David right before setting off for the famous dyno in „La Rambla“ (c) Iuliia Leonova

The two weeks trip to Siurana turned out to be a very successful one. After a couple of days of working on „La Rambla“ David could finally tick his first 9a+ ever. And right before leaving he finished the trip with a quick ascent of „La Reina Mora“, just next to La Rambla.

The trip to Catalonia was originally planned together with Ruben over New Year. But just before David got a foot injury which made it impossible for him to go. So he had to shift his climbing in Catalonia to February.

The main objective of the trip was to send La Rambla. In January David started to train for the upcoming bouldering season. Together with his coach Urs Stöcker he put up a new training plan in Zurich. Since the trip to Catalonia was actually planned earlier he didn’t train his endurance specifically. Instead he’d done a lot of maximum and explosive strength exercises in the gyms around Zurich and spent 3 days bouldering in Fontainebleau where he did some milestones of the history in bouldering, such as „Karma“ (Fb 8A), „La Merveille“ (Fb 8A+) and „Partage“ (Fb 8A+). All of them are very technical and tricky. True Fontainebleau style which everyone knows who has been to this magical bouldering area once.

Well, it was the first time that David has been to Catalonia in February. It is calmer than over New Year (not so many climbers). He stayed in a nice apartment of „La Vileta“ which is run by very friendly Catalonian locals, close to the main square of Cornudella de Montsant, the village underneath Siurana. Cornudella is pretty rural, mainly inhabited by farmers’ families who live from the surrounding olive, nut and wine fields. When you go climbing or walk around in the countryside you notice its beautiful landscape and nature. In the karst there are numerous caves. Dry and rocky areas dominate with a low vegetation of herbs, shrubs and pines. There are many rare species of wild animals. Because of their trustfulness robins often accompany you when climbing.

Dad feeding a robin who came to take a look if we don’t make any troubles at the crag

Because of its 9a+ difficulty La Rambla has been a new challenge for David. It is a long (around 45 meters), overhanging and technical route. It has got a famous name in the climbing scene. First ascended by Alex Huber to a lower anchor and extended by Ramón Julián Puigblanque to the actual top. It first kicks off with a technical crack followed by more powerful and pumpy moves with a unique jump in the middle to a rest before the hardest and most bouldery part at the end.

Some years ago David did already „El Rastro“ and „Broadway“, two lines which share at least half of the route with La Rambla, so that he already knew the lower part. On the first day he once checked out the moves, brushed and tick-marked the holds and gave it a good try where he already fell in the last and hardest part at the top. There are 4 compression moves on round side holds and crimps which easily spit you off when too pumped after around 35 meters of climbing approximately 8c to this point.

David shaking out his arms before he attacks the redpoint crux of „La Rambla“ (c) Iuliia Leonova

After this good first day of projecting David struggled some days with bad skin (especially the pockets literally ate the side skin of his fingers). Not the best conditions to send hard stuff. During these days he always fell on a certain and probably the hardest move in the route at the top from an open side hold into a small undercling which you have to catch close to your chest after you’ve reached out longly. In the past years such failures (falling on the same move without getting any higher) sometimes awakened negative thoughts and frustration in David. But meanwhile he can manage his mind set well. This time he didn’t really care about these failures and took it easy.

To be honest, every time you fall and reflect what mistake you’ve done you somehow have a progress in your project. It does not always have to be that you’ve got some moves higher but that you have adapted your beta or optimized your clipping positions and rest points for example. It is actually a failure itself to think that there is no progression at all although you keep on falling on the same move.

„It will happen sooner or later“ was David’s devise and he kept on trying with confidence and mental coolness. In the end it took him some 6 days of work to finally stuck the last hard move and top out his first 9a+ ever.

Keep smiling although projecting might be frustrating sometimes – that works wonders (c) Iuliia Leonova

So, La Rambla represents a new dimension in his climbing and now it feels like that there are more years of personal progress in climbing still to come. There must be a reason why the years between 20 and 30 are called „The Golden Twenties“ in climbing The main task will probably be to keep the mental coolness alive and to work on the maximum strength, mainly in bouldering and in the gym.

Right before David had to leave Siurana to head back home to Switzerland he wanted to use his fitness to dedicate to „La Reina Mora“ which has the same crack start and the same top-out with La Rambla but a more crimpy and sustained middle section. It is the real straight-up on this part of the wall. Falling two times on the last hard move in the end was a bit annoying but he had chosen a not optimal beta and when he optimized this it went down first go of the day and the finish of the trip couldn’t have been sweeter. La Reina Mora might be one of the most beautiful climbs in whole Catalonia.

