June 12, 2024 - Five sessions of reflection.

Five sessions and many hours. I spent a long time trying a new left variant of "Liaison Dangereuse" in Coquibus Auvergne. Located on top of the hill right across the parking, the first boulder of the area. A low roof, ideal for not falling from high on a sprained ankle. It was a perfect problem to try. I needed two sessions to work out and do all the moves separately, and then three more to link it all together.
The first session it felt nearly impossible, but when I did all the moves separately in the second session, I started to slowly believe in it. Linking them was hard, and it felt like one of the hardest problems that I wanted to spend time on, besides a handful others. 
Falling off the last move many times during the third and fourth session, but feeling stronger on it every time, the moves started to feel less hard, but I knew I had gotten stronger in them and muscle memory helped a lot. Nevertheless, the moves still felt hard, but my confidence grew. I knew that a minor detail could make the difference and lead to success. I only had to find that detail. 
It appears that I only found it this evening, during my fifth session, and I only thought of it when I one again got to the point of the last move. I had the three finger pocket right hand, a mono for the left, pulled up, missed the last and only good hold, but didn't fall. It was only at that moment that I realized I could and should briefly rest in that position instead of immediately going for it again, which most likely would have led to another fail. I didn't let it happen, I rested for what seemed like an eternity, which allowed me to refocus and in that short time also think about the move itself instead of wanting to finish the problem. It may sound strange to some, but it helped and I finally stuck that last hard move. I had the good hold and I knew that I wouldn't let go of it anymore until I had the jug right hand, crossing over the left. I did it.
Grade wise, I decided to stick with 7C+, even though it might be less hard for those with long legs as it might be possible for them to skip one hard move in the middle part. Grades are subjective and personal for everyone individually. 7C+ is what it felt for me, at least.

Fontainebleau - Coquibus Auvergne - Liaison Dangereuse (gauche) 7C+(7C)