OutDoor

OutDoor is actually more InDoor, but it's all about outdoor stuff.

Last year was our first time on the fair, and this year we knew what to expect: loads and loads of new stuff, communication, people, people and more people.

Fun though, having the chance to discover all this new gear from all around the world.

Dennis visited the Netherlands first. We had a family reunion of the Van Hoek family. After we'd socialised enough we left for Ettringen.
Unfortunately it rained. So after warming up we had to bail :(
We drove to Stuttgart to climb indoors (and outdoors) before heading to Friedrichshafen.
Stuttgart has quite a big gym it's all lead climbing (in Dutch gyms we only toprope)
Fun for a good session in the evening!







The next day the spectacle started in Friedrichshafen.
Representing Petzl for the Netherlands, visiting our sponsors and a couple of potential new sponsors, chatting with fellow climbers from all over the world and discover whats new on the market.

And this is whats new (and loads of other stuff which I missed out on or wasn't interesting enough)

1. Scirocco helmet.
The lightest climbing helmet in the World. Won the big Gold medal for the innovative design on the OutDoor fair and so so light that wearing a helmet now becomes even more comfortable then going climbing without.
Details: magnetic clip system that allows you to undo and redo the chin strap with one hand. Available in 2 sizes. Lightweight adjustable system to fit the helmet perfectly on every head. Flexible so it doesn't break but just bends when a rock would it your helmet. So after an accident your helmet is still useful. Awesome!





2. Spirit quickdraw.
The best sportsclimbing quickdraw now got even better. Lighter and more ergonomic.
The shape has slightly changed. It's now even easier to clip in the rope and unclip the draw from the bolt because of the slightly changed shape.
The colours are slightly different, just a bit fancier and the sling is lighter but properly wide to make 'pulling draws' 'comfortable'.

3. Edelrid Snipe rope.
A rope that is light, thin, easy to hande but lasts longer then any other of the same thickness.
Why? The end you tie into your harness is thicker then the actual part that runs through your belay device. A very smart new threading system allows this.



4. Black Diamond X4
Nw BD cams, with a very flexible axle, so it says even better in place. Not (yet?) in all sizes, but just form grey to green.



5. Crux X1 Assault tent
A very durable tent with dyneema fibers for extra strength in the most 'horrible' storm conditions.
Handy detail: a loop in the top of the tent to thread a sling so on less safe places to attach yourself with a rope and your harness to the rocks without having to open your tent (and loose warmth, get snow and rain inside...)



6. Rubytec Survival band.
Dutch company Rubytec makes all kind of innovative small gear that looks like a funny goodie in the fist place but then turns to be super handy. Like the solar power and wind up powered lamp that is now in a glow-in-the-dark version so you can actually find it when it's dark.
And this bracelet made of super strong dyneema rope (holds 350kg). Good for all kinds of emergency uses.



7. Clothing and more:
We saw t-shirts that cool you down when it's extremely warm (Mountain Hardwear), super sticky viaferrata gloves and very fine waterproof jackets in nice colours (Outdoor Research), super durable alpine pants and the ever best sleepingbags, and down jackets (RAB), a new lightweight alpine climbing backpack (Lowe Alpine), the every cool 'Live Simply' shirts from Patagonia, anti-fog sunglasses from Adidas eyewear, all round climbing shoes from Five Ten, new Klattermusen jackets, trousers and LOADS more.

New RAB jackets

EOCA is the European Outdoor Conservation Association. They are the united association that connects a lot of different outdoor conservation funds, clubs, companies and federations.
Respect the Mountains, of which I'm ambassador is one of them.
Every year there is an organisation that wins an award for what they do in nature conservation.
This year Respect the Mountains won the Award! Including a 20k grant to spent on the 'EnviroTrack' initiative which I wrote about before.
Congrats RTM!!!
Also Petzl donates money to the EOCA.





Oh, yes and there was fun in between: the Petzl Roc Trip party and the minibike :)





And now another week in France before we'll drive (and float) to Iceland for a month full of trad, alpine and running!

Ettringen is niet Eng

Ettringen isn't scary.
Really, it's okay to fall in a cam.
...if you place it correctly, it the rock holds, if your foot doesn't slip, if you don't get tangled in the rope, if you don't pull out any holds, if it's not onsight, if it's not raining, if...

Last week I vistited Ettringen together with Frank Penders (pro photographer and climber) and maybe the most awesome climber in the Netherlands: Arvid Kegt.
Frank and Arvid wanted to know more about trad climbing. We invited ourselves for a long weekend to the German Basalt cracks.





It rained quite a bit but it gave us time to practise skills and figure what those weird devices are used for.
I thought them all about cams, nut, friends and their functions, differences and placements.
On the second day we vistited two different areas and figured we are all so chilled that we almost forgot that climbing is 'work'.
Frank and Arvid got more confidence in the cams and even dared to fall and place them in harder routes.
I was surprised how fast they developed the skills and got enough time to climb as well.








