Bouldering Nationals 2012

Yesterday, April 14th 2012, the Austrian Bouldering Nationals were held in Kitzbühel, Tirol.

This year I decided to take a break of the comp scene because I am doing my diploma at Uni besides working half time so there would not be much room and time flexability for comps and I'd rather spend my free time on the rock than on comp walls. But the nationals were one of the events I wanted to attend anyway so I was well excited when the day came and we drove to the comp site.

discussing beta

I trained a lot indoors the past months and felt in good shape, but had no clue what to expect, just that making finals would be a cool thing. With 44 starters in the male category, of which the best 8 would advance into the last round, it seemed like quite a challenge! The growing amount of strong comp boulderers and kids in the last years is just crazy!!

The quali went really well, I was able to top out 5 of the 8 problems and qualified for finals on 5th place, very pleased!

worst enemy

time check

A couple hours later the finalists got introduced on stage and shortly after the first climber was on the wall. The atmosphere was cool, there was a nice crowd watching and cheering, the DJ played some classic austrian country style music which sucked a bit I have to say, but nothing's perfect.... In the final round we had to climb 4 problems in onsight mode, meaning you have 5 minutes time to climb the first problem, 5 minutes rest, then 5 minutes time for the second one, etc.... This means that you better do problems fast or you'll get really pumped, 5 minutes rest is not much!

The first problem was a tricky slab I think only two climbers were able to do in the end, I wasn't one of them and got shut down there. On the second problem, an overhang with slappy, powerful compression moves of a style I prefer, I hustled arround on my first tries, got high up on my last try when the time run out and I endend up being totally pumped without making it to the top!






The third problem was amazing: a jump start on two opposing slopers, followed by some big compression (again!) moves to the top. Still tired I just couldn't crush it right away and tried hard my full 5 minutes falling after the bonus hold (a hold up half the climb that counts in the ranking), completely out of juice... No top still.

Volume wrestling on problem 4

The last problem was the hardest of them all. You had to make your way arround a huge corner to get to the bonus hold and then mantle your way up a chimney to the top. Yet again this bloc was super powerful!! On my best try I was in a good position to go arround the volume but missed a toe - hook that you were supposed to place in order to get to the bonus and fell. This cost me my 5th place I made in the qualifiers and I ended up 7th after finals. Kili (Fischhuber) once again showed his amazing skills and power, flashed the first three problems and won the title! 2nd, 3rd and 4th each did one top.

How do you do this one?! Curious looks after the last problem.

It was a really intense and fun day in Kitzbühel! I am having the harshest muscle-ache in quite a while as I type this... one hell of a compression work-out it was!! A good thing to make use of on some projects of the same style on rock that I have in mind, so stay tuned!

Just gotta do some streching now to hopefully get outa bed in a smoother manner tomorrow than I did today...

Emi

Pics by Flo Murnig, www.dynamo.at