Christmas portions … a lavish triple helping of blog coming up, to catch up. Next entry will have the exciting (and chalky) start to 2015.

Mid-November’s climb at the Foundry is at the shapely dalmations. Hazel is up high when we arrive, climbing a non-dalmation (trickier) class of holds.

A quick news catch up … the 3 new wheelchair climbers have visited the Foundry twice, success!

And Lasse is doing OK after his bike stunts with Robin, though he’s had his broken collar bone operated on in Germany, and it turns out his shoulder blade is fractured too.

Nick hints at new equipment later, but Clare gets started with a climb on the holds.

She is stretching up really well. But she is leaning back a lot – tiring for her neck.Harness adjustment for the 2nd climb, to help with the leaning back. Also a rope swap. I ask for help in matching up the various names for ropes. Ahh right! Got it sorted now: ‘safety rope’ means ‘belaying’, and ‘pulley rope’ is the one with the 2:1 gearing for extra assistance. Robin now takes pulley rope, while Hazel and a sandbag take safety rope for Nick, and Helen continues on safety rope for Clare. Clare gets higher this time, with better body position … also some nice foot pushes, and more oomph from the ropes. Now, says Nick, time for the new thing. He fetches The Foundry’s Karl who attaches a ‘bolt line’ at the bottom of the wall. Nick climbs up to run a static rope from top to bottom. The jumar attaches to the line with a nifty loop, whose name I struggle to remember.

It’s an eye-opener to see this much improvement since Clare last used a jumar. Climbing has developed arm lifting power and it seems gripping power has leapt forward too. I marvel at Clare’s knuckles showing white – she really is gripping! No more need for the the cycling gloves, evostik and velcro (but that technique is ‘in the bag’ for others to make use of).

Firm pulls from Robin & Helen. Clare looks ninja-like from the back.
It’s hard to see Clare’s face, and I can’t tell if she is still pulling hard. Nick is still talking to her though. Her arms stay raised and she keeps gripping the bar … focused on reaching the top …
She’s there! Yoooooo!!! “High five!”

Back down and we’re all smiling and saying how well Clare did. Clare herself needs encouragement to smile. But she says that it’s surprising how she has improved on the jumar. “And no vent too”, Nick adds.

(Gotta look back now, enjoy again the thrilling first time that Clare ‘Topped out!’)

Clare looks proud and strong in the team pic.

It’s going to be an afternoon in bed. But first coffees & cake. Clare is keen on this: “Which cake is the most chocolatey?” 🙂

A week later Clare climbs in the early evening. We’re in the Furnace – definitely not a hot Furnace, and Robin’s bare knees look decidedly dusky.

“How are you today?” Nicks asks Clare as we arrive. “Very well, how are you?” replies Clare, chirpily though quietly. She’s been very healthy recently, but yesterday’s inaccurately swallowed cake mixture might be why her voice is faint today.

Hazel is at Laserquest with friends, so I wear a harness and take the pulley rope. Robin climbs with Clare, and Nick & Helen are belaying. Carer Ade takes my iPhone and captures the ‘getting on wall’ start to the climb.
Placing hands very well.

Using feet too – left foot at any rate, supported by Robin’s foot. It’s hard to stick to the wall here because of the slight overhang. Robin pulls both of them inwards as required. Clare floats out several times but looks perfectly happy about it. (Hoisting between bed & chair involves dangling and she’s never found this stressful, maybe due to Saturday morning trapeze back in 2011.)

Clare gets surprisingly high before she has had enough.

Abseil to chair. Clare looks happy and strong but end of trache is exposed – speaking valve has mysteriously disappeared. We manage to find it in Clare’s clothing.

Rest time chat: Clare and Robin have post-16 decisions to make. Robin is thinking King Edwards – best for outdoor activities 🙂 Clare isn’t sure, but will stick with Forge Valley, dependent on grades.

Now for climb two. Nick says we shouldn’t say anything to Clare about placing her hands and feet – up to her to plan her route. It’s really hard not to make suggestions, oops.

Clare sets off determinedly. The rest of us mostly manage to stick to “nice one!” and “yep!” though Nick and Robin blab once each, and get laughed at.

Robin uses momentum to keep Clare on the wall, and Clare finds herself holds. Looking good!Great climb! But strangely the speaking valve has fallen off unnoticed again, and this time we can’t find it anywhere. Time for the Swedish Nose – handy to keep the trache covered, though not good for audibility.

For the 3rd climb, we’re going to use the static line and jumar again. Another chance to find out what that loop is called: apparently it’s a “maillon”, which is a French word and is pronounced “my on”.

