point of muscle failure is terribly wrong!

So, I am sorry body. I will never ignore your needs again. It's a new year, new opportunities. Time to train to send those v10's!!!!

Dark Horse #2

December 4th 2010, the second of the three part dark horse series begins. I had a fair amount of sleep and was stoked to climb when I woke up around 9:30am. In the month of November, I really focused on my strength. A week before December 4th I had torn down all of my upper body muscle and am now in the process of recovery. Needless to say, the comp was exhausting. Saturday was literally the worst day I've ever climbed and the hardest I've ever tried. It is frustrating, the feeling of failing when you know just 2 weeks ago you could flash this. All in all, it will pay off and my lack of strength did not turn my psyche down one bit! Competing in finals against Francesca Metcalf, Natasha Barnes, and Emma Chilton was so fun, and kept the finals round alive.

Now to sum up the Dark Horse in writing is next to impossible. So, I would like to show this video of the December 4th Dark Horse highlights. This video was taken/edited by my good friend Nick Steinwachs, props to a great recap!!

Dark Horse Comp HIGHLIGHTS - December 2010 from Eastern Climber on Vimeo.



Props to all of the competitiors and Metrorock's crew for putting on a great show!

Rock On!

So I recently got sponsored by a new company called Rock On! I'm so pumped!!! Rock On sells good quality products for a low price. I recently got their softshell jacket last week and I have barley taken it off since. It's so comfy! Anyways, I'm psyched because this company is great and I am proud to call them my first sponsor!
Rock On is releasing more products along with the softshell, t-shirt, and chalk bag lines they already have. I'm pumped to see the new products and wear them around.


For more information about Rock On, go to www.rock-on.com

Who Needs Hueco= Sent!

Sunday November 14th, Lincoln Woods.
It was the 4th day I had spent sleeping in for 12 hours, sleep that was much needed! I felt good, like I was having a fresh start. Along with the massive amount of sleep, I also received a new pair of 5.10 dragons! I was ready to break those babies in and get some climbs done!

Saturday night my friend Josh calls me begging to go to Pawtuckaway. Now, I love pway, don't get me wrong. But  had unfinished business in Lincoln Woods that needed to be taken care of. First off, I needed to stick the last move on the Executioner (v6). The last time I tried that thing was on an 80 degree day which was very unforgiving. Lastly, I needed to send Who Needs Hueco (v8). I was obsessing over the low percentage dyno and super sucky heel hook and had spent 5 days projecting it. After a week off, I felt ready.

So back to Sunday. I ditched Josh....sorry bud. Got a good sleep and was off! As soon as I stepped into the woods I went over to the Executioner. I laced those dragons up and got on the climb........In like 30 seconds I had topped out the Executioner and just sat there thinking "Okay, I just day flashed/warmed up on my project.....I LOVE the fall!"

Now, Who Needs Hueco. Who needs it right? Why, with this amazing lowball and low percentage dyno I could spend all of my days in the woods with the homeless creepers and be happier than any day in Hueco.........................JUST KIDDING. Anyways, after like 10 go's I finally got the dyno....with a foot dab. 5 more gos and I stuck the dyno....but somehow managed to get pumped out and fall topping out. With fists of rage and a chug of water, I got on it a few more times and sent right before the sun went down! Ohhh so happy!! That thing is done, my first v8 outside! I am glad I sent it because falling on the topout is something my friends would've never let me live down!

Cheater Cheater Pumpkin Eater

So I went to the Dark Horse competition Metrorock threw yesterday...before I go on let me just say that it was a pretty sweet comp! Props to the setters and to all of the Metrorock crew who made it a great show!

Now as most of you know, most climbing competitions have a redpoint format. In this format you are to mark your falls and when you finish, you must get two signatures as proof that you did the climb. So basically it is the honors system. It seems as though this would work out but, if a kid is offered the chance to win 50 bucks...things can get a bit crazy. Yesterday I saw multiple people cheat; whether it was putting down fake signatures on climbs that they didn't do or not marking their attempts. Because of this nonsense, kids that actually put an effort into competing in qualifiers while being truthful did not gain their time in the spotlight.

TO ALL THOSE WHO MAY HAVE CHEATED: Let me just remind you that this is a local rock climbing competition, not the NFL aired on TV. It is one little competition that is going to mean nothing in the long run. Climbing is just taking off and there is basically nothing to gain from trying to win in a junior finals competition like this. So, what, you win 50 bucks? Well that just paid for your competition fee and maybe a couple of cliff bars. If you want to win that money so bad, go shovel snow for some elderly neighbors. That way you gain the strength you didn't have to actually qualify and you make money at the same time.

Props to anyone who didn't cheat; that is what is going to move this sport in the right direction!

Black and White Photography

So I've been really busy lately. Recently, all of my time has been dedicated to climbing, coaching, and photography. I have been in the dark room for only about 10 hrs and had only got about 4 good developed photos. Along with those four I have about 10 crappy ones. Instead of just throwing the crappy photo away, I've decided to "recycle" it and use the photo to experiment. Here's the results of some of my "experiments".....

Black and White faded

Black and White with marker

Black and White scratched

 All of these photos were taken in black and white with 400speed film and developed by none other than me......more to come!

Lincoln Woods...In the dark?!

Nick Steinwachs

So last Wednesday I was in school, looking out the windows, longing for freedom. When I walked into school around 7 am, the weather was brisk and there were clouds in the sky. Well when school FINALLY ended, the sun was out and it was a nice 70 degree temperature!

Now Wednesdays are a good day. Its the day in between coaching at CRG and its also my day to play on the rocks after school. So school ended, 70 degrees and I carefully pull out of the school parking lot (which is very hard to do when 900 kids are trying to leave at the same time).

At last! Nice rock...as nice as lincoln woods can be anyway. The weather made the rock slightly less greasy which led us to project at the try again boulder. After getting on my project Loadies Zen, then having my hand slip and hit me in the face, I decided to take some photos. By this time the sun was setting and it was past the optimal time for pictures. Let me just say, that time of evening is the best time to experiment! I never use a flash but for this circumstance it sufficed.

The dark and light contrast came out better than I expected and made me want to share my photos with you!
So take a look and comment!

And finally, if you are going to climb in Lincoln Woods after dark: bring headlamps, don't go alone, and ignore the creepy teddy bear that is just chillen in the middle of the road.

Josh Zayas

Steve Wong- Loadies Zen

Nick Steinwachs

Nick Steinwachs on Loadies Zen

Steve Wong on Loadies Zen