#WomenOutdoorsweek is here. We've asked real women to help us by telling us what they're doing in their climbing lives. Today we have Rosie Henstock's guide to getting better at trad climbing. [caption id="attachment_2822" align="aligncenter" width="300"] Me and my friends having just climbed Direct Route, Glyder...
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It is useful to carry some items to help deal with minor injuries when climbing. Emily Thompson, qualified Mountain Leader and Holme Valley Mountain Rescue team member, tells us what she would put in a first aid kit for a day out climbing or on the...
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If you live in an area of Britain with or near a national park the chances are you live in an area with a Mountain Rescue Team (MRT). Mountain Rescue is typically associated with areas such as the Lake District, Wales, and highlands of Scotland, but there are also teams operating in areas such as the South Pennines, Dartmoor and the Scottish borders – all providing search and rescue cover. Emily Thompson is a member of Holme Valley Mountain Rescue Team (MRT) and explain a bit more about what MR is and what you need to consider if you want to become and MRT member.
The second article in our Mountain Rescue Series. Previously Emily explained what a Mountain Rescue Team does and here she goes on to discuss what it takes to be a Mountain Rescue Team (MRT) member – the training, the considerations you should make before committing and a personal perspective of life as an active MRT member.
Before travelling to south America in March 2016 Stephanie Langridge had only ever climbed indoors in her local climbing and bouldering centres. She has been climbing for less than three years, yet in June 2016 she summited a 5686metre peak lovingly named The Bull, in the Cordillera Blanca mountain range, close to Huarez in Peru. How did she go from zero to a 5600metre summit in under 3 years? Last week Stephanie spoke to us about her journey. We’ve got some really important take aways that will really help you if you want to become more adventurous or if have been scared to do something different, so read on and, most importantly, leave Stephanie a message.
“I never thought I’d see you posting something like this.” Helen’s friends clearly didn’t think that rock climbing would feature in her life. Ever. Helen provide them wrong and has the photos to show it! If you think ‘sport isn’t for me’ or ‘climbing is only for people who are strong’, then read on….
If you’re someone who worries about how strength could affect your climbing, then you’re definitely not alone. So many beginners and more experienced climbers feel this too. This week, we’ve got a wonderful bio of Steph Heeley, who talks about all this stuff and tells us where she’s at now.
Steph at the Idwal Slabs in Wales
If you’re struggling to find inspiration from people like yourself, then you’re in the right place. We’ve got 8 places you can go for real, honest information from people who are into climbing and adventure (assuming that you want to stray away from womenclimb, that is :-))… Please let us know which one is your favourite.
Everest summit season started with earnest in May and is now coming to a close, having brought some outstanding climbing feats from women around the world. There are some absolutely unbelievable stories in here, from start to finish. I’m so excited to show these to you and to hear what you think. Who inspires you most from this selection of wonder women? What do you think?
Mount Everest
If you don’t understand bouldering, or are unsure about what it’s all about, then follow our contributor Emily Thompson on her journey of discovery, starting this week, with her thoughts on feeling like a fraud, having never been bouldering and having piles of insecurities about giving it a go. This is a live activity – Emily is reporting on her journey as she does it, so we have no idea how it will turn out or what she will discover. To learn more as her journey unfolds, sign up now to our newsletter and we will let you know when the next instalment is out.
Last year I was asked to put together a list of climbers ‘of note’ to help a member of staff working in an outdoor centre. The centre had a series of rooms, all named after male climbers and she wanted to encourage the inclusion of notable female climbers. If you’re curious about who’s on the list, read on. You might disagree, leave us a comment if you do!
‘It’s an example of ‘Type II’ fun’, she said. If you’ve never heard of it, Type II fun is something pretty special. Read on: Ella Williams, outdoor instructor, reveals her favourite climbing experience to us and explains why it means so much to her:
Are you new to the glorious world of climbing ? Bamboozled by the numbers and letters that are thrown around by people who sound like they know what they’re talking about? Fear not! Here’s our Handy Guide to Climbing Grades:
For my entire climbing life, I have climbed with an ACL injury. The Anterior Cruciate Ligament is one of a pair of cruciate ligaments in the knee, forming a cross shape with the Posterior Cruciate Ligament. It provides crucial stability to the knee, preventing the knee from twisting and rotating. You can find out more in this Youtube video about what the ACL is and what it does.
In August 2015 Beth Thomas went into hospital to have a repair of torn cartilage (also known as meniscus) in her left knee. This article series is about her journey, from hospital to getting back to climbing. Thank you to Beth for sharing. We would love to hear your comments about her journey – please tell us what you think about her story.