David working himself up the crack of „La Reina Mora“ (c) Jon Cardwell

David is happy to return back to Switzerland again to prepare for the upcoming bouldering competitions and rock climbings in Switzerland. University lectures start as well again and it is great to come back home to reload batteries for the next challenges which climbing always has to offer in a brilliant way.

Thanks to Iuliia Leonova and Jon Caldwell for their nice pictures and to our sponsors Scarpa, Haglöfs, Friction Labs, Escaladrome Hannover and the DAV section Rhineland-Cologne for the amazing support lately. As the Spanish climbers say: A Muerte!!!

David learning in the so called „Lichthof“ in the main building of the university of Zurich (c) Ruben Firnenburg

We’ve contributed our first article to the thecircuitclimbing.com below which is run by Eddie Fowke. He is a well-known and very friendly photographer and writer in the climbing scene and travels to almost every IFSC World Cup around the world. He’s a friend to every athlete in the circuit of rock and competition climbing. We are happy to work with him more often from now on!

If you like the article, spread the word so that everyone can benefit from our thoughts about the dual task of combining performance climbing and education in life. There are more articles about more topics to come!

Anyone who wants to study psychology at the University of Zurich (UZH), has to undergo a packed program with a year-round average of 40 hours per week or sometimes even 60-70 hours during the lecture period – and this within the confines of a public university where there is neither integration nor support of the sports system or athlete’s commitments. This sets a pretty tough schedule for athletes like David where competitive sport training often depends on free space and individual design of the study course, and where training starts to amount to a full time job. “In fact the first year at the UZH in psychology is a screening year. Virtually, they want to clear out every second student. That’s what here is called the assessment year“, David explains.

To better meet this selection procedure in the dual task of competitive sports and university studies, David already has started as a guest student this spring term, one semester before the official onset of his studies, and has already been working for the foreseeable examination hurdles. “After the assessment year a part-time study with a stretched curriculum will probably be the solution for my time problems,” he says. “Already now, during the guest semester, I have to construct my training around the curriculum at the university. There is no other way”, David notes. He trains seven or eight times a week, each about 3 hours, and he also spends weekend time on national team trainings, at competitions or on the rock. This comes along with additional antagonist training and stretching on two active rest days a week.

David in the final of the final Boulder World Cup in Munich this year (c) Eddie Fowke

Lectures are uploaded digitally

It also happens during the lecture period that David has to go abroad for international competitions. However, for the assessment year he intends to stay within the time frame of his university. “At the UZH I have the advantage that the lectures are uploaded in the intranet and it quickly becomes clear what I need to rework,” David says. Lectures aside, however, there are also seminars and other sessions, the material for which isn’t as easy to access.
Additionally David doesn’t always get support from the staff. “There are sometimes acceptance problems on the faculty side. As an athlete, I don’t always get the necessary understanding from teachers for this double load I have”. David’s strategy for dealing with this is to network as widely as possible with other students, to exchange lecture transcripts and material, to jointly cope better with the large amount of learning materials, documentation and tasks set.
“Since I prefer Zurich as my training site for quality reasons, I have to arrange myself with the situation at the UZH. I cannot, without making significant concessions to my training, switch to another or even to a private university, where I perhaps would be treated more like a real customer”, David explains. He sees it, at least partially, as a challenge to raise awareness in the faculty and to contribute to a better understanding for the circumstances of elite athletes.

Besides lectures, seminars and further exercises autonomous repetition and learning takes the most time in the studies (c) Ruben Firnenburg

“Solid grades will also do”

“Sure, it’s way of stress to accommodate university and competitive sports. But I have targeted my studies as well as to increase my climbing achievements. And so I have to grit my teeth sometimes and just to go through”, David states. According to him, clearly, he will not be earning top grades with his brutal schedule, but, in the end, solid grades will also do. It was already the same during my time at high school, when I at least was able to skip the 10th grade for an exchange year at Innsbruck in Austria and finally to achieve my university entrance diploma, too”, he reports.

Admission to study courses like psychology is restricted in Switzerland and in Germany. In David’s case as a German citizen, an admission first to study this subject at a German university is needed for being admitted at the UZH. “I benefit from an agreement that has been negotiated between the University Sports Federation and some universities in Germany”, David explains. This agreement allows some compensation for top athletes in the internal university selection procedure of students. Thus, an admission at the UZH became possible.

A dual career in the United States might be easier

In 2014, a dispute with the students’ sport support system in Germany appeared in book form. Ben Bendrich, a former German national basketball player, published his doctoral thesis “Students’ elite sports between resignation, myth and breakup – a study on dual careers in Germany and the United States”. Bendrich concluded that the promotion of sports works better at the universities in the United States. He opined that the contracts between the University Sports Federation and the universities in Germany were laudable, but not specific enough and often not widely known or understood by the lecturers at the universities. And for David, of course, they are not applicable in Switzerland. “But in my case, these agreements at least have helped for my admission to study psychology. Unfortunately, as a foreigner not being part of the national coordination between the Swiss Olympic support system and the UZH, I am now supposed to find my own way of being included at least in a minimal way. Bendrich’s book makes me curious to go for an exchange year to a US university perhaps one day”, David comments.

