Failure on projects has been the most important training tool I’ve had. But as with any tool. It’s all about how you wield it.

A video about the first ascent of Zero, 8B at Rooftown near Inverness. I’d been trying this line intermittently across two winters, lockdowns permitting (mostly not permitting).

In 2007 I gave up on the idea of climbing Hunger, 9a. Over ten years later, I returned as a better climber and finished the job. But not without a carefully planned and executed preparation.