Thorazine- An Adirondack Bouldering Classic

Anyone who has visited Nine Corners Lake to climb on the numerous boulder problems there is most likely familiar with a problem called Thorazine- V8.  This climb was my first real project when I started bouldering over 10 years ago because it looked like it climbed really well in a video that Kippy had produced and uploaded on an old bouldering website called www.norope.com.  At the time, the climbing was well above my ability level but the best part about this boulder problem was that it could easily be broken down into two distinct sections; the stand start and the lower sit start moves.  There is an obvious two-handed edge just around head height on the wall boulder where I could start halfway into the climb to try and dial in the upper moves.  Once this portion of the climb became easier, the lower starting moves could then be worked out and eventually pieced together.

I still remember the first time that I sent Thorazine from the full sit start nearly 8 years ago.  I fell on the move going to the lip a dozen times that day yet somehow stayed focused and psyched enough to finally complete the problem.  In the months that followed that ascent, I would repeat the problem as many times as I could and I eventually got to the point where I was convinced that the boulder problem had become so east to climb that it felt easier than some neighboring V4's and V5's at Nine Corners Lake.  That relocation of the boulder problem feeling so easy directly correlates to the strength of muscle memory.  I had done it so many times that it felt easy for me, but did that mean that it was in fact easy?

In the years that followed, I would encounter moments when I was unable to send Thorazine from the sit start.  I had all sorts of excuses when I would fail:  the conditions were horrible (humid, wet, too warm), I wasn't in good climbing shape, my finger strength was weak, I forgot how to match on the edge, the foot hold was too greasy...the list could go on and on.  But after all of these years and over 100 repeats on the classic boulder problem it became apparent to me that Thorazine is just a difficult climb.  It takes good climbing technique, good body position as well as good climbing strength to successfully send.  It is one of my favorite boulder problems in the Adirondack State Park and I hope that many others get to enjoy the process of climbing it like I have.

This past summer I again ran into a period of time where I could not repeat Thorazine from the sit start.  It was when I was away at the New York State Firefighters Academy.  I was gone most of the week for training to become a full time interior firefighter but I was able to be home for the weekends.  Each weekend that I was home, I would sneak up to Nine Corners to get a bouldering session in.  The first few weekends didn't go very well in the way of sending numerous boulder problems but as the sessions started to add up, my body was quickly readjusting to bouldering outdoors again.  Soon enough, Thorazine felt "easy" again and I recorded over 25 repeat sends this fall alone.  I even got to the point of logging a 100 V-point session at Nine Corners Lake this past fall...something that  had not been able to repeat in over four years.  Proof again that muscle memory is a very powerful thing!    

Here is a little information on where the name Thorazine came from:

Thorazine is used for:
Treating certain mental or mood disorders (eg, schizphrenia), the manic phase of manic-depressive disorder, anxiety and restlessness before surgery, the blood disease porphyria, severe behavioral and conduct disorders in children, nausea and vomitting, and severe hiccups.  It is also used with other medicines to treat symptoms associated with tetanus.  It may also be used for other conditions as determined by your doctor.

The Guidebook Beta:
1.  Thorazine (V8) ****
Sit start with your left hand on a large block and your right hand and right heel matched on a large sloping shelf out right.  Climb up the overhanging face on sidepulls and edges to an exciting top out.  One of the best at Nine Corners Lake!

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