We all know the Cape climbers are bad-ass trad hard machines but it looks like the rest of the country is trying to close the gap.
I noticed (on 8a) that, over the last weekend:

Brian Weaver and Alex Bester did the Final Cut (25) at Mhlabatini
Ebert Nel did Glory Road (25) also at Shlabbs
Scott Sinclair, Candice Bagley and myself did The Flames of Sunset (25) at Monteseel

The 8a table on climb.za almost had a full house of trad routes on display - a nice change.

Like!

I'm glad to see that Candice is getting back to her pre-injury awesomeness!

Bring on the trad climbing!

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I hate this real world place... I'd be more than happy to live out there rather...

Like + Clinton working a new project on TM


Clinton Martinengo cuts loose on his new project 'Atomic Sky' on Fountain Ledge, Table Mountain. Pic by Garrreth Bird.

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Climb ZA - Administrator

Nice to see you still slamming the hard routes Roger!! Awewsome.

And Cameron Smith eschewed the 16 bolts on the inimitable "Mojo Rising" (21) at Fordyce (EC) , tradding it in fluid style.

mark seuring opened a grade 28 line on one of the lower buttresses of Table Mountain a while ago. Not sure if that got into any headlines (in true trad style).

This year has also seen a change for the hardest line on Lions head twice- trad naturally- with more changes to come I'm sure.
I think because change is normally a slow thing people don't notice it. I mean, the RSA economy has doubled in 10 years, yet people still say things haven't changed fast enough.

I am surprised not to see head pointing not taking more of a presents with the younger guys: I think it is poo pooed enough by the older guys that people don't do it, but just like bolts progress climbing, so will head pointing progress trad

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Sandbagging is a dirty game

I'm keen to do Boa Rodeo (31) and Mlungu Goes to School (32) next week. Both are unrepeated. However, I am yet to find a person who is willing to join me for the mission of working these monsters.

Any volunteers?

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I hate this real world place... I'd be more than happy to live out there rather...

To keep myself sane while I wait for my knee to recover, I have been scouting out/cleaning new lines on TM. Maybe 16 days of work to date. So far my guess is that 4 of them will be harder than 27...
Psyched!

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One life, one body. Use them well.

We are busy opening a mod-core route on Lower buttress's, TM goes at 23
And we have another 6 lines to finish, cleaning, climbing them, family, ARF and jobs are preventing us from doing it quicker!

Cormac

Nadine Methner and I got spanked on Prime Time Direct at Yellowwood today and I think it is a sandbag at 24. I know the tricks, I know the gear and I am reasonably YW fit seeing as I have been there 4 times in 3 weeks and did Armageddon Time last week with Tony Dick which is sandbag 23. It still beat me in near perfect conditions and we bailed at the halfway ledge.

It is harder to on-sight - I think - than Uber Huber 25+. So all you Natalians and Gautengers and Capies, the challenge is on again. A bottle of Lagavulin if you on-sight it and I shall even give you the gear beta as it is seriously out there and very scary but is is not dangerous if you get the correct gear.

Oh an it is even a reach move!

Remember this is coming from a TATWOCIAN age 54 next Thursday who is seriously vertically challenged.

..... So no excuses you younguns....

It is very pleasing to see climbers out placing gear being "old school". I seem to have picked up a trend in photos I have seen of climbers doing hard sport routes on trad, and/or doing old established trad routes with some bolts in place which are not used. Perhaps they were 'working' bolts. While I am impressed by the efforts, the fact that the bolts are present and can be clipped at anytime makes the ascent less impressive.