Why I never get nervous attempting hard routes

Some climbers don't believe me when I say I don't get nervous before attempts on hard routes. Here I explain how I do it.

[taker]

Finally Dave figured out how to play this youtube game 2:39

[andrewbrockman]

Love that your accent dials up a notch for the cat 😂

[savethebaysteve]

"If you are going to get upset about a single onsight attempt on a given route, then you're going to find climbing a very frustrating business." Internalizing this has been incredibly helpful to me, as I am a pretty bad onsight climber. Often missing beta that seems obvious on my second and third go. I would often compare myself to partners who were stronger at onsighting, wishing I could climb like them. But I have learned to just appreciate the movement, the outdoors, the friendship and embrace the redpoint!

[ThatOneHomlessGuy]

Hey Dave, any plans to release a video on your first ascent of Bultitdue? Some of us are psyched to see that year long proj going down!

Thanks for the insightful content once again.

[DanA-btdr]

Hi Dave. Great to see a video on this. I often think about your "just goin' for a climb" mantra before hopping on something that may seem scary/intimidating, so it's great to have "it's just an attempt" to add to the repertoire for stuff that is hard or at limit even though I am not really projecting right now. The theme of my season has been mental awareness/training and I really find I am at my best when I am calm and in the present moment, for example, only thinking about hand/foot holds, body movement sequences and not letting other things distract me. This video about cognitive de-loading and overall mindfulness has reinforced all my learning this season. Cheers!

[maximeferre]

Great video as usual ! Sparkles is making his way on your channel I love it !

[bassic]

this is a great video Dave. I always get so caught up in the mental of it all and this is a really interesting perspective and it has given me a great deal of things to think about in my climbing.

[AlexeiDrummond]

I do almost the same thing. If somebody asks me about the pressure I am feeling on the 17th go on a route I just say: it's just another tie-in. I try to find smaller goals than sending, and you almost always learn something from every attempt. Eventually you send it.

[wilfinley]

Dave, you are the best! I really value your insight into climbing and training. Thanks for putting in the hard work to share it with us!

[markharris]

Dave, your videos just get better, which is astonishing given that they were incredible to begin with. This is one of the best videos I've seen, and easily applies to many other situations which may trigger this kind of anxiety, where you have to 'perform' (e.g. play live music, give a lecture, do well in an exam etc.). Thank you!

[gergthims]

I got so much out of this to apply to guitar performance. Thank you!

[AlecARGH]

Super helpful and cool video. I've been using the mantra "Let's take a look" before subsequent attempts and it's been pretty transformative in my climbing... I think I probably should apply it to other areas of my life!

[Foraging_in_kent]

Brilliant advice Dave 🙏🏼 much love from Kent

[kajtekmccranck]

Good video! Thanks a lot! It somehow resonates with my general approach which is: climbing is part of my life, but not my whole life.. So when I fail as a climber I'm not loosing as a human being. It's just an approach that takes away the burden that may limit me.

[Dan-xhci]

Great video! This is going to help a lot of people on their journeys. Thank you.

[AmroNaddy]

I love Dave’s wisdom about preparation, and feel like it has broader life appeal. Part of what I hear is similar to dealing with anxiety: you have to “avoid avoidance.” If you avoid the most stressful parts of the climb during preparation, you ultimately have to face them during the red point attempt. This inspires me to bring more intention to preparation - am I avoiding some difficult part of a climb, instead of confronting it and drilling it?

[MrTomo]

Personally I think its good just to remind yourself we do this because its fun and we enjoy it

[RealWorldClimbing]

I needed this. And I finally feel I am ready to internalize it!

[NCTradLines]

Hey! Thanks for the content. Love the info. Especially, being a new climber 😊

[dantelaw]

Great video, as always. Big fan of the cat.