CLIMBING
On that trip you went on to climb Muy Caliente! (E10) ground up. Was that always the goal? James: Yes. And it was very stressful! Not simply because of the diffi culty of the route, but the anticipation. I’d been training for it for six months, putting in so many hours. It was so diffi cult to work out the optimum time to try it. After all, you only ever have one shot at the onsight. I was scared, worried and excited, and I had to get over this to test myself. Caro: I thought, he’s going to do it anyway, so I have two choices. I could try and persuade him not to do it, but he’s very stubborn so that wouldn’t work. Or I could train him, to make sure that he’s fi t enough not to fail, so I still have a boyfriend afterwards.
Caro, you’re no stranger to British trad now, having climbed E9. Any advice for other sport climbers wanting to try trad? Caro: I love trad now, but I’m no expert. The main thing to learn for a good sport climber, apart from the placement of the protections, is to know whether you are safe, or whether you have crossed the line into danger. And for that, there is only practice and time. So, I say just try it, but on easy, easy routes to begin!
What was harder: climbing E10 or planning your entire wedding and keeping it secret from Caroline? James: I think the wedding. It took me three months of secret planning, stress and a new email address to keep the wedding secret. Caro walked in and saw her friends, her parents, her family, her best friend. She was pretty confused. It took her fi fteen minutes to realise just what was going on. Caro: It was amazing. He was so good at keeping it a secret, I had no idea. I tell you one thing, if he wanted to have an affair, it would be the perfect practice.
“I WAS SCARED, WORRIED AND EXCITED, AND I HAD TO GET OVER THIS TO TEST MYSELF.”
So, Caro, you’ve climbed with some fantastic French climbers, how does James compare? Caro: I know a lot of climbers, but he is different. He’s very talented. He’s a super quick learner. Tell him one thing one time and he gets it. He’s also very aware of his body – you can tell that he was into skate sport as a kid. He’s also got amazing fi nger strength. He’s stubborn. Not patient. But if he has a project, he’ll always fi nish it, and that’s the main difference between a good climber and a pro climber.
OK, but what was he like before you trained him? Caro: He was over tensed and over gripping, like all British climbers, apart from Hazel Findlay. He also couldn’t place his feet – like all British climbers apart from Hazel. But he’s still got that British habit: “Oh my god, I’m pumped, 1,2,3 fall”. Being pumped doesn’t mean you have to fall, you can control it. Some people can do 70 more moves after they’re pumped. But not the British, they can hold on for three seconds. Still, he is improving – now he’s 1,2,3,4. He might even be 6 by the end of the year.
What’s the secret? What could a Brit climber do if they wanted to gain endurance? James: There’s only one way that I know of: marrying a French girl. Caro: You need to climb. You need to get pumped, all the time. You Brits build up super strength, but you need more than that. The French climber Jerome Mayer once said, “If you want to be good at something, you need to fi nd out what the question is, and then answer it.”
60 | 70TH ANNIVERSARY YEAR | FOR BRITISH CLIMBING AND WALKING SINCE 1944
V James on Muy Caliente!
R James on one of his E8 fl ashes: Daddy Cool (E8 6b), Carreg-y-Barcud, North Pembroke.
LIVING DREAM
THE
PHOTO: WILD COUNTRY.
PHOTO: WILD COUNTRY.
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