 Yes
it's true!
Johnny Dawes held a coaching session at the school's bouldering wall on 5 July 2001. A selection of our keenest climbers from years 7 to 10 benefited from Johnny's massive experience. After nearly twenty years of extreme climbing, never far from the cutting edge, he is well placed to inspire those just starting their climbing careers. Johnny has always been perceived as unconventional and his own career is studded with surreal and crazy moments (Stone Monkey, Nelson's Column etc). Considering Johnny's catalogue of first ascents, his versatility is clear. Of course, I hope he has taught our pupils a great deal
about improving their technique but I also feel that his real enthusiasm
for climbing has lifted their sights and shown them that their dreams
can be reality. Click here to see a report and pictures More Johnny at www.johnnydawes.com |
"No one doubts Johnny Dawes' radical and unorthodox approach to climbing; the problem is that few people understand it! The 'nutty professor' of modern climbing, who thinks in patterns and moves in waves is also renowned for speaking in riddles. Even the most open-minded have been left baffled in the wake of his ranting. So the question I face in this month's edition of Masterclass is firstly: what exactly does Johnny do? and secondly, will it only work for him? I knew that patience, humility and a 'Beginner's mind' would be essential tools in my quest to find out. When we met in a coffee bar in Sheffield, I had no idea about where things would go. If you'd told me I'd end up in the Foundry being trained by him and improving my climbing by a grade within half an hour, I wouldn't have believed you. But then this is the essence of what Dawes teaches in his own Masterclass seminars, people just don't believe enough." Excerpt from |