Johnny Dawes
lectures
Johnny Dawes needs no introduction if you have
heard of him!. Not only was he the pioneer of the first E8 and E9 climbs in the
world in 1986 he also broke new ground in establishing how the sport was seen
and practiced. Many of his climbs remain unrepeated even now and those that
have, have often been climbed in no better style than the first ascent which
were often climbed ground up or with little visible drama. He found climbs on
classic British crags as well as on the more far flung in India, Morocco, oz,
Norway, the U.S.A and Kurgyzistan, The notable British highlights listed below
span a wide range of rock types, and styles. These climbs typify his
achievements, his travels the constant search for the impossible and magical.
These he loves to talk about and to recall the frequently ridiculous things
that have happened. A typical lecture will be an unusual show involving unseen
Video, award winning video, writings, drawings and his notorious approach to
communicating using metaphor and humour.
In the lectures, these climbs are placed in the wider world of learning, and of experience a lifetime of climbing at the top entails. He will tell you about encounters with animals, curious happenings and sinister mysteries. Questions are welcomed and community spirit a definite healthy bonus. What lies at the centre of genius and how to find it? Where does the limit lie? How will climbing involve art, rehabilitation, and invention? These are the subjects that a lifetime of pushing and pulling have left behind. |
| 'Johnnys in Stockport'
Thursday 25th May 2006 7pm at the NEW Go Outdoors store in Cheadle Heath, Stockport SK3 0QT. For further info please contact Ronnie 0161 968 5680 The talk is open to all DISCOUNT CARD holders plus any BMC affiliated clubs. |
| Review of a lecture by Niall Grimes. Johnny once said to me in exasperation, "I love climbing, but I hate the sport!" Johnny is not a sportsman, but despite his unique and individual approach to climbing, changed the sport in the 1980's in a way that only a handful of British climbers have done in this century. Imagination, movement and boldness were his trademarks, and in a way, no-one has yet matched him for these three characteristics. Johnny's show promised to let us in to his methods of achieving these qualities. And in a way, he did. But not in an expected way. Dawes relaxed on stage, took the mike and asked what we wanted to hear. Nobody really knew what to say, so we looked at some slides of Kyrgystan. These were of various north Wales climbers, some landscapes that Johnny dismissed as boring, and looking too much like women. One shot was beside a boulder with a local boy. "This little boy came over to boulder with me, but he didn't have the £25 to join in my workshop, so I told him to fuck off!" Other climbers came up in the verbal journey; "and Seb Grieve, who despite the fact he climbs E9 is really not such a bad climber. If you know what I mean." We had video footage of a Nelson's Column incident, and then some really amazing footage; Stanage's The Asp on top rope, one handed, and then, wait for it, Downhill Racer, solo, one handed. Think of the horror of crimping two handed along those small edges a long way above the ground. Now imagine strolling, hand barely in use, in complete nonchalance, along the same edges. The top move, a necky 5c crimp move, miles up, is dispatched with an aggressive confidence, knowing no doubt as to the outcome. Pure Dawes. Pure inspiration. Then we were treated to a recital of one of the greatest pieces of climbing writing ever, as far as I am concerned. The Dawes' article, Not Necessarily About the Indian Face, was written in the raw aftermath of his completion of the country's first E9, and is in turn inspirational, thrilling, chilling, and fatally desperate. In the end, it was obvious that Johnny was not here for our entertainment. On stage, we weren't told how to maximize the training effect, angles of campus boards, how to Egyptian. We weren't told about numbers and hardest routes. What we got was one of climbing's great and important characters, open out for all to see. What there was after the fantastic footage, cynicisms, witticisms, sexisms, was a sense from John Dawes, of Fuck you and your expectations, this is what I am, and this is what I am going to do, which, ultimately, was the secret of why he went and added a good many of what were the country's hardest climbs. Hopefully we can all take some inspiration from his honesty |
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