In the evenings we cooked a big meal together full of veggies and other healthy stuff.
After a day I felt we were already a team.
We never climbed outdoors together before but we just had so much fun!











In the weekend I decided to try 'Seepferdchen' and Arvid went onto another hard sports route that is beautifully situated on the corner of a Basalt pillar: Exquilibrium. 
Frank hung in the nice line called Harakiri just right of the other two routes.
I wanted to climb Seepferdchen with placing all gear. Toprope would be fake, with in-situ gear it's not the same either...
I failed on my lead attempt on the first day after I toproped the route quite easily.
So next day.



We had a good night and took it all easy in the morning. Slacklining, another cup of tea, good breakfast and some theoretical stuff about trad climbing.
And then...it started raining...
Like raining-raining.





I called my weather-channel (my brother Diederik knows a lot about weather forecasts because of his Windsurfing addiction) and figured it would stay bad for the rest of the day...
We decided to visit the nearby city Koblenz.
After a little drive a visit to the (boring) climbing shop we found a small coffee-bar in the Center of Koblenz: Kaffeejunge. The coffee was delicious and the brownie was perfectly tasteful.
What made it all even better was the surprisingly entertaining view.



The coffee bar is located just at the side of the actual shopping quarter. So it had a slight touch of the people visiting the shops and got the 'other' people walking by as well. People visiting the bank, the hairdressers, the University...
It became a blend of entertainment for us. The woman with the broken bike, the Chinese guy on the children's bike, the woman that cleaned the bank after closing hours (she was just perfect and did the classic bend-over for Arvid...he loved it...) We unfortunately figured that the German woman are not too pretty there.





Later we took a drink somewhere else and ate pizza.
Restdays are always hard when you really want to climb but this one was just fun!

The next day, our final day was fresh and good. I climbed Seepferdchen and Arvid realised he needs to train harder. He did a brave try in Seepferdchen and almost flashed it (with half in-situ gear), scared to let go and fall :)
Loads of unfinished things and new projects to try. So reason enough to visit Ettringen again next week.

Time to go home again, but with a little butterfly in my stomach. This weekend was good!

Home...in the flat country

After one 8a, some ED/ED+, hard boulders, long walks a 1/2 marathon offroad, loads of pasta&tomato sauce, many Alpine roads and 2 months without a shower...we're back home again.

But not after a quick stop in Kandersteg (sportsclimbing, mountain running and drytooling in the sun -yes, drytooling is a sport for all year round- ) and later a stop in Ettringen.

Yestderday was so hot that it was impossible to climb. Which made us go for a swim instead. Laacher see it was. After all this sitting, driving and baking in the sun I decided it was time for a bit of movement. A bit became a lot and became a test. Wondering how fit I actually was (I noticed I could run uphill for 50 mins on 1200m height without getting tired and doing an offraod mountain run for 1:10hrs without getting any muscle-soreness or sore knees)

So how far could I run on a warm evening? It became 27km in less then 2 hours. All offroad in the hills around the Laacher See. It's not advisable to try this when you didn't eat enough and forgot to drink the regular amount of water you need on a day... Though, I did. Next is of course to run a marathon, offroad in the mountains :) Which is 'nothing' if you compared it to what runners with the Mont Blanc ultra-trail will run this week.

This morning it was cold enough to try climbing. Around 8 in the morning we had our warm-up and around 12 we had to leave because of the pressing humid heat.

In between we climbed quite some things including 'magical project' Mut der Verzweiflung. I tried this route before and once I knew how hard it was and that it had never been climbed by a woman (at that time, now it's been climbed by German local Melanie). I'm not so good in 'tempering myself' so nervous as I was every time I'd get upon the route I just failed. Getting scared, pumped, unfocused, basically just far too nervous to climb it...

But now after a Summer full of trad (7a on 3000m height) I was just far too fit to miss out on this 'simple-almost-below-sea-level-climb-on-a-hill-instead-of-a-3000m-heigh-mountain'.

I toproped it as warmup and 'walked' through all the moves with surprising ease. And I knew I had to get on lead. Nervous. Shit. Trembling, shaky on my legs even before I made any move. I got pumped after 2 moves. Shit.

I belayed Dennis, went for a walk with him (he knew I got nervous...too nervous to climb...) and ate a waffle, drank some water and relaxed.

Ready this time.

I climbed it, had the right locks on the right places and even had time to relax and shake my arms. Not that I got pumped, it's just a habit: Chalk up, shake, look, chalk, shake, move, look, move, shake, climb, chalk, shake, chalk, move...I'm a slow climber.

But I did it. Gear on the right place and never scared, pumped or in trouble. So cool, it felt like climbing 6b!