David finished 4th in the Boulder World Cup in Munich this year (c) Eddie Fowke

Lack of support for competitive climbing

David and his family started climbing in Hannover in northern Germany, where he grew up, but since 2016, David and his younger brother Ruben, live in Zurich.

“Training possibilities here simply are the best for us. Our coach, Dr. Urs Stöcker, is also the Swiss national coach and highly qualified. We get along very well together. The results are self-explanatory. After a rock oriented past year our performances in the World Cup this year are getting better again”, says the 21 years old.

Recently David achieved semifinal and final placements in the Briancon Lead World Cup and the Munich Boulder World Cup, and is on track to become all-rounder who is strong in both bouldering and lead climbing and who can consistently perform at a top level at least one discipline in nearby future. “During my youth and junior time I was already several times German champion and also European champion and third in the World Championships. Even within the seniors I have already achieved several podiums in the German Lead and Boulder Championships, including a title”, David says. But despite these successes and some encouraging support from sponsors, David cannot live solely from climbing: his basic livelihood has to be supported by his family. “Without this, the whole thing wouldn’t work”, David asserts.

Traditionally there is only a weak support system for sport climbing in Germany. Where, for instance, elite athletes in other Olympic sports receive on average 626 Euros net per month by the German Sports Fund, climbers miss out. “We have to wait and see how effective a planned strengthening of competitive sports in the German Alpine Association will be, especially in view of Olympic’s 2020 at Tokyo”, David mentions. “Due to past experiences you not necessarily have to be optimistic. It is more way of a stolid affair. And if here essential things do not turn for the better, it will continue to be largely left to chance or heroic achievement of individual athletes and their families in Germany to perform at the highest international level”, David criticizes.

David in the lead semi-final route of the World Championships in Paris this year. He placed 3rd in the overall category (c) Eddie Fowke

Perspectives for the Olympics in 2020

Since David would not be able to live from climbing, a unilateral decision in favour of his sport would turn out to be at high risk. “The sport hero of today may be failing socially tomorrow”, he says. David does not want to end up as a vocational drop out some day because of having only concentrated on his sport before. “I have to ask myself whether it will be worthwhile to sacrifice my studies for top-level sports. In my situation it seems to be reasonable, to invest not only in my athletic career but also in my university education. I therefore have to tackle the problem of coping with the double burden”, David explains.

The usual way of his older climbing colleagues in Germany is to abandon their sport career the sooner or later and to give priority to their vocational training. “This reasonable decision indeed affects our sport adversely, because like this a sustainable international competitiveness is not to be expected. Realistically I see my chances to participate in the Olympic Games in 2020 more as an outsider. But if I can maintain my joy of climbing and continue also to rely on my capabilities, it doesn’t seem impossible to me to have a chance of taking part at Tokyo”, David ends.

Santa Linya in Catalonia is a very impressive sport climbing destination. Not only because of the steep power moves in the big cave and the spectacular shots in this film by Hening Wang. It´s also because of the many falls, frustrations and failure that are behind a sucessful climb. Ruben is showing this fighting spirit in “Seleccio Natural” (9a) that has turned out to be his hardest project up to now even though it is not his first route in the grade. And by keeping working on it he fires all our inspiration for hard climbs.

David in the 2nd qualification route in Frankenthal

The last stage of the German Lead Championships took place at Neu-Ulm (Bavaria) last Sunday. As last year, this year’s championships consisted of 3 competitions, in Germany known as German Lead Cups. The first cup was hosted at the brand new DAV climbing gym at Munich Freiman and the second at a rather old but gold climbing gym at Frankenthal in Pfalz close to Mannheim. For us two it was a nice series with various challenges because the Cups had different route settings.

We’ve never been to the new gym at Freiman yet so we didn’t have any idea how the wall with its structures and angles would be like. In addition, it was outdoors but luckily it wasn’t that autumnal like now. Usually artificial holds get more slippery when cold. The qualification routes were sustained and demanding. Ruben easily qualified for finals and David nearly missed it with an 8th place. The final was well set but could have been a bit harder. Jan Hojer and David fell at the last move to the top but Jan won due to better results in the qualifications. Ruben finished 1st in the juniors ranking and 5th in the men’s category. He definitely could have done better but he hesitated while clipping and lost power and flow.

