Karen Ashbury - National Bouldering Champion

Thanks for the call last night. Ok....Let’s see...Hmmm, feeling slightly daunted now!!!
Here goes …., the Karen Ashbury self profile.

• Teacher (primary)
• Currently li ving in Australia.
• NZ National Bouldering Series winner 1999, 2001, 2nd place in 2002 (gotta win alternate years I think!!) Have entered (and placed 1st or 2nd) in all comps at Castle Hill since I first started climbing out there in 1998
• Favourite spot is obviously, without hesitation, Castle Hill basin. (And yes, I can be found out there every weekend!) Have really been enjoying the climbing out at Flock Hill recently. Have been known to climb on the end of a rope
• Favourite bits of rock to climb: Spent (V6), Orifice Fish (V2), High Rise (V5), Cubism (V5), Lots more that I don’t know the names of!
• Best climb to date: Mantra (V7)-Spittle Hill
• Favourite Earth Sea Sky gear: Silk Weight T-Shirts; brilliant climbing gear, light, quick drying, not constricting. Traverse Jacket; wear it every day biking to work, compact to carry in pack and stands up to all sorts of grim weather
• Non-boulder pastimes?? Say what??! (Actually, I am a little more rounded than that.) I enjoy alpine climbing when I get around to it (have climbed in Mt Cook National Park, Arrowsmiths, Arthurs Pass), weekly yoga sessions, runs in the hills, photography, big reader, movies...Love to travel, spent a great 6mths in India and Nepal recently
• Biggest ambition...Marriage, babies, house...(ha! ha!) Can’t be specific here, bouldering in France would be up there, more travel, harder climbs in NZ. Ooooh. I’ll have to think about that one.

Hope that’s enough for you to work with. If you come up with any other questions, feel free to fire away, take care, catch up with you soon….Karen

How to get there
Castle Hill is 100km west from Christchurch on the main West Coast road to Arthurs Pass. The first lot of boulders that appear while driving on State Highway 73 are in Homestead Field situated behind the Castle Hill Station Homestead. The giant rock faces look like something out of the Lord of the Rings, great towers of stone that seem to bind the earth and the heavens together. Homestead Field has three main climbing areas Dark Castle, Quantum Field and Spittle Hill. The scenery is spiritually uplifting, (even the Dalai Lama has visited) and the climbing and bouldering diverse and challenging . This is an area that is definitely worth a visit.

What is Bouldering?
Rock climbing on small rocks without a rope, allowing complete freedom of movement. A rope and belayer are replaced with a crash pad and a spotter (catcher) or just sound judgment. It is not for complete novices since, like lead climbing with a rope, knowledge of your abilities and control is needed. Bouldering is possibly the best way for a climber to improve. John Gill the father of bouldering once said “If climbing is an extension of walking, bouldering is an extension of gymnastics.” It allows one to attempt the hardest moves they can, and allows incredible movement. It is possible to get very hurt though (broken/twisted ankles are not uncommon, and spinal injuries are not impossible) so you need to use your head, but not to land on.

Gear
One of the nice things about bouldering is it does not require too much gear. A pair of good climbing shoes is all you need (clothing is optional). Water, a chalk bag, nail clippers, medical tape, tooth or wire brush and a crash pad are nice accessories. A crash pad can be homemade or bought, but many people don’t use them. Climbing shoes have NO padding, only a few millimetres of rubber. So, if you decide not to use a crash pad, do yourself a favour and try to land on the balls of your feet and with knees slightly bent.