Last week they aired the final episode of the second season of Ninja Warrior Sverige (Sweden) and while no one finished André Sihms and David Johansson got the furthest, falling at the same spot on the ultimate cliffhanger. Congrats to them and all my fellow competitors as it was a lot of fun.
As for my performance, I did manage to be among the 25 competitors that made it to the finals but I consider anything short of finishing the whole course a disappointment. Those that saw the final episode witnessed me punting on an "easy" obstacle and while I have plenty of excuses for my failure it simply comes down to a lack of preparation and execution.
I do admit that I was in worse shape than last year but the nice thing about being a climber is that my base fitness level would have been more than enough to complete every obstacle pretty easily if I didn't do anything stupid. The real crux was more a matter of focus as I was there alone with Björke and wrangling a one year old doesn't really give you much time to concentrate (or sleep for that matter). So it goes. In season 1 I walked away feeling cheated and this year I left feeling like a big disappointment. The plus side is that I'll be better prepared for next year and I'll certainly put in some time learning to use those little trampolines.
Here are the Youtube clips of my "semi-final" run and a very short "finals-stage 1"
You can catch a glimpse of Björke at the beginning and end of the clip. I'd like to think that his crying was just his way of yelling support for his dad....
It would have payed to familiarize myself with those little trampolines. I knew I had a bad hop from the get go and had to change trajectory mid air. Unfortunately this forced me to grab the net low with straight arms which is not the way to do it. I guess I was stressing over the time but I should have taken a couple moments to do it right. Sucks to fail on something you've never had a problem with before.
It might have something to do with the crap weather in England but I still haven't fully transitioned back since our trip to Sweden. It's always a little unfortunate when your climbing psyche is for boulders that are a long way away. Since returning I've found myself looking at old pictures/videos from Bohuslän and jonesing to be back. Man I love that place. Anyways, I thought I'd share a few pictures from Bohuslän to entice and motivate folks.
And for those that don't know, every blogpost is labeled by country, city/town and region/area so if you want to see all the posts from Bohuslän (or somewhere else) just scroll to the very bottom and click on the appropriate label. I wanted the blog to function like a climbing reference of sorts and at some point I'll make it more user friendly. Hope you enjoy the little photo tour of Bohuslän
Most of the areas in Bohuslän are small but the quality of problems are often exceptional. This problem is located at an area consisting of only a few boulders but they are well worth the visit. I can't remember the name of this problem Kim is doing but it is classic.
Sunshine Arete is a problem I miraculously managed to FA on a warm summer day and is located at the same area as the previous problem.
This granite cave has serious potential for some hard enduro lines. Two of the three most obvious straight-outs are done and here John works on the undone project. We almost did all the moves that day but have never been back.
Another shot of John on the same project. The next move is the one we never managed to do.
Abiyoyo is one of my all time favorite FAs and I even did a whole blogpost about it. As far as I know it still hasn't seen a second ascent.
Sioux City Sarsparilla is one of my FAs that actually see lots of traffic as it is regarded as one of the best in Bohuslän. This one also gets it's own blogpost and there is even a video of the FA.
Yet another FA, Cuerop de Hombre can also be counted among the best in Bohuslän. It is located in Häller, which is considered the epicenter of climbing in Bohuslän for both bouldering and trad-climbing. There is also an old video of the FA.
Hippopotamus is another classic problem in Häller. This power-endurance problem has alluded me and is one of the established problems I'm most excited about getting back to.
Incredible rock, world-class bouldering and spectacular settings combine to make Bohuslän one of my favorite places in the world.
I tend to put an emphasis on harder problems as the sparsity of grips and general blankness that make climbs beautiful also tends to make them difficult. Fortunately Bohuslän hold lots of amazing moderates as you don't have to be a crusher to enjoy the climbing. Here Spang demonstrates how it's done on his classic problem Falsifierbarhet.
And for those of you that are crushers there are plenty of projects to be had. This particular project will require strong fingers and a good head as the hold gradually get smaller the higher you get.
This project should have been done years ago but we've never been back to it as one needs a boat to reach the island. One of these day.......can't wait to return to Bohuslän.