Nick is thinking of something linked to the jumar to involve Clare’s legs. That’s for a future session maybe. Meantime Clare still manages to lift her feet quite a bit, even while pulling with her arms. We’re laughing afterwards, Clare as well. Some of Clare’s hair has been pulled off in the ropes, the speaking valve is lost, and there’s a scratch on Clare’s forehead. Heh heh, good session!

And now, it’s right before Xmas. And even chillier. Robin and Nick are wearing hats. Robin isn’t 100% – he looks paler, has a cold/cough, and had a day off school in the week. He’s still doing his paper round and outdoor stuff though. Hazel has been off school too – for the first time ever.

Nick had thought Slab, but said it was even colder over there. A small electric bar heater way overhead is heating up the doorway end of the cavern, but not by much. Nick points at some nicely grabbable red holds. So are we going to give Clare hints or not? Who knows. Let’s see.

Nick is showing us an extra line joined onto the pulley rope with a steel karabiner. It was inspired by the other 3 wheelchair users (they’re still climbing weekly, hurray!) and its purpose is to remove a finger entrapment risk. Its use has been discussed and approved by Foundry manager, Neil: it adds one more complication to the gear, not usually a good thing, but it reduces stuff in front of the climber’s face. We try to think of a name for the new device, having already come up with “Whittaker” for a jumar with straps. Perhaps it’s a “Whittaker single strand”.

Clare sets off strongly.

She is pulling hard.She’s finding footholds. It’s amazing: her leg lifts right up. She’s recently restarted lifting her knees up to her chin again – she always used to sit at the table to eat with her knees under her chin.

She is looking down to see where her feet can find holds, and working hard to get them there. Even managing to do it without help sometimes.

During the climb I’m saying “wow, look at that!”

At the end of the climb, Nick says “quantum leap”. It was a “step change”.

“Did you enjoy it?!” he asks Clare. “It was great”, says Clare, emphatically. “It was liberating.”

Real freedom to move. Freedom from the wheelchair.

Long chatty rest. Just before the Xmas break it’s the Mock GCSE season. Clare spent the whole of Tuesday (given extra time) on her English Mock, and both Clare & Robin have Geog Mocks next week. Nick is about to apply for Ultra Trail du Mont Blanc: there is a 1 in 5 chance of getting a place. He’s entered an ultra marathon race near Grenoble too.

Helen is off to Norfolk for the Christmas hols. She has completed 1 year at Hilltop School and has brought along cake to celebrate. “Lots of icing for Clare!” says Helen.

The Whittakers are off to Berlin for a few days, to stay with Lasse’s family. Nick reckons he might write an article for Summit during the journey – Clare is happy to get a mention. As for me, I’m going to promote the blog so other stroke recoverers can find it. (Eight followers is not very many, and apparently this number includes Nick’s mum (hello!) as well as Clare herself.)

The second climb isn’t so high, but still a great effort. Clare does some high leg lifts but it looks hard to get her arms raised and down below we’re asking if Clare is tired. She comes down. Phew!

Group photo “Ho, ho, ho!”

We’re all waiting to try Helen’s cake. Wow – white choc & orange, with the most fabulous icing I’ve ever tasted. It’s a sumptuous end to a year’s climbing. What a journey this year has been. Climbing has become part of Clare’s life and this makes her very happy.

When we arrive we find Nick on the wall, and Helen and Hazel below. Where’s Robin? Nick says that his German friend is over, and a bunch of friends are round … they wanted to come climbing this morning but Nick reckoned that would be “too much going on”, so they’ll be climbing this afternoon.

Instead Hazel will belay. And Annie, another teacher, will be along soon too, to see the set-up before she and Nick take 3 more school students climbing. (The next 3 are wheelchair users: they’ll be bringing a hoist for the student that doesn’t do standing transfers. Great! 🙂

Clare is going to climb near the entrance, where the wall is slopey like the Slab. There are nice shapey red holds. Nick and Helen help Clare into the harness: I hang back, because helping Clare stand doesn’t really have to be a mum role.

“What’s the strategy?” I ask. Nick reckons Clare is reaching well for hand holds now & should look down to find foot holds as well.

First climb. Seeking hand and foot holds goes well.

And Clare pushes up from her feet.

But she is leaning back a lot. Doing a stand with Nick was fine but it meant the Nick & Helen combo for putting the harness on wasn’t so effective. Clare’s neck gets tired.

Clare rests and we chat to Annie from Kelford School. This is the school attended by the three soon-to-be climbers – who will be the first from Kelford, as the other students are from Hilltop School.