Frankenthal is a steep and powerful wall and the 2nd cup was set in a very dynamic style with at least one jump in almost every route. The qualifications went well and we both qualified for finals as 3rd and 4th. Unfortunately, the final route was very unsustained. It was maybe an 7c+ climb until a huge jump to the left where almost every finalist fell except Jan who fell two moves later. It is always a pity when one move spits off more or less every athlete so that the pre-round counts for a final result. However, we were close on the jump (David made a foot mistake and Ruben got stuck with his hand in the rope while jumping) and definitely able to stick it so it’s hard to complain. Ruben finished 1st in the juniors again and 3rd in the men’s event which was one of his best results so far. David missed the podium as 4th place which made him a bit frustrated.

Observing the final route in Frankenthal together

Last weekend turned out to be kind of a speed final in a lead final route. The qualification round saw a bunch of double tops with a tricky slab. Regrettably, Ruben fell too early in the first qualification route and got a time-out in the slab. He couldn’t make finals with a 12th place but nevertheless he won the juniors game and therewith became German juniors lead champion winning 3 out of 3 events. And that was also enough to save a 5th place in the seniors championship overall. Pretty good season for him this year!

Sebastian Halenke was the first to top the final route. And since Jan Hojer, Chris Hanke and David also topped it, it was all about time to secure the victory of the day. David, being the last one to come out of the Isolation zone, actually had the most pressure but eventually it was a tactical advantage because he knew from backstage that the route must be doable and that he had to climb fast. In the end he clipped the anchor by 15 seconds slower than Jan who was literally running up the wall without taking a single rest. A 2nd place in the day ranking assured David of the vice title in the championship behind Jan which was tactically the priority because Jan more or less secured the title already by qualifying for the final. Props to him for a strong performance on all three events and especially to our team mate Lena Herrmann who became German lead champion after a break of competition climbing and some 8c’s on the rocks lately!

Ruben resting at volume in the final route in Frankenthal

We had a lot of fun this year competing at the nationals but from our point of view there are still some things which can be suggested to make lead competition climbing in Germany more attractive. Not only for the athletes but also for the audience. This is why we want to mention some points how to improve the quality of the events based on what we’ve experienced this year:

• In our opinion this year there hasn’t been a superior route setting. We would like to have harder routes, especially in the finals. Predominantly, we climbed at a grade of 8a+ but we actually need final routes at a level of 8b+ to be hard enough to separate the finalists. And it shouldn’t come down to only one move which spits the majority off like in Frankenthal or too many double tops even in the finals like in Neu-Ulm. More sustained and harder routes would add value to the events! And this is what awaits the athletes in the world cups. Young talents start training the characteristics of the routes in the lead nationals but this won’t prepare them to be successful in the world cups later.
• We would also appreciate a strong field of competitors next season again. Especially in Neu-Ulm it was nice to see the whole German lead team and the strongest competition boulderers of the country. But athletes must have great reasons to come and compete at the nationals. So far there hasn’t really been an attractive amount of prize money and we think it’s time to raise it. It’s not an economic and rational choise as a competitor to spend hundreds of euros for the travel and the accommodation and to spend a whole weekend of time to maybe collect some prize money in the end to not fully be able, even as a finalist, to re-finance the effort. If nothing changes it is only a matter of time that the cups become less and less attractive for the strongest athletes to come.
• We also would like to get rid of all the waiting times during the competitions, particularly when the youth events get integrated into the seniors‘ competition. Please, let us seniors compete on Saturday and in a shorter time. Qualification can be done at around midday and finals in the early evening without a long break of several hours in between the rounds. That requires a tight timetable but it’s definitely possible to organize that. This is also more attractive for the spectators because if they would have to watch finals on Sunday night they would overthink it twice because they have to start work on Monday again. If the finals would be on Saturday night that would have a day in between. And based on a tight schedule they wouldn’t have to stay a whole day in the gym waiting most of the time.
• And finally, meanwhile we know a lot of competitors and their teams, parents and relatives who support them during the competitions. We don’t see so many new faces though. Especially random spectators. It is only a small group of insiders who actually visit and watch the competitions but we think the competition format can be entertaining for a wider range of people. It would be nice to see working live streams and better advertisements in prior for the competitions to reach more people. From our point of view the DAV (German Climbing Federation) should invest more effort into their event marketing and promotion.

That’s it for this year’s competition climbing. We are already looking forward to the next season. Now we are already in Catalonia for some off-season rock climbing. We’ve got some great projects that we want to work on and it’s always nice to see the big rock climbers‘ family from all around the world at the crags again. It always means great climbing together and good vibes. We are excited and keep You updated with our climbing experiences there.

Find the whole result list of the juniors and the seniors German Lead Championship via the links!