It's funny how you sometimes have to leave a place before you can really appreciate it. I always thought the climbing on Sweden's west coast was exceptional but it wasn't until it was no longer my backyard that I realized how incredibly good I had it. We just arrived back in England after a whirlwind 3-week vacation in Sweden and I'm missing the place more than ever. I wish I had more time to revisit all the places I love but instead I'll just have to look at pictures......
Here are a few photos from the first week of our trip spent in the mecca of Swedish climbing that is Bohuslän. It was awesome going back to some of my favorite areas and I even got to explore and put up a couple new problems.
Johan on the classic Beach Bum at South Beach. South Beach is a small area that has several great problems right on the beach
Another shot of Beach Bum that shows the idyllic setting.
About 50 meters of water separates the sand of South Beach from a small island called Blåbergsholmen. We spent an afternoon exploring and found quite a bit of climbing, with a couple walls that are well worth a return trip. I only actually managed to do this one new problem as it took more time and effort than anticipated (and I was shut down on the other things I brushed up).
The first move of North Beach is a dyno to the lip of the roof. A lower start is possible for those with long arms and strong fingers.
The 2nd to last move is the crux, requiring a long reach from an odd "crimp-mantel". Good times.
Another idyllic climbing area in Bohuslän is Ulorna. While Ulorna is known primarily for its trad-climbing there is also some top-notch bouldering and an impressive amount of potential. Of course if you're looking for fa's here you'll need to be bold, fix some landing or have plenty of pads as most of the boulders are located in a jumble at the base of the cliff.
Markus on Lego,one of the few problems in Ulorna I know the name of.
This hanging arete is rarely done despite having a decent landing. Maybe it's the locker heel-hook and tenuous moves at the top that deters people.
Not all the development in Ulorna requires lots of pads. I brushed up this one because I could climb on it by myself. I ended up figuring out all the moves but never pieced it together. Here Jesper tries to find purchase in the summer heat.
This striking arete/dihedral has seen some attention in the past but to my knowledge it had never been done. We spent about 3 hours figuring out some cryptic beta that leads to a committing windmill-dyno at the top. I managed to send by the skin of my teeth and I'm calling it Apple Bomb.
On Thursday they aired last episode of Ninja Warrior Sweden and now that it's all over I can share my thoughts on how it all went down.....
Of the 125 that started Ninja Warrior Sweden 65 made it past the first course and only 17 completed the second, though a total of 25 would advance to the "finals". Of those 25 people only three (Alex, David and myself) completed the finals Stage 1 and advanced to "Stage 2". Here is a clip of my completion of Stage 1.
As for Stage 2, those that watched the final got a glimpse of what happened as Alex, David and I fail on the final obstacles in the rain. Alex had the good fortune of going first and got to attempt the "floating doors" when they where dry but it started raining on him as he pulled onto the "cliff hanger". David and myself were not so lucky as the rain was dumping when they ushered us toward the floating doors making them impossible (I seriously don't think they are possible when dripping wet). It was all very anticlimactic and hugely disappointing on so many levels. Here is a clip of my run with the lame ending.
The weather had been an issue for much of the weekend but despite the varying conditions we were told they would do their best to uphold the integrity of the "competition". There were times on earlier stages when people were stopped from running so rain could pass, tarps were put over and obstacles were dried off. These measures of course took time and when the final rolled around they were behind schedule and production was stressed.
I do understand that there are things you can't control but whether a member of production, a participant or a spectator I find it hard to believe anyone could be
remotely satisfied with the way Ninja Warrior ended. It is such a shame to end an otherwise wonderful experience on such a sour note especially when it could so easily have been avoided.
From the beginning I understood that Ninja Warrior is a TV program before it is a competition and didn't question why it is shot outside and at night (apparently it make for better TV). I lack the expertise to legitimately question the way things were done but I assured myself that nobody wanted Ninja Warrior to turn out well more than those calling the shots. A compromised competition is bad TV and that was the one thing I thought they wanted to avoid but in the end that is what we were left with.
I guess I'm still a little bitter as having us do the last obstacles in the rain made them impossible in all likelihood robbed somebody of 500,000kr. Alex, David and myself felt cheated as we joined to conquer the "world's hardest obstacle course" but weren't given a fair chance. Maybe waiting another hour for the rain to stop wouldn't work because the sun would be rising (bad TV?) but the one thing I just can't reconcile is why tarps were not put over those final obstacles. Covers had been used on previous obstacles and there was ample time but for some reason it wasn't done.