I help Clare balance on her feet, and Nick and Helen adjust her harness. Now for Climb 2 …

The harness is much better. Clare keeps going. Hands and feet are impressively still in action.
At last Clare comes back down, after a long effort. “You did well”, says Nick. “Arms can get tired they are held up for a long time – it makes my arms ache”. “Sorry”, says Clare. “No need to say sorry,” I butt in, “after all we’ve heard about what Robin has done to him!”

Clare’s forehead is crinkly with tiredness but she’s still smiling. I wonder about another climb. Clare asks is there is going to be a “cake break”.

Heh heh, yes, there can be cake. But Clare should be done with climbing first.

Clare rests while carer has a go at climbing, followed by the entertaining family duo, Robin and Hazel.

The third climb is not so high. But it goes well – Clare has learnt the patterns of the first few red holds.

“One more?!”

Group pic taken, then Hazel & I go to fetch coffees and a couple of cakes. Two Sundays ahead looks a good date but we decide on next Sunday evening as Clare is improving fast. Keep up the momentum….

Next time we meet over at the Slab near the nice Reds. Clare and I had been wondering if Robin would be there today, and he is … and Hazel too, on the wall when we arrive.

Half term is all but over and everyone has tales to tell. Clare says that Paloma Faith had been amazing live, and we’re expecting some Whittaker adventure tales from the family trip to Norfolk and from Robin’s German friend’s visit to Sheffield.

“Have a nice time with your friends last week?” I ask Robin.

“Yes, went cycling in Greno Woods”, says Robin. He starts talking about the 12 foot drop. Lasse from Germany ran the drop first – straight over. “Woo, sounds scary”, I say, not yet realising where this tale is going.

Robin flew over next. Then Lasse again. Then Robin. Then Lasse wanted to try it on Robin’s new bike. Robin went to the bottom of the drop to get a photo – but …”

“What, the new bike, trashed?!” I ask in dismay.

“No, the bike’s fine! Being repaired. His helmet was destroyed though…”

Robin is still giving details of the wipe-out, like ‘scorpion-flip’. “My god, was his back hurt?” I ask, horrified.

“Luckily not. He was unconscious though. Another friend phoned an ambulance. I went with him to Sheffield Children’s Hospital.” Robin now gets out his mobile and shows us an x-ray photo of a spectacularly broken collar bone.

I ask who phoned his parents, and Nick said that had been his job, along with (later on) collecting the bikes. Robin and Nick add details about the hospital stay … very tall 15-year-old with feet hanging over end of Children’s Hospital bed. Luckily sent home after couple of days.

Wow. That was some half-term. Not good. So the family didn’t actually get to Norfolk? Apparently they did, later in the week …. and saw some seals, says Hazel.

Time to get cracking on a climb.

Clare isn’t really 100% today. I’d wondered whether to cancel, but she was certain she still wanted to climb. Her voice is fainter today. She’s been having some worse nights and ending up on oxygen, though it’s probably just a minor cold.

Nick says Robin and Helen can do safety and pulley ropes for Clare, and he’ll climb, with Hazel belaying for him. There is a quick trial of the ropes … Hazel has a sandbag to counter the weight difference and we laugh because it nearly lifts.

First climb. A good effort with hands and feet. In the rest, Hazel belays for Robin, who wants to climb without hands. Just elbows maybe-? Nick tells him to use his hands because he doesn’t fancy any more time in A&E. Robin allows himself to hold the “smears” with his hands.
The second climb gets off to a good start. Good use of feet to push up.
There is some “One more!” going on.
Clare still looks happy to keep on pulling though. She gets higher than on the first climb.

What a superb foot push.

It’s Clare who says “One more” at the end. Afterwards we agree it’s certainly been a worthwhile effort, even without Clare on top form.
Robin nips up the wall opposite on auto-belay, then belays for Hazel and Helen, who climb interestingly numbered routes. Term starts tomorrow (“I can’t wait”, says Clare). The 3 wheelchair users will have climbed twice by the time we next meet. See you in 2 weeks!

Woo, 3 climbs over the summer months – gotta catch up on this blog.  Picture fest coming up … ventilator ducking out of sight … and in the background some huge, dark mountains.

Late July, it was back to the Furnace.  Not been there since Clare’s 2^nd-ish time at The Foundry.  It was more of a Fridge in the winter but now it’s hotter and Nick has got a big fan blowing air near our corner.  Clare says it’s not hot, and certainly her hands aren’t warm.

The conversation starts with dogs. The Whittaker dog is old and very poorly.  A lovable dog, from the pictures that Robin shows us.  Then we look at pics of Helen’s mum’s sociable labs and whippets, and then show pics of our Pip trying to sit on Clare’s lap while Clare tries to use her laptop.