Cheers D&R

Juniors podium overall – 1st Ruben, 2nd team mate Lars Hoffmann and 3rd Paul Hettich (missing)

Seniors podium overall – 1st Jan Hojer, 2nd David and 3rd Martin Tekles

The crew. F.l.t.r. Julian, Ruben, David and Michi (c) Julian Bückers Photography

In the beginning of October we’ve spent three days at Swiss Rätikon for some multipitch climbing. Rätikon to climbers is well known for its hard alpine climbs on outstanding limestone and the surrounding beauty of mountain nature. It is located up in the mountains on an altitude above 2000 meters and is divided into two parts, a Swiss and an Austrian but the walls are mostly south facing so you predominantly climb on the Swiss side. The closest village is called Schuders consisting of only a handful houses. This time we were climbing at the Schweizereck in the region around Grüscher Älpli besides the other parts of the wall such as Kirchlispitzen (known for routes like Silbergeier, Unendliche Geschichte and WoGü), Drusenfluh and Drusentürmen.

It was our first multi pitch experience ever and we could share it with multi talent Michi Wohlleben and photographer and mountain guide Julian Bückers. They were introducing us the required belaying techniques for alpine routes and supporting us up there every time we needed some help. During this short but really enjoyable time we were curious and attentive as small kids. Greedy for knowledge waiting for the new adventure to come. It is always nice to feel that there is still high motivation and exaltation when trying new things and there are a lot of things we haven’t seen in climbing yet although we’ve already practiced it for almost 15 years now. That’s such a great aspect of climbing. That’s its unique variety and we love it.

On the first day we met at Bad Ragaz down in the Tamina valley and drove to a nearby sport climbing crag close to the village called Fläsch which is funny because as German speaking climbers we spell it like English „flash“. Sometimes things are meant to be and fit together

Nevertheless, Michi and Julian gave us a technical briefing to prepare for alpine terrain and all of its challenges and risks. They taught us how to install a belay, haul, jumar and place gear such as cams and nuts. Basically, learning all of this techniques enables you to move in alpine terrain in a safe style. But gear is only steel. What you also need are strong mental abilities. Focus, alertness and rationality are one of the most important ingredients you need up in a high wall with a lot of air below your ass. After this extensive briefing we drove up to the car park below the wall to stay the night and therewith be able to start our tour right after an early breakfast the next day. It was an adventurous drive with our old van because the zig zag road is steep, long and often tight. But we made it and David as the driver was totally done afterwards

On the second day we woke up at 7 a.m. and had a nourishing out meal. Well rested and euphoric we hiked up to New Age, our main mission for this stay. Austrian pioneer Beat Kammerlander opened it as one of the extreme multi pitch classics back in 1989. Such a big achievement back then and always worth to remind yourself what this has meant during this time. A milestone. It’s located at Schweizereck and is 5 pitches long (150 meters, first pitch starts at 100 meters above the ground, until there it’s easy climbing but you have to belay each other). It’s mainly very technical climbing on compact and sometimes very sharp rock with a powerful roof passage in the third and hardest pitch.

The Schweizereck (c) Julian Bückers Photography

Well, we got our asses kicked in the beginning. Already the first two pitches (7a and 7c) turned out to be super special and technical. We were bewildered as climbers who already have sent 9a but they told us that alpine climbs and grades are tough compared to the modern sport climbing disciplines and now we know that it’s true. It does not mean that the climbing itself is harder but it’s the stress and pressure which comes along with longer bolt distances, own mobile placements, technical climbing styles and of course the heights. We were also very slow but that’s normal as „beginners“. Professionals have a collective routine and flow. It’s about fast partner shifts, belaying and knowing what to do in different cases. You have to be spontaneous as a good alpine climber.

Finally, we made it up to the fourth pitch that day. Then strong wind appeared and we started freezing and even shaking. Moreover, it was quiet late and it was time to get back to the ground. So we lowered down and went back to the van. Opening its doors and sitting down we realized that being out there all day, walking, freezing, climbing and focusing is completely exhausting. We were actually too tired to cook some dinner but we had to reload our batteries because the next and last day of our stay would be as tiring as this day. It’s this enjoyable tiredness though you probably all know when coming back home after a long day at work

On the third day up in Rätikon our goal was to send New Age. Red pointing the pitches felt possible so it was only about going up there again and get our mission done. The weather this morning was cloudy and very windy though and when we approached the route Michi wasn’t sure if it would be possible to ascend it. However, we decided to give it a try at least. Let’s say there was still some hope to get rewarded in the end

David was leading the first two pitches and it was a true struggle from the very first moves on. It was so cold that it was impossible to get warm fingers to feel the holds. He somehow made it up until the belay below the roof of the third pitch although some sequences almost shook him off the wall. He fought and even sometimes screamed but that comes out by its own when you try hard and need to push yourself. It should have been a team ascent so we switched knots and decided that Ruben should lead the third and hardest pitch. The weather started to clear and it was only a matter of time that the sun started to reach our belay to encourage us with its warmth. Ruben started to reach the crux moves, slowly pulling over the edge of the roof but then he fell on the crucial move, a long move from a jamming side pull one pad crimp high up left to another crimp of the same size, hitting his wrist against the rock. David lowered him off to the belay that he could get his down jacket back on to warm himself. 5 minutes break and then it was time to give it another shot but the same happened again. Back to the belay.