Immediately after the filming I had talked to the other finalists and written a letter stating our grievances but in the end it was never sent. The thing is I had nowhere to send the letter as everyone I interacted with in production was awesome and also bummed with the way things worked out. On top of the fact that there was no villain, just unfortunate circumstances, there is very little a complaint would accomplish. It was the first year and mistakes were made and while writing it as "rookie mistakes" doesn't give me much comfort at this point I just need to get over my bitterness and know that things will be better run next season.
But enough of my ranting. It is over and done with and there is nothing I can do about it but come back next year and go all the way.
So just a few more things before bringing the blog back to posting about climbing.
First, I wanted to say congratulations to Alex as he will now get the opportunity to compete in Japan. Yes, I would have liked to go to Japan (or win 500,000kr for that matter) but he is deserving and will do well. And props to David for killing the course as well. He was left in the same situation as me and given the chance to take on a dry final there is no telling what he could do.
Secondly, the burgeoning Ninja community in Sweden is awesome. I have little doubt that Ninja Warrior will take hold in Sweden the same way it has in the USA. The community is in it's infancy but folks come from all walks of life and everyone seemed super energized, even those that knew they had almost zero chance of "total victory". Just a great group of people all around from those that produce the show and participate all the way down to the young fans.
And that is that. Sorry about that little rant (hopefully that doesn't affect me coming back next year). So until next season.........now back to climbing rocks.
Here is a little write-up on my experience leading up to the final of Ninja Warrior Sverige (Sweden).
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Many of you are certainly familiar with the television program called Ninja Warrior. If you don't know about it you should just type it into Google but in a nutshell Ninja Warrior is an extreme obstacle course where contestants get one shot at completing various stages in pursuit of "total victory" and a big cash prize. From my understanding the show originally started in Japan back in the 1980s and as it gained popularity it was adapted for an American audience and in 2009 American Ninja Warrior began.
I remember seeing some clips of the early episodes and thinking that it not only looked like fun but it also looked relatively easy. Apparently many a rock-climber must have had similar thoughts as it wasn't long before fellow climbers (a fair number of them personal friends) began joining the ranks of competitors and consistently being among the best performers. Some very talented friends have taken on the course and in the end all them punted (that means failed when you shouldn't have) and it seemed surprising to me that in the 6 years of American Ninja Warrior no one has ever won the $500,000 prize. I'd talk to my friends afterwards and try to gather what went wrong as the obstacles were so far beneath their level. In the end fatigue, pressure or something always seemed to send them to the drink.
Despite my friends' failures I was still convinced I could complete the course and while I considered applying for the program in the USA the logistics of living in Sweden deterred me and I was relegated to trash-talking my friends from afar. Then last spring I discovered through a random conversation with a friend that I would be given the opportunity to backup all that talk as Ninja Warrior was coming to Sweden.
I wasn't quite sure what to expect but I threw together an application and before I knew it I was jumping through hoops and hanging on rings with other wannabe ninjas at a tryout in Gothenburg. After the tryout I was fairly certain I would make it on the show and began trying to figure out how one would train for Ninja Warrior. I had a couple climbing friends that also were selected and while we trained a few times I feel that high level climbers are pretty well equipped to take on the course without really training. That said it would be helpful to try some of the specific obstacles and I build a salmon-ladder and ultimate-cliffhanger just to ensure I wouldn't do anything stupid when it mattered.
Leading up to the filming I wasn't nervous at all but just excited about the chance to participate and for a sweet payday. I also figured that this was the first year in Sweden and the course will probably be a bit easier than what they have in the States so if there was ever a time to win it would be now. For the two months before the filming I had integrated some extra ninja specific training to my usual climbing and felt that as long as my nerves held out and I didn't do anything stupid I'd come home with a fat wallet. That being said, it's hard to know how you'll perform when there is a big production around and nerves were the big question-mark for me.
Just before the filming our little family drove to Stockholm (Björke was less than two weeks old) and I went through the rigmarole of checking in and learning how things would be run. While waiting my turn to go (there is quite a bit of waiting involved) I met fellow ninjas and watched as others attempted the first course and tried to glean any tips from their runs. I was still calm and confident all the way until I was standing in front of the quad-step when suddenly those nerves decided to show up. Despite preparation and confidence I got butterflies in my stomach and was so nervous that I almost got the "shaky legs". All those "what ifs" came rushing in and I'm noticeably fidgety as I stare into the camera waiting for the production folks to give me the go ahead.
