Monique Forestier, Mind Control (34), Oliana, Spain. The final moves up “the runway” to the halfway “rest”. Buy print.
Hola!
We have been having a fantastic trip here to Catalunya and I have some big news!
On Thursday (31st March) Monique Forestier pulled off the best lead of her life and climbed the route Mind Control at Oliana, in Spain. The 50 meter route is grade 8c+, or Australian 34. Whilst there are probably some harder routes at this grade, it is the hardest route that she has climbed and her first at that grade.
Monique first tried Mind Control soon after she had climbed the route Fisheye (33) at Oliana in 2012. She also spent several days trying Mind Control on a trip in 2013 and again in 2014. Though the upper part of the route was wet and unclimbable in 2014, Monique worked on the lower hard section of climbing, up “the runway” to the half-way “rest,” yet was having difficulty linking this section alone.
This trip Monique has had much more luck, and is probably stronger, and now also fitter having spent the last month in Spain climbing mostly on other routes.
Before Thursday Monique had spent three days trying Mind Control on this particular trip. She had become re-familiar with the route and had thoroughly worked out the moves in top section of the climb. She knew the moves but neither Monique nor I was expecting Thursday to be “the” day. In fact, her first attempt of the day didn’t go too well, she fell off on the hard section of climbing, the first “crux”, which consists of a sequence of 30 extremely sustained hard moves up “the runway” to the half-way “rest”.
Later in the day the wind picked up and temperatures cooled; conditions had improved considerably. She didn’t want to try Mind Control again but (with a little prodding) in the end decided to have another go, not with the intention or expectation of sending the route, the plan was to just have a “training burn”, just to see how high she could link. Given it helps somewhat to climb the lower section of the route as relaxed as possible, maybe this low-pressure, low expectation approach made a difference. Monique then fought hard and power-screamed her way up the runway to the half-way rest. She was psyched to get just that far. Whilst Monique was shaking out at the rest our daughter Coco turned to me and asked “Daddy, is Mummy going do it?”, to which I replied “Not today sweetie… But if she did, it’d be the best thing ever.” Monique overheard me. I had low expectations, but I wasn’t anticipating what happened next…
… As Monique got higher on the route the game gradually changed. The real business of the route is the last 10 meters and I’ve never seen her fight so hard on a climb in her life, power screams just to swap hands at a shake out… And she maintained her form and executed each move to perfection right to the end. In the end, it was truly an inspired send. A magical moment. So much training, hard work, sticking to a dream and a strategy paying off. If that was the culmination of 20 years of climbing, then it’d be a great way to end, but somehow I think we haven’t seen the last from her yet.
So woohoo! Congrats to Monique, my wife*, a 43 year-old mum from Leura in the Blue Mountains!
Read all about it in Monique’s own words here.
More soon.
~ Simon
(*Disclaimer: Monique is my wife. Ok, proud hubby moment, but that doesn’t change anything I’m reporting here!).
PS. Special thanks to Sterling Rope and Nikon Australia for your support! (Images shot on a Nikon D750).
Monique Forestier, Mind Control. Starting up “the runway”. Buy print.
Monique Forestier, Mind Control. On “the runway”. Buy print.
Monique Forestier, Mind Control triptych. Buy print.
Frenchman Joannes Thomas, Mind Control. Working hard on “the runway”. Buy print.
Joannes Thomas styling the cartwheel move that guards the final tufa and the hard climbing to the top of Mind Control.
Ofer Blutrich holding it together up Mind Control’s final tufa on his way to becoming the first Israeli to climb 8c+.
Happy!
Coco Carter, inspired by her mum’s efforts an hour earlier.
And the next day… Coco training with Chris Sharma at his awesome gym in Barcelona. As you do.