Ruben while trying the crux moves in the third pitch on the first day in „New Age“. Michi is belaying (c) Julian Bückers Photography

Not sure what to do, still freezing and a bit frustrated Michi pulled out his mobile phone and showed us some videos of old men sitting in a bar and making funny jokes about alcohol. We started to laugh and then the sun came around the corner and started to touch our helmets on our heads. In retrospect these were the two recipes which probably saved us the ascent of our first demanding multi pitch. David started to take over the lead again, fell once even before the crux slipping away with his foot, returned to the belay and managed to get up to the next belay without falling into the rope in his next try. That was refreshing and we got the energy and confidence back again to reach the top.

The last pitches weren’t that hard anymore and especially the last pitch was varied climbing in corners with many body position shifts involved in the lower overhanging part. That was kind of the perfect end of the whole project and when we all reached the top, shook hands and hugged each other everyone of us was happy that all the hard work payed off and everything was successful and no one hurt himself. But as every mountaineer says: You not only have to get up the mountain but also back down to the base camp. There was a way down a steep slope on the back side of the wall but one part of it was so steep and slippery that we were wondering how to get down there in a save way. We both would have taken the risk to climb down on the rubble but Michi told us that this won’t work and would be too dangerous. He felt responsible for us and with his expertise he found a spot to place cams and fix a rope to be able to lower down the slope. This is what we did and after a short shock we all stood on solid ground again. At this point New Age was really done! Yesss man

We threw all of our gear into our backs and hiked back to the car. When we got there we were even more tired than the day before (we expected that) but the feeling that everything worked well in the end and that we’d completed our mission was stronger. We sorted our gear, shared some victory cookies and had a fresh little beer before Michi and Julian left with their car on the way back home.

Such an experience with all its components keeps staying in our minds and it motivates us to face new alpine projects and challenges in the future. We’ve already got some lines on our tick list which definitely are even more challenging than New Age. We are very satisfied to have done it as our first multi pitch though and we think that Michi and Julian showed us all the skills to conquer new heights soon. Thanks for your great work guys and to our partners Scarpa and Petzl for making it all possible. We are really looking forward to climbing in the future together again in the same style and with the same motivation and good vibes as this time.

Thank You and take care!

David & Ruben

The Panel (f.l.t.r.): Karl-Heinz Steinmann, David Firnenburg, Andreas Kuhnt, Britta Schweigel, Ingo Leven, Prof. Dr. Semmler-Ludwig, Martin Schönwandt, Prof. Dr. Derecik (c) Andre Bertram

On September 23rd, 2015 David was invited to the podium „Freeride, Parcour, Slacklining: Trend Sports with or without Expiration Date?“ by the Academy of Sports in Lower Saxony (GER). The panel dealt with trend sports and their influence on youth life styles and organized sports (General report in German). David was supported by Axel Hake (IG Klettern / DAV-Landesverband Niedersachsen). 

David explained that sport climbing has exceeded the initial stage of a fun sport towards a trend sport on the way to a well-established sport. There is already a recognized organized, competitional and economic infrastructure including gyms and distribution channels for specific sports products. But compared to established sports there are aspects missing such as an extensive support system for athletes, media presence as an advertising medium and a tourism and leisure economic marketing. While some regions, for example, in the Alps are already further developed in such aspects than they are in northern Germany, on the other hand, however, there are already some of them, such as Arco, that are overrun by climbing tourism with its downsides.

From Hake’s perspective who was invited to the auditorium it actually should be also important, in addition to the opportunities for young people arising from the booming gym situation and the increasing use of artificial climbing walls, to raise the possibilities for climbing in freely accessible natural areas, because they represent, just for the “gamer generation”, a close to daily life available space and a low-threshold access to natural movement experiences. Unfortunately, such freely available natural areas are on the wane in northern Germany. There is still much work to do for sports politics to achieve the potential of the forests fully recognized as a recreational sports resort and important source for youth health and athletic experience of self-efficacy and also personal limits without a social barrier.

Another essential point in the discussion was that the sports clubs and associations should use just the trend sports in the context of school cooperations to win children and teenagers and to bring them „into motion“.

