Jay was in town last weekend and he coaxed me into a day at Necedah (the coaxing did not take a large effort on his part). I was psyched, but tentative about getting on Whiskey after a long hiatus over the winter. I had been training, but not enough, and did not want to feel like I had gone totally backwards on the thing. I decided to put a top rope on the route and see how things went. I took my time rapping down the route; cleaning holds, hanging draws and trying to remember all of the route's intricacies along the way. As I descended familiar holds triggered faint memories of the movements that would link them, my muscles twitched in anticipation and my mind slipped easily from its chaotic wanderings into a calm and focussed state. I have completed each of the movements to link all of those familiar holds. Taken as individuals, or even as pairs none of them is too difficult, but stacked, one-after-the-other, for fifty unrelenting feet, with virtually no chance of rest - well, one comes to understand how a candle can melt without ever having its wick set aflame.
03/14/15 (weight 177.6, AMRHR 56)
My first go on top rope was, to say the least, rough - I was rusty. I struggled on the start of the route, a section, that while easier than the rest of the route, I have never managed to wire. My prior neglect of this easier portion left me struggling through it...desperately trying to remember the path of least resistance. I came off repeatedly, but eventually worked my way up to, and through, all of the harder moves on the route. I came away feeling slightly demoralized.
The second go was much better, I climbed straight through to the crux, fell off, and then hung my way to the top. It was a good go, and things felt like they were coming along well.
The third go was ugly, I was worked from the day's accumulation, and the day prior. It was clearly time to call it a day and head home.
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