In August 2015 Beth Thomas had a repair of torn cartilage (meniscus) in her left knee. This is the final article in the series that charts her journey from hospital to getting back to climbing. We would love to hear your comments about her journey – please tell us what you think about her story. If you want to read the first parts you’ll find them here: Climbing Injuries // Meniscus Tear Repair: Part 1 & Part 2
In August 2015 Beth Thomas went into hospital to have a meniscus repair for torn cartilage in her left knee. In her last article she talked about the first part of her journey to recovery and the first weeks after her meniscectomy. Today she talks a bit about the realities of her recovery – the workarounds and the setbacks. Tell us what you think. If you’ve not read the previous article you can find it here: Climbing Injuries // Meniscus Tear Repair: Pt 1
By Penny Harvey:
‘An amazing climber who never failed to inspire those she met’
Rachel Slater touched the lives of many people. She squeezed more into her 24 short years than most people even dare to dream about. She wasn’t always fearless, but she was always brave, determined, kind and humble. She believed in many people more than they dared to themselves. Her passion and her character inspired many; those of us blessed enough to call her a friend will never forget her spirit. Here are some snapshots of her life from people who will continue to honour her memory.
Heather Swift, winner of the 2016 Women in Adventure Film Competition with her film Kosmos, gives us some tips for newbie film-makers. The competition will be re-launching very soon, so sign up to our newsletter today to find out about the competition first. So, you are...
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The outdoors can do amazing things for you, if you can find the thing that you really love. We love this film, featuring Traharn Chidley. It shows just how important men are in helping women up, giving support and encouragement when we need it most...
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By Natasha Hirst // I was a fearless child, and my favourite word was adventure. Often to be found up a tree, racing through fields and staying out on my bike all day, I always had an affinity for the outdoors. Sometimes though, life has a way of knocking the spirit of adventure out of you. 2015 has been my year to turn that around and release the active, carefree side of me once more.
By Rebecca Coles // When I began tentatively investigating the options for funding an expedition I was organising independently, I found that there were many more grants offering support than I expected. The expedition comprised a two person team going to eastern Tajikistan and the Wakhan Corridor, Afghanistan. Although the destination was a bit wacky, we only planned non-technical (single ice axe) ascents of mountains. I applied for funding, and was blown away when our expedition was actually given some money.
Womenclimb today launch their inspirational Indiegogo crowdfunding campaign. The Social Enterprise aims to raise £5,000 to fund startup costs, develop forums on their website and create a model for a sustainable business that women climbers love, making social change part of every day.
Climbing changes people’s lives and their inspirational film trailer gives you a flavour of what climbing has done for the women in the film. With quotes from recent climbing events, the film offers a glimpse into how life changing the sport can be.
If you, like us, want women’s gear and outdoor products to be better, then now’s the time to influence it directly. Adele Doran, Lecturer at Sheffield Hallam University, is researching just this and she needs you to complete this survey to get women’s ideas and thoughts to help influence outdoor provision for women:
Fill this in now and have your say!
Boulder problems, campus board and gym equipment at PT Hut Stockport
By Emily Pitts // I’ve only ever been to a gym twice in my life and I hated every moment. I felt like a fish in goldfish bowl and a fish out of water at the same time. I couldn’t get out fast enough. In fact the last time, I actually did a runner out of a class at a Virgin Active gym after 25 minutes, because I felt like my life was seeping away, it was so boring. I hate the gym. Hate hate hate it. I hate the idea of slogging away inside, when the weather is nice outdoors. I hate the idea of ‘working out’ with a bunch of muscle bound men who want to gawp at my sweating, heaving, struggling body, while showing off their massive pecs, as I struggle away picking up a 5kg weight.
Tiffany Stoneman posing and cooling down after a long old walk in! before her first multi pitch climb in Mallorca
By Tiffany Stoneman // Climbing is a complex sport. It requires stamina of body and mind, the ability to haul your weight up vertical cliffs, and the mental stability to take on huge challenges that can incur risk. It is a sport/activity/hobby that has been around for longer than you might think, and is slowly but surely coming into the mainstream as an awesome way to get fit and see the world. Not only this, but it can be hugely competitive, and these competitions are gaining an increasingly global audience, recently helped by an attempt to get sport climbing into the Olympics. Overall, climbing is a pretty badass thing to do, and the ones who do it tend to be pretty badass too!
By Jacquie Budd ‘It's important for me to have something else alongside climbing so that when I need a break, I have something else to go to…’ The name Leah Crane has always seemed synonymous with climbing. Through my 18 years of climbing there have been numerous articles...
Read MoreFran Brown is Awesome. Here's a re-post of a short article about Fran from 2013. Over two months ago I was scrolling through Facebook and came upon this post… In a slightly over excited manner I shot to my car and drove to the centre desperately trying...
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By Emily Pitts // Writing a climbing guidebook is not a moneymaking exercise, more likely the opposite. Unless the climbing area is in vogue and has been for a while, the author is likely to make little or no money at all. This is especially...
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