Overall it was a successful event which has commanded a lively discussion with many impulses to continue.

The Auditorium (c) Andre Bertram

]]> http://www.firnenburgbrothers.com/?feed=rss2&p=2281 0 http://www.firnenburgbrothers.com/?p=2267 http://www.firnenburgbrothers.com/?p=2267#comments Fri, 11 Sep 2015 10:34:36 +0000 http://www.firnenburgbrothers.com/?p=2267 Weiterlesen →]]> Finally!!! We are very happy to announce that our first professional film is online. In this 10 minutes film we get portrayed talking about how everything started, our passion for climbing, the experiences we made, training, competition and rock climbing and many other things. During the film we climb „The Essential“ (9a) in Frankenjura while testing Vertics.Sleeves, one of our hardest co-ascents on a rope to date. We don’t want to say too much here. Follow the link below and enjoy Cheers David & Ruben

Link: The Firnenburg Brothers climbing „The Essential“ (9a)

Flatanger: Hanshallaren cave in the background

Last month we finally had the opportunity to go to Norway for the first time and to climb in Flatanger. There is a huge cave of finest granite which is surrounded by beautiful nature. In addition to the hard routes that we wanted to climb in Flatanger, we also had the opportunity to get to know new friends which graded up our two weeks even more. With an international crew on site, the nature and first class routes in the cave this climbing trip turned out for both of us to be one of the best we ever had. 

The journey which we first estimated a bit complicated proved to be easier than we thought. From Germany we took the plane to Trondheim and from there we went by train, bus and taxi-bus which could be organized simply and reliably. The family „Strøm“, who is the landowner of the “Hanshallaren Cave” and manages the camping site, received us very friendly. We also got welcomed by our Swedish friend Erik Grandelius („Lord Chamberlain“;-) ) with music. The music then accompanied us for the following two weeks which always caused good vibes.

It was new for us that in Flatanger it doesn´t get dark at this season of the year. But that wasn´t a problem. You just go to bed and wake up whenever you want because well it doesn´t get dark

The first week we used to get familiar with the climbing and the rock. The cave in Flatanger is gigantic and we both quickly agreed that it´s one of the best granite climbing on which we climbed until now. There are routes in all difficulties and every inclination. The more difficult routes in the steeper part of the cave are powerful and require a lot of endurance. Partially there is withal crack climbing too.

The first day we tried the very technical route called „Massih Attack“. It´s a must-do 8b in the more vertical part of the cave. After Ruben checked it out once, David was able to flash it right away. Ruben also redpointed it shortly after on his 3rd try. The next days we tried „Muy Verde“ (8c, bolted by Dani Andrada, FA by Erik Grandelius) which we both were able to send within two days. Furthermore David could redpoint „Odin´s Eye“ (8c+). Ruben was also really close to sent it. Unfortunately he got a nasty flapper on his finger when he slipped out of the crux so that he had to stop trying it. In the meantime David was able to crush once more and sent two more 8c´s („Nordic Plumber“ and The Valkyrie“). Ruben wasn´t that lucky. After he had to finish on „Odin´s Eye“ he went on trying a new Link up (8c) of Dvergtrollet (8a+) to the second part of „Nordic Plumber/Thor´s Hammer“. Already on his first attempt he managed to climb up the 50 meters overhanging route until two moves before the anchor. On his second try which was also the last possible try on the last day of our trip he suddenly slipped off right before the anchor. That was kind of pity but a reason more to return some day.

Ruben in Odin´s Eye (8c+), David in „The Valkyrie“ (8c), pics: Henning Wang

The two weeks trip to Norway obviously went down faster than we would have liked it. The people, the culture, the fishing on the rest days and the mind-blowing nature with all its fjords and steep rocks was really fascinating. Last but not least the outstanding climbing in the cave was just fantastic. Thereby we have to mention that there is so much more potential for FAs in Norway and there are some other brilliant areas with hard climbs which we weren´t able to visit yet.

We surely will come back to Norway. Maybe next year we will be able to stay for a longer period of time and to visit all the other hard climbing spots.

Currently David is in the Rocklands (South Africa) for bouldering and Ruben in Switzerland, France, Sweden and Austria to train for the upcoming world cups and international youth competitions.

Thank you Henning Wang for the beautiful climbing pictures!

You can follow us on our activities and ventures on Instagram and Facebook .

Cheers David und Ruben

view out of the cave

view out of the cave

(c) New Base Line – Eddie Fowke (The Circuit Climbing)

This April I went to Magic Wood for a couple of days to work on hard boulders I couldn’t finish the last time I was there. On the very top of my tick list there was New Base Line, a boulder problem which was originally put up by grand master Bernd Zangerl as an 8C. Meanwhile it has seen several attempts by the world’s best boulderers and got downgraded to 8B+.

