Motivation and Progress through Climbing instead of Grades

- That 6c+ does also look amazing! Do you want to top rope it? Having climbed together with many of the best climbers in the world during the last 20 years. Steve McClure stands out, climbing and enjoying easier routes the most. During five very intensive days on the Swedish west coast, he focused purely on quality doing possible 30 routes in between 3a to 8a in eleven crags, with 7b as average. Together with Steve was two of his old climbing friends 60 and 69 years old (Kieth Sharples and Rab Carrington) and Steve was actually basically enjoying putting up quick draws and top ropes to his good friends, including me at 52. Having trad climbed for 20 years, Steve started sport climbing when he was 24. Although he was the first to do an 8b+ DWS, having done 8c trad and having onsighted or flashed at least 10 routes of 8b+ etc, we have yet seen his full potential around Sheffield. In total he has redpointed ten routes 9a and harder including his 9b FA this summer. The reason for this might be that during travelling he has mainly focused on quality climbing instead of taking down big challenges and grades. Going abroad means normally having his family in the car doing wild camping and climbing easier. At the same time, around Sheffield where he lives, he has concentrated on doing some extreme redpointing where he keeps the beta in small diaries and always refines it. It just might be that this recipe of focusing on climbing is the best way to for a continuous motivation, avoiding all the anxiety that you normally increase after trying your project for the 100th day in a row without success. (c) Keith Sharples captures when Steve does a 5c+ at Trellebystrands Camping. Within 15 min walk, there are 150 routes from 3a to 8b just by the fjord. Within 15 min in the car you are in the epicenter of trad mecca Bohuslän and in the picture Steve does the classic Electric Avenue 8a. - - The Swedish westcoast has some of the most diverse climbing styles that I have ever experienced and in such a compact area. I have on the same day climbed some excellent sport, trad and DWS routes. What I find particularly impressive is that fantastic quality sport and trad routes can exist in perfect harmony side by side. And there is also so much potential for new routes in all styles. My plan was to go for the onsight of Electric Avenue but thank God I did not try. I could see immediately that it would be far too hard and challenging to protect, which was confirmed on top rope. I checked all the placements on top rope, which were fairly spaced, then went for the lead. Pretty spicy! Originally the line was bolted which would have made for a fantastic onsight challenge, but in its current state it is a very different, though equally amazing route.