I’ve been climbing for about 13 years. I dabbled in it when I was at school, but didn’t really get hooked until I moved to Sheffield to go to uni and joined the uni climbing club. 
I love pretty much any type of rock climbing (trad, bouldering and sport), but it is sport climbing where I like to push my grade. For several years now I have trained with a climbing coach out in Barcelona, and he sends me weekly plans to follow. These involve 2-4 sessions down the wall each week plus climbing outdoors both days at the weekend and the odd run. It’s pretty intense, but in a good way!
When the weather is good you can’t beat the climbing in the UK. Malham, Kilnsey, Gordale and even Raven Tor (yes, Raven Tor!) are all world-class crags. But since the sun doesn’t always shine on us, I also end up clipping bolts abroad a fair bit too. I’ve spent a lot of time in Northern Spain (Catalunya and the Basque Country), but have also climbed in France, Germany and the US.
I work as a freelance Spanish translator which is a brilliant job. I love languages, and the flexible hours make it really easy to go training during the day when the walls are quiet or get out to the crag mid-week. It also gives me a good excuse to go abroad a lot to “brush up on my language skills”!
I live in Sheffield and there is no-where else I’d rather be. It’s a really friendly city and there is a great climbing scene with loads of rock nearby and good walls to train at. I also spend a fair amount of time in Barcelona as my coach likes me to visit him every few months so he can keep an eye on me and assess my progress. I lived there for six months in 2008-9 and still think of this city as my second home. For anyone who has not been – get yourself a plane ticket asap. It’s well worth a visit.
Apart from climbing, I don’t do a whole lot else! Training and climbing takes up most of my free time, but I do also enjoy hanging out with friends, going to the cinema and reading (although if I am honest, most of my reading is in some way climbing or sport related!).
My goals for the future generally just involve getting better. I love training and pushing myself as hard as I can to find my limits. There are loads of hard routes that are pipe dreams at the moment, but hopefully if I put the hours in then I’ll get there one day. I do firmly believe that you can achieve almost anything if you are prepared to work hard enough to get there.
Some of my climbing highlights are the following:
Redpoints
Predator, 8b, Malham, Planeta, Renko y los Turistas, 8a+ Baltzola, Spain, Raindogs, 8a, Malham, The Call of Nature, 8a, Raven Tor, In Brine, 8a, Raven Tor.
Onsights/Flashes
Alt Urgell, 7c, Tres Ponts, Spain (o/s), Instinct Salvatge, 7b+, Tres Ponts, Spain (o/s), Esperit Jove, 7b+, Tres Ponts, Spain (o/s)