I have to say, this is so much easier then 7a trad in a long long multipich :) Officially Mut der Verzweiflung is graded as 7b/7b+. I'm not so good in grading routes. I'd guess it's more a 7a. But thats just because it went so easy right now. Guess I'm fit :)

Now, home again, I have to work again. Earn some money and go out again as soon as possible!

Here the three last movies of the 'Summer climbing trip 2011'.

Ettringen instruction weekend

This weekend not just Ettringen climbing, but something more.

I was invited by the Dutch climbing federation (NKBV) to help with the course for trad-climbing instructors. So not just climbing, but teaching climbing as well this weekend.

And when it's about something more then just teaching how to belay it's fun! The group was motivated and ready to learn.

Together with UIAGM guide Michiel Engelsman, almost-trainee-guide Jelle Staleman, Arnoud, Sjors and Dennis we thought the group the refined skills of tradclimbing.

And where else should we go...Ettringen is perfect for such a course.

The weather was 'ok', rain on Friday, sun on Saturday and more rain on Sunday.

All 'students' are already trad climbers so I even had some time to climb as well.

Tried some beautiful cracks and even had the time to project...Flirtin' with disaster, just an 8+, but I don't understand the last moves! So if anybody can explain me how to stick the moves after the last bolt...?

And...for all who climb more often in the area here the route-updates for the topo.

Mayen

Ettringen

Kottenheim

You can print the PDF's and add them to the topo.

Pictures thanks to Sjors Verbrugge, René and Ernst.

If you think you're on one of the pictures in the video/on my blog, please mail me so I can sent you the picca :)

CEAT Meeting Ettringen

Last time when I visited Ettringen was during the Autumn meet of the Commission Expeditions Alpine Topsport (CEAT).
This weekend was warmer, sunnier... And it was again the CEAT meeting.

We climbed so much that I forgot to film. But, still some nice things to show.

Ettringen is such a special area. The hard but silky smooth basalt, the dirty ditches you climb in full of rubbish that's been taken back by mother nature, the trees growing leaves again, the cracks...

It was so good, a bit painful though on my hands and fingers ;)

I tried a really cool 9- (French 7b+) worked it once on lead, climbed it afterwards on toprope and red point it hopefully next time! The route is called 'Einsichten eines Morphinisten' and is located in the relatively new area Schwarze Zirkel.

I missed the "I love Problems" bouldering comp in Steep Part (climbing gym in Rotterdam) so I missed the chance to qualify for the Worldcup Boulder in Eindhoven. But, that all didn't matter as outdoor climbing is what it's all about and that's what I did this weekend. I love it!

Congrats to Rachel, Roelien, Rianne, Mirthe, Hans, Jesse, Melle and Wolter!

And all Dutch team members who will join the Worldcup in June!

And it wouldn't be succesful without a "little" video...

I selected some beautiful climbs and I wanted to show just the beauty of the area. So not much talking, but a lot of climbing. Enjoy!

CEAT Meeting Ettringen, Germany from Marianne van der Steen on Vimeo.

Das Auto

I sold my beautiful Ford Transit van.

And since I'm back in the Netherlands I try to do everything by bike, train or borrow my parents car. But I calculated all and figured it's more expensive to go by train then by car (why???)

So...the car search was on.

And this is the result: a really old (older then I am) Volkswagen Golf 1.

Diesel, sports style ;) pretty original colour, and road tax free. I drove all the way to the furthest corner of the Netherlands to buy it...

This weekend will be the big test: Ettringen. How will it do on the German highway?

Ettringen...again (3)

Yes, and again we went to Ettringen. Just for one day.

Way too warm to climb and not the focus to climb the things I wanted to climb :(

Sometimes I just have a day that things don't work the way I want them to work.

Then I get pumped after 3 moves,don't have the strength to do the crux of the line, get stressed by not climbing my project and frustrated, and then nothing works anymore. It's very annoying to have these days. Sometimes it works to take a break, but as we only had one day to climb, I couldn't really take a break.

Though, Rick and Dennis did a good job. Dennis climbed his first 7c: Diablo! And Rick did a very nice traverse over the Grosse Wand.

Later more, when I'm finished editing the little video :)

Ettringen...again

Ettringen last 2 days.

It was great: rain, cold, humid, but fun!

And I found myself two such cool things to do! Couldn't climb it today, but I'll definitely go back and get all my strength and power together to climb it!

Route 1: Diablo (1e Grotte, Modor) 7c on pure power. Bolted, long moves ok "ok" holds in a big roof.

Route 2: Mut der verzweiflung (Grossen wand) 7b/7b+, trad climb. Obvious crack line, very challenging but very possible. Only one woman has climbed it so far see Melanie climbing the route on basaltcracks.de

I made a little video of our climbing last days. Not the best video, but maybe fun to see :) (Thanks Vincent, Erik and Dennis for the images/video)

Who's up for Ettringen next week/next month/somewhere this year??? ;)