And the winner, scooping top prize in this year’s ‘Be in my calendar’ competition, is Alastair Smith from Chester. The competition on top UK climbing website, www.ukclimbing.com, was to find a willing victim to feature alongside the good and the great in climbing:10, next year’s climbing calendar.   more »

Steve McClure’s summer mission continues, at a pace, with a rare repeat of Ben Moon’s Raven Tor test-piece, Hubble (F8c+). Steve sent Hubble on one of the hottest days last week when humidity was well high and most people were reduced to thrashing around and complaining about the shocking conditions!   more »

Acting on a half-decent forecast, Steve McClure was keen to head into the (Welsh) mountains last Saturday on a mission to boldly go where (few) had been before. But straining under rucksacks bulging with climbing and camera kit we weren’t travelling light nor fast. Chances were that the walk-in would kill us never mind the climbing!   more »

It’s calendar competition time again where YOU get the opportunity to appear in climbing:10, my climbing calendar for next year. UKC, www.ukclimbing.com, are sponsoring a page in climbing:10 and the comp winner will be photographed specially for the occasion.   more »

Just days after climbing onto the podium at the British Bouldering Championships at Cliffhanger to claim a very credible third place, Gaz Parry got his harness on and rope out and nailed a rare repeat of the Kilnsey North Buttress classic, True North (F8c).   more »

Cliffhanger in Sheffield, billed as The UK’s Biggest Outdoor Event for Outdoor People, has once again delivered a great weekend of wall-to-wall climbing action and fun. The two-day event saw a new world record dyno jump from Skyler Weeks and a real cliffhanger of a finish to the British Bouldering Championships which were won by Ned Feehally and Leah Crane.   more »

In case you haven't been down to your nearest climbing wall or shop recently, the July edition of Climber has been out for a wee while now sporting a cover image and destination article by yours truly to the Canadian Rockies. As our cousins from across the pond would say, I’m totally stoked with the spread!…   more »

On Thursday last, Drew Haigh pulled the crux of Mark Leach’s 1988 Malham test-piece, Cry Freedom (F8b+) to join the handful of climbers who have succeeded were all else have failed to get closure. Drew was understandably chuffed and happily shared his delight with those at the crag. In a quirk of faith, I was at Malham in 1988 when Leach ended his monumental 46 day siege and I recall that his were truly Cries of Freedom! Drew, by comparison, took a mere six redpoints over five days to nail the route.   more »

A week after the UK’s favourite climbing internet site, UKClimbing.com, linked to my blog entry Mecca: A Route in Crisis, the total page pull-downs were so high that it bust my bandwidth allowance and closed my blog down! All I can say is thanks dudes – no really, I’m serious...   more »

Peak District sport climbing cognoscenti are holding their breath at the moment as Mecca F8b+, one of Raven Tor’s most famous routes, enters its second week on the critical list! Twenty years after Martin Atkinson’s first ascent, the starting block of his test-piece route is in grave danger of falling to bits. Climbers are currently staying off the route whilst the ‘repair committee’ hastily muster their thoughts and resources’!   more »

The 2009 edition of Tribe, the Go Ape! in-house magazine, features a 6-page spread of top wads from a variety of adventure sports including an image from my collection of Steve McClure on his Malham mega route, Overshadow.   more »

Rockfax’s latest edition of their award-winning guide, Western Grit, has hit the shelves with a double page spread of Upper Tor Wall (HS) from my Kinder collection used as the opening shot...   more »

Some big guns were out at Malham over the bank holiday though as it turned out the weather was a major player as well.   more »

I’m blown away to be one of the four photographers featured in the cover story, Vertical Take, in the latest edition (29th April 2009) of the British Journal of Photography (BJP). Vertical Take, is a behind-the-scenes look at ‘climbing with the mountaineering photographers’…   more »

For the first time in a long time I’m mourning the end of winter months and the onset of warmer weather. As a committed sport climber the sweet smell of lower-offs should be wafting up my nostrils now that just about all the (usually) seepage-ridden limestone crags are dry. And I am psyched by the lime as my earlier blog about Malham will attest. True be told though, I’m still hankering after one more grit tick; not any old grit tick mind, one that’s been on my list for a while…   more »

A Grand Day Out, a magazine supplement with a twist, was published with Climb Magazine and was stuffed with images from yours truly.   more »

As the climbing season gets underway and people start putting their climbing plans together I’ve spent a bit of midnight oil getting the very latest Climbing FactFiles sorted and up on-line…   more »

On the hottest day of the year so far, Malham was a veritable white-hot caldron of limestone yesterday. The sky was a cloudless deep azure blue, the wind conspicuous by its absence and the crag was almost bone dry...   more »

I’ve spend pretty much all the 2008/09winter out night-time bouldering both for pleasure (yes I know that sounds perverse!) and to pull together Night Raiders, an illustrated piece published in Climber Apl|09.   more »

Though I say it myself, I’m chuffed with the front cover of February’s edition of Climber which features an image of mine of Ben Bransby on the second ground-up (third overall) ascent of James Pearson’s Burbage North testpiece, The Promise...   more »

So hands up who didn’t suffer over Chrimbal from an excess of turkey, mince pie, chocolate and festive beverages? The question is though did you get out and get some action in?   more »

Today, the Brit Grit Boys staged the start of the fight back in the wake of the recent Team America onslaught. In a stunning ground-up effort over the weekend a trio of well-known upwardly mobile gents laid siege on The Promise, James Pearson’s Burbage North test-piece   more »

climbing:09 has been shipping out for nearly two weeks now and feedback has been coming back in…   more »

Following the tsunami that blasted Raven Tor on Tuesday last, it was business as usual there today – or was it? The usual bunch of Saturday Snorers gathered just after nine and it seemed as though we were in for a rare treat...   more »

Printworks in Sheffield, are well on with the business of printing, collating, folding, binding and shrink-wrapping half a tonne or so of calendars and year planners/posters. The latest eta for climbing:09 and the 2009 Year Planner/Poster is that it will be back and ready to roll out...   more »

Yesterday a tsunami blasted Raven Tor in the Peak District. I refer, not to something generated by the weather, but to top American climber, Mr David Graham who is currently in the UK as part of his European lecture tour. On one of the soggiest days so far this autumn, Dave Graham blew into the Tor...   more »

Take an uber enthusiastic event organiser and various sponsors together with a couple of dozen exhibitors and retailers, some ‘try-me’ sports providers, a wacky reverse-bungie-jump rig, many of the best boulderers in the country, a collection of wanabee Peter Pans and put them all into a town park in the midst of the wettest year on record for some time and what do you have...?    more »

Steve McClure, one of the UK’s best known and highest performing rock climbers, has just sent the third ascent of ...   more »

peak district : climbing, a new selected guide to the best easy-grade climbing in the Peak District, has just been published by Vertebrate Publishing. KSP was pleased to supply the majority of the crag images for the guide as well as number of action and incidental shots...   more »

I jumped onto the sport climbing band-wagon shortly after it started rolling in the mid 80’s and, save for winter/spring bouldering forays and the odd ‘away-day’ on the grit or in the mountains, I’ve been sport climbing ever since. Burning considerable midnight oil in the process, I eventually managed to shoe-horn as many tips and techniques that I’ve not forgotten into...   more »