We discuss the climb. Nick has weighed the climbing helmet and a cycling helmet, and the climbing helmet is actually lighter.  He suggests the first climb without the helmet.  See whether Clare is swinging round and actually needing it.  Robin will try to assist Clare with posture.

The vent. Hardly discussed!  A month ago Clare did her only climb so far without it, and Robin carried it, ready to reconnect.  But now … nah, leave it switched off on the back of the chair. Reconnecting it won’t solve problems fast enough, and Clare should come down if needing a rest.  Nick and Helen point Robin to a sand bag to carry instead, tee hee.

Today Clare wears a different pair of Hazel’s shoes, size 6 so a bit smaller: they seem to fit OK, but here the wall is a bit undercut and Clare’s feet don’t make much contact.  It means swinging round is less of an issue.

Clare reaches well with her hands and steadily scales up. Robin is both checking when she wants to descend and encouraging her upwards. 

She still looks good when she comes down and Nick offers her advice on tactics for the next climb.  He suggests to all of us that she should get up the undercut start fairly quickly (so Nick & I should pull hard) and then she can use her feet at the more vertical zone.

Robin (with his ultra short pre-holiday day) has climbed up and down by now, and we hear about his new bike … keenly awaited… in the meantime he’s stripping down and cleaning the old bike, and planning a long canoeing trip in Germany.

Climb 2: Clare keeps on reaching.  She is dangling at times but her arms (and all of our arms) are helping her up the overhang.  Robin climbs behind to push her to the wall.  I can’t really see Clare’s face but while her head looks firm and she keeps making an effort to reach, I have to assume she is OK.

She gets quite high.

Then fairly suddenly, her head starts to hang further back and she doesn’t lift her arms forward and up.  She needs to come down.  She looks exhausted on arrival.

Nick says it was a 7-minute effort, the longest yet.  I suction airways and put on the probe, which gives a lowish reading.  I tell Clare to breathe up as she can reoxygenate herself faster on her own than wait for the vent at modest pressures to do the job.  Sats starts to rise and then I connect the vent so she can really rest.

Helen goes for coffees and we talk holidays.  Helen will be taking people kayaking (happy smiles, there’s just no staying away). Nick and Robin and family have 2 weeks in France and lots of cycling, and after that Clare and I and family have a week in Oxfordshire … after that there might just be time for a climb before Nick’s ‘Tour De Party’ when Nick gets launched on the road to Ultra Trail du Mont Blanc with the help of a charity cake bake by Robin and sisters.

We watch Helen leading a ‘5c’.

Clare is looking a bit better by now but hasn’t been cheerful enough to join in talk of the holidays, saying only that she is going to sleep when she gets home.  Then she manages a smile when someone who saw her here at The Foundry early on comes over to say “Hi” and to congratulate her on her ongoing success.

Fast forward to late August …

Helen waves from the top – she’s fixing the ropes.

It’s been 5 weeks, and some things are different. Nick has stubble and Robin’s Y10 GCSE results are in.

The stubble is protection from the mountain elements. Wet weather is expected in the French Alps at the weekend but Nick is undaunted, travelling out there tomorrow. We give him a cake baked by Clare’s sister, Xan, and a couple of choc bars (carbo loading / recovery / comfort).

What’s really different for Clare is her new trache and new speaking valve. She is only using the vent at night-time now.  Her voice is more audible and the others can understand.  “How was your holiday?” asks Robin.  Clare’s swift reply: “Good! And how was yours?”

Holiday anecdote: it was “hilarious”, says Robin, his dad’s biking accident. Apparently French bikes have front and rear brakes on the other handlebars compared to British bikes …Nick braked sharply at bottom of hill and flew over handlebars. “Leg was bruised black!” agrees Nick cheerfully. Oh yes, he confirms, still OK for the 100-mile Ultra Trail run.

Can’t match the bike stunt, but Clare had her own slightly spectacular crash, when the power chair spun off the road on a country lane and she plunged down into a hedgerow. No damage, luckily, except hair leafage and nettle rash.

Robin spent 3 days canoeing from the Polish border to Berlin – and his new bike was waiting for him when he got back.  “How’s the bike then?” we ask.  “Wonderful. [Sigh.] Everything you want in a bike.”

So, now for some climbing.  We’re at the same place as 3 climbs ago, but this time Robin climbs to Clare’s left rather than beyond the “liquorice”.

Clare wears Hazel’s grey climbing shoes, as used last time, and the strategy is to get hands and feet on the wall and to hold body out from wall. Clare is saying “thank you” a lot.  She really is going to get speech back.

