Climbing in Borneo

Climbing in Borneo
Second pitch of Make it Snappy, 7b+, Berhala Island

Sandakan Wall Climbing Centre

Sandakan Wall Climbing Centre
New, For You.... Sandakan Wall Climbing Centre - Sports Complex

Berhala Island, Bolted climbing in Sabah

Berhala Island, Bolted climbing in Sabah
Contact us for a route guide, free

Friday, June 26, 2009

So here we are, the 27th of June and I reckon the roof is just about finished, there are still some guys working up there so we cant actually safely work inside just yet.
The main frame is almost finished, some bracing to do and a few shackles to get torqued up, then its time to assemble the fibreglass panels before we get the plywood sculpting underway.
Michael Jacksons demise has had absolutely no effect on our work, or for that matter our lives, whatsoever. Jimi Hendrix, Elvis Presley, John Lennon maybe Janis Joplin, actually gave us something of artistic value, a skinny midget dancer who didnt write his own stuff and slept with children doesnt warrant a moment of my concern so we will not be mentioning him in this blog, at all......
However I do get the feeling that we are going to have his music forced upon us for the next few days at least, bring on the jokes I say.
To all those Wacko fans out there, I apologise, its a matter of taste I appreciate that.

Thursday, June 18, 2009

Ikea climbing wall?

The panels for the prefab fibreglass wall arrived to day, might not sound like much to you but its a high five moment for us. they seem to have survived the sea crossing from Korea unscathed and customs decided that they did actually constitute sports equipment so were not due tax - somehow mountain bikes are not considered sports equipment though.....thats Malaysia for you!
We have now got to a point where we need a roof, I mean apart from the searing heat and having welders working above us its no problem, but we cant get the wall in place untill its got a lid on so we are downing tools from tomorrow until it is safe to work there.
seems somehow pleasing to an old socialist to be walking off site but at the same time a little worrying if thats one of the defining features of socialism. I shall ask Sween what he thinks...

Doz continues to sprinkle sweat as liberally as his bad jokes (the Malaysian boys humour him like only Malaysians can). Ed, Naz, Ronny, Mark and the rest of the team politely avoid the subject of pink skinny legs that appear to hang out of his shorts though its pretty obvious they enjoy having him around anyway.

The next stage is the main wall itself, now the frame is up we have to get on with the complicated task of sculpting the climbing face and assembling a frame to mount it on. I have a feeling that I should have been a bit more competant with my mechano set as a kid but once I discovered air guns all thoughts of mini engineering were replaced by the sound of breaking glass... not a worry though, our engineers and consultants have it pretty much worked out, its a case of putting in the graft now.

Tuesday, June 9, 2009

LIKAS CLIMBING CENTRE - BLOOD SWEAT AND MORE SWEAT

Still roofless and awaiting the floor to be finished, the climbing centre starts to take some kind of a shape at last.
We couldnt wait to get started, already three months later than planned the building construction project was hampered by rain and delays after delays mean that it is falling far behind schedule.
Installation of the climbing wall is technically complicated, its not rocket science but then climbing is never going to get popular in zero gravity....
Naz and Ronny now live in the rafters, oblivious to the burning sun, like two monkeys rescued from medical research that couldnt give up smoking. Torque wrenches and Hilti drills wielded like samurai swords.
Don Eduardo, the regal project manager and senior engineer (not to mention designer) calmly overseeing progress from ground level spends far too much time drawing on walls like a four-year old with a set of crayons. Mystical cave drawings will be discovered one day when the climbing wall gets dismantled. Maybe I should buy him a pen and paper.
Doz is the project chief sweat-producer, sloshing around the site, legs turning a vivid pink despite his scampering off to the shade at any opportunity.

The climbing centre is under way, every day brings more progress and more excitement for us all, keeping opening day in our sights is important as time ticks on by.
Watch this space for progress reports.......

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Al gets to grips with Hilti's finest glue...

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