Fortunately when I was given the green light the nervousness evaporated and it was just me and some obstacles to play on. It reminded me of when I played basketball and a similar thing would happen at tip-off before big games but once the whistle blew it was game on. With the moment of nervousness gone the first course was easy and from there on out I didn't worry about my nerves. Here is a clip of the first course.
The second course wasn't that difficult either but I had a little reminder on the salmon-ladder that it only takes one poorly timed mistake for it all to end. I think a fair number of others learned this the hard way as only 17 of the 65 that attempted the second course succeeded. Here is a clip of the second course.
Going into the final I was extremely confident as you could see the obstacles we'd be attempting and none of them seemed too difficult. "Total victory" seemed as good as mine, but would I show up my friends in America or just be another punter...................
I'll do another write-up in a couple weeks after they have aired the final episodes as I can't spill the bean. For those in Sweden tune into Kanal 5 at 2000 on Thursday for some Ninja action. Youtube clips are available for those outside Sweden.
Here is my last post on Sweden (unless I actually edit some videos) for awhile....
Gothenburg is littered with urban bouldering as pockets of rock are scattered around town and some real gems can be found. I never really considered that I'd find much more climbing in the middle of town so when Henrik told me about a good looking wall 300 meters from my apartment I was surprised. This wall is a little hidden but I'm still not quite sure how I missed it.
Kim on The Notorious Pocket at the local wall. I seems that this wall was once used as a shelter of sorts as a couple holes are left from where something was fastened to the wall. One of those holes make the starting hold of this problem.
Here is Henrik on one of the warm ups we established.
The hardest problem the local wall yielded was a cool compression problem that required a little trickery at the top. I called it Home Court Advantage due to it's location.
And despite my limited climbing days and propensity to punt, I did manage to climb some other new problems in Sweden this year. Here are a couple new problems we established in Bohuslan before the weather gods killed climbing....
My buddy Kalle told me about an arete a year ago and for some reason it took me a spell before I checked it out. I'm not sure what took me so long as I knew this problem was a classic the second I saw it. Pyssel made short work of it and I struggled my way to the top. Anyone looking for a great problem up in Bohuslan should check out Reichenberg. And the sit is possible for those looking for a real challenge.
To the right of Reichenberg is another great problem that deserves some traffic as well. Estelle briefly uses the arete of Reichenberg but is an independent line and great climbing, complete with a committing crux move at the top. It's worth mentioning that the boulder yielded two other problems as well.
Mud-cake is a roof that took quite a bit of cleaning and work to do. The key beta is a kung-fu heel and the red-point crux is a desperate slap to a jug after the lip encounter. Fun climbing and considerably harder that I thought it would be.
Once again I've left behind the dark confines of Sweden for greener pastures in the "Land of the Free". We are a week into our 4 month trip but before I start spraying about life in 'Merica I've got one (or two) post about Sweden.......
It's standard to leave behind a few projects in Sweden when I make the winter journey to the States but this year it seems I'm leaving behind more than usual. The combo of a new baby and bad weather made the usually productive fall nothing more that a string of rainy days and dirty diapers. So it goes. My angst at leaving behind projects this year comes from the fact that I will not be returning to Sweden in the spring to slay said projects but instead moving briefly to England (I keep telling myself it's only a year, it's only a year, it's only a year). Fortunately these projects won't be going anywhere even if it takes awhile to get back to them.
Here are just a few of the many projects I left behind in Sweden.
Stefan on one of the west coasts best squeeze problems, Hippopotamus. The crux is simply having juice left at the end and I thought I'd get a chance to finish off this project after punting in April but life happens.
I showed Pyssel this problem over the summer and he styled the fa and I couldn't put it together. Needed anther day but never got it.
I found this gem some years ago and brushed it up just before injuring my hamstring and leaving me unable to do a requisite heel-hook. I took Pyssel here and he fired it after some work. Was hopping to get back to it but....