It is not only hard. It looks also fine. A noble crack line running from right to left with a slight rise through an overhanging wall. In the middle of the wall above the crack line there are nicely shaped crimps and side holds heading up to the top edge. It is just perfect. A dream boulder. This is probably why it is supposed to be one of the best in the world.

The time and work I invested to call the ascent mine was totally worth it. The process of getting better and better on this problem confirmed a lot of things I’ve already learned in my young climbing life. In the end strong will, no doubts and tenacity were the mental skills to send it. I had a very nice time on it and I was very satisfied that I battled my way up this problem although the weather was about to upset my plans with rain and warmth during my stay. I again leave the wood with a bunch of good feelings. I try to come back as soon as possible to get back on the other major lines in Magic Wood. I am already looking forward to it. Let’s crush!

Thank You Eddie Fowke for the nice pics!

All the best
David

At Schneiderloch: (1) Burn for You (2) Corona (3) Black Label (4) Pantera

Two days ago I was able to send Black Label (9a) at Schneiderloch (Ailsbach-Valley) in Frankenjura. It’s a new route by Markus Bock in 2013 which had only seen one repeat by Alex Megos last year. Now I have secured the 3rd ascent of this test piece.

During a comp last year Markus Jung recommended it to me. He was talking about the moves and I became excited to try it. After the comp was over I put it on my tick list and when I’ve headed to Nuremberg to live there for a while it became very close. I just had to wait for the right moment to try it. Around the Easter holiday my brother Ruben visited me and we drove out to the crag to give it the first tries.

The route climbs up the slightly overhanging wall between the famous Corona and Pantera, two other 9th French graded routes. It is the same style of climbing, so pretty fingery on crimps and little pockets. It is around 15 meters high on compact rock which is neither loose nor pretty structured.

You can divide it into two different parts. The first part is a short 8b/8b+ route (around 12 moves long on four bolts) leading to a rest in the middle of the wall. Here the crux is a long move from crimp to crimp with a high foot hold. The clipping is quite powerful too. The second part is a 6 moves boulder problem over a small bulge which is around Fb 8A/8A+ I would say. You take a three finger undercling for the right hand and move to the left to get a three finger side hold crimp. From there You have to stick a long move to a round and open three finger pocket high up right where You have to keep the tension (I could still stand on the holds of the rest making it easier for me, I am around 1,82 meters high, smaller climbers probably have to master the swing of a releasing right leg while moving up – see pic below). Afterwards You put Your left foot on a small hold in the overhang and lock-off to a mono for the left hand. Then a tensiony foot match to catch a bizarre three finger crimp for the right hand. One last hard dynamic move to go to a juggy slot heading on a few more moves to the anchor. To be accurate but that’s already it

Markus Bock in the upper boulder problem – Pic by Jochen Meyer – Source: Kletterszene.com

At the beginning the first part felt quite hard until I figured out the proper beta for me. There are some tiny intermediate holds but I simply couldn’t hold them. Instead I went for the long moves leaving the small ones out  I think what I’ve climbed is the proper beta and also doable for smaller climbers. At the rest You’ve got three good holds. I was mainly shaking my hands on both the right ones although they are worse. The body position is better though. Before the temps were colder. So when I climbed up there I always had to rest until my finger tips weren’t numb anymore. That was a bit annoying because I had to stay there longer than I actually wanted. I still have to struggle with numb finger tips after I’ve done some hard moves on very little crimps in cold conditions. You have to keep in mind that the crag is in the shade all day long. However, now the temps are springlike and warm enough that I didn’t get numb fingers two days ago. The first part became routine because I kept falling three times on almost every single move in the second part. Except the first two moves where I’ve never been falling I had to climb up the first part around 12 times. To finish the whole route I certainly needed around 15 tries. So to speak it was a good power endurance and finger strength training for me. The hardest move was definitely the one from the mono to the three finger crimp right before the saving slot in the second part. Before I started to give it some serious tries I had to get up to that point to especially warm up my left middle finger every time. Otherwise I wasn’t able to seriously pull on the mono (I was only able to put my first phalanx inside it).

To sum up in general: After the work is done and You have received Your present You always start to realize that hard work pays off. And it is even more satisfying if the climb was very challenging for You. It might sound strange but through failure You begin to improve Your performance step by step and You will only find it in the things which force You to try as good as You can over and over again. Actually failure is the key to become a physically and mentally stronger climber. That’s what it means to get out of Your own personal comfort zone. And that’s what to keep in mind!

Indeed, Black Label was a great experience again.

Keep crushing out there! All the best, David