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Alba all' Elba, new bouldering discovered by Rock slave XP 2014

The report by Marzio Nardi of Rock slave XP 2014, Elba Discovery, the climbing trip aimed at discovering the bouldering potential on Italy's Isola d'Elba.

Marzio Nardi

November 2014

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Luca Andreozzi bouldering during the Rock slave XP 2014, Elba Discovery by Marzio Nardi & C.

Federico Ravassard

When I began to prepare the program for this XP I called the file Alba all'Elba, Elba dawn. I liked the rhyme, it sounded like it heralded something new. Now that the project has taken shape and above all transformed into something real, I realise that for this Italian island our trip really marks a new dawn. And I'm not referring to the astronomical phenomenon but to the geology of the island, whose potential is still to be unlocked.

We travelled to this island motivated by the quest for discovery, by the wish to experience a small "free climbing" adventure close to home.

The basis for this short trip was Rockslave XP 2014, that desire to unite a group of young climbers who share the same love for climbing but above all who were motivated to clean more boulders and climb more new lines than they'd ever done close to home. The climbers knew they only had a really short time to give it their best shot. Even better than their best.

This alchemy of enthusiasm, places and people enabled us to squeeze the most out of every day, from dawn till dusk, brushing and chalking the western part of the island, the most mountainous area where Monte Capanna overlooks the sea on both its sides.

One full day for each sector that, after hours of brushing and chopping (when we were kind) and just as many hours of attempts, gave way in the evening to names, grades and the odd line of chalk.

4 days, 2 completely new sectors, 40 problems, one British trad route and an upcoming video that will reawaken the desire for that beautiful rock and brush everything we didn't brush before.

Renato Bardi has developed much of the sport climbing on Isola Elba with his "crag" vision, and all this information is online on www.elbaclimb.it.

Through this Xp we hope to have contributed to the development of bouldering on one of most easily accessible islands in the entire Tyrrhenian Sea. The full topo of the areas we discovered and clean will be online soon on rockslave.ferrino.it.

by Marzio Nardi

Rockslave XP 2014
"Elba Discovery"
Maestros of chopping and brushing: Luca Andreozzi, Alessandro Palma, Alberto Gotta, Martina Blanchet, Federica Mingolla.
Sequences and visions: Lorenzo Bona
Air, earth, fire movement: Adriano Trombetta
Sun and snapshots: Federico Ravassard
Raw material selector: Marzio Nardi

FB page with updates: www.facebook.com/rockslaveclimbing

Rock slave XP 2014 is an initiative promoted by FERRINO