Autumn

You can feel it already, the leaves have started to change colour and the evenings are drawing in quicker and quicker. Not to worry though as there is plenty to look forward to over the next few months.

First up is the return of Boulder Leeds for its 3rd successive year with the first round kicking off on the 21st October. Keep your eyes on the news page for more details coming soon.

Also returning after probably more than a ten year hiatus is the Northern Indoor Bouldering League, or NIBL. This is sure to be a great event with the best bouldering walls in the north coming together to find out who is the best boulderer in the north. Again, more details coming soon on the news page.

As ever myself and Ben are constantly resetting City Bloc every few weeks. We will be starting the comp wall again on Monday so if you have any projects left you best get to it.

The link below might help..........or not;)

http://youtu.be/pEgmBnd4B7c

Comp Wall June 11'

First, apologies for not blogging more often but it is due to being quite busy.

Anyone who has been to the Bloc recently will have noticed a few changes. We had Andy Chapman return to make a few adjustments to angles on the wall. The biggest change is to the roof on the comp wall, instead of a vertical wall there is now a steep prow for you to tackle after turning the lip of the roof. You can see the prow at the back of the picture below

The other angle changes are only minor but make for much improved problem setting.

Finally, the other obvious change is the lick of paint the comp wall has had. The smaller bay is to follow in a few weeks.

All the changes were in time for the third edition of Bloc Party which took place on the 11th June. Keep an eye on the news section for a full report and pictures.

And last but not least here is the latest beta video for some of the current problems on the new comp wall.

World Cup & British Team links

The summer of world cup competitions is upon us with the first round of the Bouldering World Cup this past weekend in Milan. If you want to follow the international competitions, many of them streamed live on the net, then go to http://www.ifsc-climbing.org/

As some of you may already know the four founding members of City Bloc are all former members of the British Bouldering Team.

We used our years of competition experience to design our wall similar to that of a bouldering world cup competition wall. Subtle designs which at first are not obvious prove vital for setting top notch problems for complete beginners to the best in the country. There are only a few walls in the country that can boast this.

If you are interested in keeping upto date with the British Team then you can follow their activities on http://www.gbclimbingteam.co.uk/ .

Finally, here is the latest vid for some of the current comp wall problems

British Weather

Just when you thought it was time to start going outside with the lighter evenings the good old British weather gave us a slap of reality. Oh well, luckily myself and Ben have reset the competition wall this week so there are no excuses for slacking;)

Incase you need some beta here is the new vid for the small bay plus a further look into Martin's training secrets;)

http://www.youtube.com/user/cityblocleeds#p/a/u/0/TSFxXT6Vi2E

Comp pics & resetting

Ok, first sorry for not posting some pics earlier but finally here are some from Round 5 of Boulder Leeds which took place at City Bloc on Friday 25th February. Full results can be found in the news section of the website.

Dan takes flight

Blue steel Gary

Ben shows signs of fatigue after a long couple of days

Leon squeezing

Dave crushes......again

a couple of competitors tackle the big wave

Next reset starts tomorrow with the small bay. Half will be done tomorrow then the other half on Monday, as usual every colour will be changed.

Finally, here is the latest vid for beta on the large bay problems

http://www.youtube.com/user/cityblocleeds#p/a/u/0/j2Zb0OGET7s

Team Training & Boulder Leeds

Last Saturday at the Bloc saw the British Bouldering Team enjoying a training session. Myself and Ben set five new problems each for the male & female teams. These problems are still up but only until Thursday when all the problems will make way for the next round of Boulder Leeds.

Shauna Coxsey attacking the roof

Jons Partridge pouncing like a jaguar

Ned Feehally flapping like a seal

Friday 25th is round 5 of Boulder Leeds so you have one week to polish off any projects on the comp wall before myself & Ben create more mayhem.

Finally, here is the latest beta video for some of the small bay problems.

British Team, Reset and Birthday Celebrations!!!

If you have been in this weekend you will have noticed the small bay has been completely reset. A few finishing touches have since been made today and there's a bit of something to test everyone. A video of the new problems will be coming shortly, so keep an eye on this blog.

This coming Saturday (12th Feb) the British Bouldering Team will be training here at City Bloc. It's worth coming down to check out just how good these guys and girls are and get some tips on the harder climbs. Come and get inspired!

Also, today we have grown to a ripe old age of 2 years! In celebrating our 2nd Birthday we have teamed up with Evolv to offer you some discounted boots. FOR THIS WEEK ONLY we are selling the Evolv Defy for £55 (retail £72) and the Optimus Prime for £70 (retail £95)! A sincere THANK YOU to all our customers for your continued support over the last 2 years.

Next couple of weeks

Ok a few things to add to your diary for the next 2 weeks.

First up, this coming Thursday there is a boot demo courtesy of Evolv rock shoes. On the night you will be able to try a selection of the latest Evolv has to offer and then maybe even pick-up a bargain at the end of the night.

In order to get the best out of your climbing shoes Evolv sponsored climber Ben Bransby will be on hand to deliver a masterclass. This will start at 8.30pm, sign up is on the night. If your not aware of who Ben is and what he has achieved a quick google search will reveal numerous links to stories of 8B boulders, multi-pitch routes in Yosemite and E9 flashes, bit of a hero in other words.

Next up on the 12th February the British Bouldering Team will be at City Bloc for a training session. Feel free to watch the team train and maybe pick-up some tips.

Finally, here is the vid for the latest comp wall problems with guest appearance from Rup 'hot stepper' Cowie

New Year at the Bloc

First up I guess we should say Happy New Year to everyone. Thank you to everyone who came to City Bloc over 2010.

The competition wall will be reset this week starting from Tuesday. Please note that the competition wall will be closed on Wednesday afternoon from 12pm til 4.30pm, this is due to the 4th round of the TRI Service Bouldering League taking place. The wall will be open as usual in the evening so you can try your hand at the competition problems.

Speaking of competitions dont forget that the second half of Boulder Leeds is about to begin. Back at Leeds Wall on the 21st January then here at City Bloc 25th February.

There will be plenty of other things going on so keep yours eyes peeled.

Until then here is the latest vid for the small bay