Climbing Gym Madness

Last night Tracy and I went out to SportRock, in Sterling, VA. It took us a little while to get started, as we had to pass a belay test before we could start belaying each other, and Tracy couldn't remember how to tie a in-line figure eight knot, or set up a belay.... (She's gonna argue that point when she sees this.) Eventually she re-learned all this stuff and we passed the test and started climbing. The first route we tried was a 5.8, and it was one of the tallest routes in the gym. For the record, the hardest route I've completed on real rock is a 5.4, but the location is notorious for sandbagging difficulty.

The route was.. well, err, okay, I'll say it. Tracy couldn't finish it. She got just below the halfway mark the first time and peeled off. The second time, she got up about the same, and then her third try, she got up above the halfway mark, and her arms gave out. I lowered her back down.

I, well, I made it on my first try. I have pretty much zero technique, though, so I relied on my arms waaay too much, but I finished the route. Once done, Tracy grudginly lowered me, but she hung me in the air for about 6 seconds waiting to start. I'm sure it was petty jealousy of my 'mad skilz'. We did another two routes and a few bouldering problems on their wall before we left, about 10:00 PM. We were both wiped, and my arms are still a little tired. At least today we got to just relax by the pool and swim for a few hours.