The feeling the night before my first final was a bit like reaching the crux last move on Requiem a couple of years previously. I felt like I had been desperately struggling right at the limit of my ability for a seemingly endless period but all that effort, the most I’d ever mustered in my life meant nothing unless the next bit worked. In both situations, I had this horrible empty perception of just not being up to the job, combined with a crushing weight of internal and external expectation. Quite an extreme feeling really.

The above comparison brings me back to that old question - why climb? Why climb if the same challenges can be found in "normal" life? Climbing is often thought of as being different from other sports in that it is a way of life for many climbers, bigger than a hobby or keep fit pastime. I think this is because climbing, through its multifaceted challenges and rewards has more to give than other activities. For some at least, climbing is a staple provider. Hence, our unrelenting devotion confounds those who don't have "the disease".

>> The soaring cliffs at Fairhead See larger pic

It is also my belief that the mental and physical "needs" of an individual should not be considered as separate. Often, mental stimuli enter at the mind and filter into the body and vice versa. Science, not to mention experience, tells us that a balance is needed between the two, and that this balance is clearly different for different people. After two months of enforced inactivity and a growing feeling of strangulation I walked out of my last exam and could at last redress this balance.

My first opportunity to do this was the joint Mountaineering Council of Ireland and Mountaineering Council of Scotland meet at Fairhead in Northern Ireland a few days later. If ever there was a place to get some physical stimuli this was it! About two miles long and 120 metres high, “the head” is more battleground than playground. This turreted grey barrier stands guard over the Irish Sea, hiding the otherwise gentle topography of the Emerald Isle from Rathlin Island and the nearby Mull of Kintyre. I’m sure even passing giants on the famous causeway would have to look up at Fairhead.

During our introductory slide show at the Tollymore mountain centre where the meet kicked off, my eyeballs bulged from behind beer goggles as images of soaring buttresses and searing splitter cracks flicked by. I looked round the room feeling suddenly a long way from the safe little study area that had been my whole world for the last two months. Other faces also looked shocked. Even the invite to the meet told us only to bother coming if we were comfortable on steep ground of E1 upwards. However, our host informed us that despite the ominous appearance there was a big range of grades from VS to "E whatever you're havin yerself". I wondered what this grade might be like as more pictures of unclimbed features were shown.

The show was given by Calvin Torrans. I’d heard of him before. A driving force in Irish climbing for three (or more?) decades and a long time mountain guide, he looked just like I expected him to - like a hard fecher. Despite being 60 years of age, I didn’t find it hard to picture him muscling up the new E5s he’d recently done on the many beautiful sea cliffs he showed us. His staring eyes were almost as intimidating as the pictures he showed us and they spoke of a driven character beneath. However, a broad grin was just as permanently fixed on his face as the stare. It seemed obvious that despite the long years as a guide and hardcore climber, he still loves and enjoys everything about it.

>> Dave MacLeod on The Hustler E3 5c, 5c, 6a See larger pic

These qualities seemed to be a theme in almost all the hosts. I don’t think I spoke to any that weren’t solid on E3, male and female. The difference between them and local climbers of other areas in the UK was striking. Sometimes at Stanage I’ve got the feeling that some of the boulderers wouldn’t even bother stepping off their mat if someone wasn’t watching.