Nick suggests Clare tries without a helmet at first, and we’ll see if she needs one. A very lightweight helmet would be good … what kind could we get? Helen and I think that French white water canoeing helmets are very light, and Helen says she’ll see if she can find one around.

First climb. Clare is reaching well.  She draws up both feet and uses them a bit, with help. It’s the most “whole body” climb I’ve seen Clare do.

I wonder if Clare is breathing.  I call her name, and ask. She nods.  Robin says she’s OK.

The speaking valve falls off and I catch it one-handed.  It isn’t essential but Robin has no trouble reaching down for it and fitting it back on.

Clare gets pretty high.

She comes down tired but she’s smiling.  I’m smiling too because we can hear what Clare says: “It was amazing!!”

Nick and Helen discuss Clare’s technique. Clare is using her stomach muscles. Though not under command for a year or so, they are still there. Clare used to be able to swing up onto a trapeze bar, I say.

Clare’s next remark is harder to figure out. I thought she said “I am going to climb again [after resting]”, but it turns out to be “I am really going to learn to climb again”, i.e. to get my ability to climb restored after my stroke.

Then it’s more holiday chat. Robin tells us about the “dead animal” that a friend on holiday started to look for … the friend traced the smell to Nick’s and Robin’s climbing boots 🙂

Clare says “Congratulations on your GCSE’s” to Robin. She is really looking forward to going back to school. She prefers school to holidays. Robin is the other way round.

2^nd climb. Nick climbs with Clare.  Helen belays Clare, and Robin belays Nick.  It’s all change (though I keep pulling).  Clare gets almost as high with an all-over-body effort. 

She comes down tired, though still cheerful. Nick says it’s usually Robin saying “climb to the top” but actually he thinks himself that Clare could do it. 

We fix the next climb for 14^th September, fitting round Helen’s busy weekends.  We wish Nick good luck for the UMTB, drink coffee, and eat Xan’s cake.

Swooosh …

Now September.  Ultra Trail du Mont Blanc is in the past, just about. We followed Nick via the LiveTrail SMS update service … for 82 kilometres of dark and steep mountain running, until medics told him to retire.

We meet Robin at the entrance.  How’s the bike?  “Excellent!” says Robin, huge smile.

We look for Nick and Helen as we enter the main hall and see them setting up at The Slab. We look particularly at Nick as we approach …. thinner?  Yes!  Certainly is.

Nick says he was 8kg lighter when weighed by the race medics, severely dehydrated. He’s grinning about that. He was extremely disappointed to be forced to stop – though he knew it was the decision that had to be made after throwing up from 8pm onwards all night and next day. But he’s pleased that people are still giving him sponsorship money to benefit the schools.

Clare and I have studied the results and tell Nick he would have been well-placed (exactly 1000^th) if he’d not been forced to stop.

First climb.

Nick will climb behind Clare again, with Helen belaying Clare, and Robin belaying Nick.

It’s a great start. I pass Robin the iPhone once Clare and Nick are round the 1^st blob and he gets some good pictures. Feet on holds, and straightening legs – Nick encouraging and helping. 

Something of a whoop from Helen as Clare gives a huge pull and Helen and I have our ropes go slack. Clare pulled harder or sooner than we expected, or she pushed up with her legs.

Nick is saying go for top.  Not very far from top … but Clare wants to descend.

Nick asks how tired on a scale of 1 to 10.  Clare says “7 plus”.  I’m thinking that Nick stops moving at 10.  On the other hand, Clare ought to stop moving before oxygen debt builds up.

Clare now says: “I want to work on my weight training”.  Well, we have just bought a pull bar to put up in doorways.  Robin gives us advice.  Tell people not to leap at it and swing into the room.  Erm, ok then.

While Clare rests we hear about Robin’s planned 4-hour bike ride to follow climbing today. He is building up to a ride from John O’Groats to Cornwall.  Or any excuse for a 4-hour bike ride.

2^nd climb. Went much higher than any of expected.  Clare is trying really hard.  There is some “1 more pull!” going on … 1 more pull is followed by another 1 more pull.

It’s Robin, watching from below, who says Clare should come down.  I’m just thinking that her hand positioning is looking less lively when Robin says she is “looking pale”.

Zoom back to chair. Clare is smiling and very positive.  “I really enjoyed it.”

Now for some spectating: Robin climbs up a chimney route to get the ropes down.  Meanwhile Helen fetches coffees, including a frothy one for me and Clare to share. And cake for Nick, to try to feed him up a bit again.

See you in 2 weeks!