I stumbled upon a small area while exploring one rainy day and would later get a couple "dryish" hours to try the two best lines. One is this off the deck mantle that took roughly and hour on rope before cracking a very tenuous sequence. It started raining before I got to attempt it from the ground and it will be scary.
The other problem in the small area is a difficult squeeze problem. We managed to do all the moves despite the conditions but it will be a challenge to put this guy together. Maybe I'll have the requisite fitness when I get back to this a year and a half from now.
With the help of an orienteering map I found a solitary in the middle of nowhere. This striking arete brought me back there one day over the summer and while we managed the stand and a couple other problems the sit-start awaits a return.
The dry-spell is over! This is the longest Kearney Journey has gone without a post since I started the blog in 2007. There are a multitude of reasons for the lack of posts. The usual suspects of work and laziness were certainly involved and while competing in Ninja Warrior Sweden over the summer was exciting I'm not allowed to talk about it until the program airs. (in the spring I think). But the primary reason for the break was the arrival of the newest member of the Kearney Clan (Björke Shine Kearney, born Aug 3rd).
Now that we're getting the hang of having a baby again I'll get back on the occasional blogging and on Nov 2nd we'll be back in the States for the annual winter trip where I'll have ample time and plenty of content to post. In the meantime here is a random photo to get things back on track.
Björke a few days old. He is the primary reason for the break in the blog. If you want more baby pictures check out Hammie's blog.
Awhile ago I took a weekend trip to Norrköping to check out a little area called Stavsjö. I was impressed with the quality of rock and problems and while my skin didn't allow for much climbing (bad skin sucks) I saw plenty of things I'd like to go back to.
Pyssel on the Hulk, one of Stavsjö's gems
Sammy recently did the stand to this problem but the sit is undone and one of the better looking projects I've seen in Sweden.
Tumle cleaned up a this problem and established a nice new highball.
Aleksej on the classic highball Köpman Wighart
Bad skin is a curse and has ruined more than a few climbing days for me
Here are a few pictures of some problems we've recently put up around Sweden's west coast. I'm actually not sure what we ended up naming most of these as I've forgotten or we never found a fitting moniker.
Novak on a random boulder I found out near Härryda. The easier problem goes straight up but if you like it spicy you can head right to a high crux.
Tumle on a fun compression problem off Härskogsvägen.
An awesome problem that climbs out a roof and ends with a crux helicopter dyno. Pyssel, not surprisingly, got the FA when I took him here and I'm psyched to get back as I never put it all together.
Mathias on Ménage à Quatuor, one of Bohuslän's best moderates. We put up a few other problems in this area but this striking rail feature was the gem.
Mathias on one of the other problems near Ménage à Quatuor. Around the corner from this problem is an amazing project that is above my pay-grade but could go for someone with fingers of steel.
I don't live in Rogaland nor do I have the possibility to take long and frequent trips there and I just have to accept that. And while it is a far cry from Norway, I actually live in a pretty awesome place to be a climber and have my fair share of world class bouldering. So now that I'm over the post-trip blues I can get back to enjoying the plethora of rock around Gothenburg.
Here is a little video of a couple newish problems that were recently put up in Utby. It's kind of surprising that these escaped our attention for so long, particularly Det första taket which is probably one of the better problems in the area (props to Pyssel for the vision).
The blog has been going along at a snails pace recently and I apologize for that. At some point I'd like to make some serious upgrades to Kearney Journey but the time required to do so deters my feeble efforts. That being said there are a couple recent developments for those with a voracious appetite for climbing media.
Firstly, I've joined forces with my friends at Climbingpics. If you haven't seen the blog it is pretty much what the name suggests as we post a new picture Monday to Friday. Anyways, I'll be posting pictures there from time to time so if you can't get through the day without your dose of climbing porn you should check it out.
Secondly, I've just signed up for Instagram. I figured I've got a smart phone so why not pepper folks with pictures from my adventures. Those of you that are interested in new development will probably like this as I realized most of the pictures on my phone are new areas/problems. I'll posting the pictures to my Facebook page for those of you without Instagram that want to follow.
And a report from Norway is a bit overdue but it is coming. In the meantime here are a couple pictures of some problems from Sweden's best coast.
Pyssel on the the FA of Rainbow Rocket 2. It's surprisingly difficult to coordinate the double-step dyno.
