This past weekend I traveled to Boston, MA to compete in the annual Dark Horse Series hosted by Metrorock.  I hadn’t competed in a bouldering competition since the Nor’easter back in September, and I was excited to plug myself back into the game. Being a constant traveler for climbing puts you in contact with some of the most amazing people in the industry.  Rarely does everyone get to meet up in one location and mingle. This weekend was a true stunner in that regard. Jon Glassberg, Jordan Shipman, Dave Wetmore, Max Zolotukhin, Natasha Barnes, Gavin Heverly, and Hayden Miller are some of my favorite people on earth, and I got to hang with all of them this past weekend!  Upon stepping off the plane last Thursday I was immediately swept into world of friends, adventure, 8-foot snow banks, college kids, climbers, and LOVE!

Boston Sunset

Snow and Mirrors

Dave Wetmore and his gracious family hosted Jon, Jordan, and I for the weekend in their beautiful home.  Special thanks to them for their wonderful hospitality.  For a sneak peak into the life of Dave Wetmore, be sure to check out this nice little video from LT11:

Waking Up Wetmore from Jon Glassberg on Vimeo.

The competition began at 11am on Saturday morning. Following a less-than-ideal night of sleep, I spent the first two hours of the red point round floating in a cloudy haze of half consciousness and pretending to be a competent rock climber.  I pride myself on my ability to give my utmost focus to the situation at hand regardless of the circumstances. For the first time in a while it proved difficult.  After an inverted fall onto my neck…

Dark Horse Qualifier Fail • Carlo Traversi from Carlo Traversi on Vimeo.

…and a couple shots of espresso, the psych returned just in time to land me in 3rd Place behind Daniel Woods and Vasya Vorotnikov (who received a by due to prior comp success) going into the on-sight finals. After a 3 hour rest period, everyone reported back to isolation to prepare for the main event. I warmed up, listened to some music, and prepared myself mentally. Soon enough I was sitting in the chair under the first boulder problem. Problem #1 was a technical traverse on Teknik “No-Shadows” through two giant green boobs. The spans between the features and usable holds were massive and after an immense amount of effort I succumbed to the 5 minute time limit and sat back in the chair less than pleased with my efforts. Problems #2 and #3 followed similarly. I can easily shake off one boulder that doesn’t work out for me, but with 3 stacked up against me, motivation going into Problem #4 was less than ideal. Due to the format, where you can’t watch other competitors on the problems, it’s always difficult to distinguish the difference between the boulders being really hard, and your own personal failure. In the long run, confidence in your own abilities should remain high, even in the face of failure. But that’s always easier said than done. Sitting in the chair under Problem #4, at least according to me, I was sucking, and everyone else was sending.  The last two boulders went decently well, but not enough for me to gain a position in the top 3.  After sitting down and talking with some friends, it became apparent that I wasn’t the only one failing miserably on the problems.  They were hard boulders.  Very well set, but perhaps a tad difficult for the event.  Regardless, I still managed to have a great time, and the crowd seemed equally psyched:

A sizable crowd gathered under Problem’s 4 & 5

Though not necessarily in a celebratory mood, the after party was off the hook. I was once again reminded why I hang out with the people that I do. Our ability to drop everything, put all worries aside, and just rage is proving rare in this world. We drank, danced, conversed, had snowball fights, and danced some more. It was a great time.

There’s a Max under there…and a Jon.

Sunday followed with a 2 hour mid afternoon brunch, good bye’s, and an eventual landing at Max and Gavin’s pad for some Superbowl fun. Not that I knew who was playing…

I just arrived back in Boulder after a roller coaster of a flight and it looks like this next weekend could be an amazing one as well.  ABS Nationals is one of the largest professional bouldering competitions of the year. Here’s a short list of reasons why I’m excited to be competing in this competition for my 4th year in a row:

1. The Walls – This year’s competition features a set of entirely new walls built by John Stack of Vertical Solutions. I’ve always been very impressed by John’s wall designs, attention to aesthetics, and quality of craftsmanship. Having worked with him a bit in the past (The Spot’s Dojo), I was quick to jump on the opportunity to help him build the new walls. I spent a solid 100 hours in the warehouse with him and Mark “Cookie” Hobson, cutting steal, welding, framing, and assembling the monsters. Unfortunately I had to bail on the work early due to other route setting obligations, but having put some blood and sweat into these new masterpieces certainly adds some emotional ties to the whole competition.

2. The Location – For the first time ever, ABS Nationals is not in a climbing gym.  It’s in a giant warehouse.  I heard a 1500 spectator prediction…

3. The Hork – Good friend and fellow Spot setter Jonny Hork is setting for the event as an official member of the setting crew.  Jonny has been working with USA Climbing for years now, mostly lending his skills as a forerunner.  This year he’ll be tightening grips to the wall as well.  What can I say?  I’m psyched for him.

4. The After Party - This year’s after party promises to be much better than anything in year’s past.  Though not officially announced, I can assure it will include top Denver area DJ’s, free beer, dancing, and a “club-like” setting.  Should be a fun time.

5. The Climbing – Of course the climbing!  I love the energy of comps, and I’m psyched to climb on a variety of problems and challenges set by some of the best setters in the country.  Yeah!