The best climber in the world comes from #brnoregion
You have a lot of hard and multi-pitch routes under your belt, but that’s mostly abroad. You are currently the best climber in the world and what’s more, you have created a new grade, 9c. Does it make any sense for you to climb in #brnoregion?
Moravian Karst is my home region, I started climbing there, and that’s why I love it there. I spent so much time there that I feel at home there. There is a kind of nostalgia when I return from abroad and get back to the Moravian Karst. Only at that moment I feel I am really at home.
What’s specific about the local region from a climber’s point of view and what do you enjoy most about it?
Fortunately even in the Moravian Karst there is a couple of routes that certainly aren’t too easy, that no one ever climbed, mainly in bouldering, a discipline where you climb on small rock formations without the use of ropes or harnesses. Nooks of various caves in the Moravian Karst still offer a lot of opportunities for new directions.
What’s the grade of the hardest route in the South Moravian region and where is it?
Currently the hardest route is Vasil Vasil, graded 9b+, in the UIAA classification it’s 12-. It’s located in Sloup, in the subsidence of the Sloup brook, called “Old rocks” by climbers.
You come from Brno, so that’s where you started climbing, didn’t you? Are there good conditions for rookie climbers at South Moravia?
It’s not quite ideal for beginners, easier routes aren’t well protected, that’s why it’s always better to go with an experienced climber and try top-rope climbing. There is one exception though - Lažánky at Blansko. But I would still recommend prospective climbers to go to a climbing gym, to have everything explained or to take a course. There are quite a lot of climbing gyms in the South Moravian region already.
You come from a climbing family, so you have an excellent background. Are Czechs great climbers? (Or can you really call any country a climbing superpower?)
There’s quite a large climbing community in Czechia. Thanks to Moravian Karst and Pálava in #brnoregion and Bohemian sandstones, climbing has a long tradition that’s consolidating thanks to climbing gyms. But in France, Austria and currently in Japan, climbing is even more popular.
You travel a lot and allegedly sleep better in your car than at home. How much time do you spend abroad and where do you like to go?
I would say I spend about 150 days a year abroad. Mostly in Europe, namely in Austria, Italy, France or Spain – and also in Norway, to name a more remote country. There is so much to climb in Europe that I don’t feel the need to travel outside Europe. But currently I am for instance in Canada.
And what will always attract you back to #brnoregion?
I just like it in Brno. I was born here, I like it here, I have my family here, there are good conditions for training and Moravian Karst is right around the corner. Even though we keep complaining that nothing works in the Czech Republic – at Southern Moravia perhaps less than in the rest of the republic – I still feel that’s nice to live here. Brno itself is about the right size, and that suits me just fine.
What kind of places at #brnoregion do you like best? Be they connected with climbing or just with free time activities (if you don’t climb in your free time, that is :).
Holštejn, Pálava, Stránská rock, the view above the quarry at Hády.
