Kendal 2009 Part III

Other films highlights:

Jordan Buys groovy dancing after finally topping out on 'Widdup Wall'.

Paul Pritchard 'belaying' Jonny Dawes on the Rainbow Slab by lightly holding the rope with his good hand. Jonny shouts down ‘Take me off belay’ to which Paul gently lets go of the rope and shouts ‘your off’.

Kev Shields putting his disabled hand to good use for the precarious pebble pushing on his bold solo of 'Jahu', E6 in Glen Nevis.

Alex Honnold's utterly remarkable composure on his free solo of the desert 5.12+ finger jamming cracks of Moonlight Buttress in Zion, sweaty palms guaranteed for every one except him it seemed!

My Kendal weekend finished with the intriguingly set up 'Spirit or Sport' debate featuring an all star panel of Steve House, Ueli Steck, Leo Houlding, Andy Parkin and Doug Scott all legends in their own fields of climbing and mountaineering. Chamonix based American Guide, Zoe Hart also joined the panel. Festival goers on the whole obviously found this proposition less than intriguing as only 60 odd (out of 300 tickets) were sold.

Who can blame them as £10 for a discussion that largely focussed on the worth of the Piolet d'Or and issues around sponsorship in climbing was likely to alienate the vast majority of the climbing public. Chairman Andy Cave did eventually manage to get the subject round to a more fundamental issue of fixed protection in the mountains but by then all there was time for was a few quick responses from the fence and the 2nd surreal moment of the weekend when Doug Scott compared the proliferation of bolts on European Rock to the Christian crusades and inquisition.

Moments before Scott had encapsulated in a sentence what, for most, is the spirit of mountaineering. When asked why he bothered going for a walk in the rain in the Lake District he simply replied 'because I feel better when I come back than when I went'. "It raises the spirit."

It was a shame that a debate which promised much was so poorly attended and ended up focusing on some specific and elitist issues. The Kendal debate could be improved next year with a more accessible price tag and an agenda which addresses issues more relevant to the huge majority of 'great' amateur climbers that attend the festival.

But this was a minor pimple on a highly enjoyable weekend of events and mingling. Thanks and congratulations to the Kendal festival management for putting on such a good show. See you there next year and be sure to book early as it seems to be getting more popular every year.

For more festival photos visit the 'people gallery'.