IOD BBQ
July 2011
“Are you from one of those groups?” the police officer asked me. “You know, Anarchy?”. Quite evidently, he didn’t have a clue what 8 of us were doing on a rooftop with a barbecue, but his perception of our intentions was grossly wide of the mark.
Rubix
February 2011
It seems like ages now since we went to Rubix. Just a long brick pipe with a little junction at one end. It’s fed by the River Effra, long since buried under the streets of South London and turned into a sewer. Rubix itself is known as the South Western Storm Sewer, essentially there to collect the overflow from the sewer when it rains. Read the rest of this entry »
IYLO – “Inspiration for life”
July 2011
Another night, another trip into the skies. It’s quieter out there, no people, just a feeling of serenity. Whether it’s 80 stories or 17, being ‘up’ is rewarding. Read the rest of this entry »
The Polski Church
July 2011
My Town
It was scaffolding again. The Polish church in Reading had received a grant for a quarter of a million quid because bits of the steeple had started to fall off, so Jerzy Januszkiewicz had got his mates round to put up a big climbing frame up. We’d been up onto this church before, but as the scaff had only gone to the roof, the view was half as good back a year ago. I’ve been watching this for a couple of weeks, as the frame grew quickly at first, then agonisingly slowly. We were bored, so Gary came round and we ended up going up it before it was finished. Weak shit eh?
Dereliction Fetish
July 11
It was a nice experience, to delve into dereliction again. After months of construction, sewers, tunnels, trains and cranes, the prospect of a day of derelict places was starting to appeal and as such, the derpmaster general of the group put together a list of musty places to go in The Midlands.
Swindon Town
June 2011
Talk of climbing stuff had been getting louder over the last few weeks and a set of floodlights was made a target. Nowhere in particular, just a classic floodlight pylon, a metal frame with a ladder and a row of shining lights at the top. The advent of modern stadia has diminished this provincial staple and I feel it’s not going to be too long before these die out, a relic from the early 20th century and the boom years of football. Read the rest of this entry »
NEO Bankside
May 2011
‘Reshaping‘
The last month has been a drag. Various arrests and police crackdowns has nulled the wonderful spike of accomplishment we’ve had in the London scene and with the Brad:pad on it’s last legs, there’s an ‘end of an era’ vibe with most that I’ve spent time with lately. Read the rest of this entry »
That Parisien Loop
March 2011
With the thrill of Molitor being the presiding memory from our Paris adventure, the desire to tap the keyboard over our night in the 14th arrondissement was nulled perhaps. London was reminded what it was missing in the few days proceeding our return and it seemed like business as usual with visitors such as Steve Duncan, Brick Man and Urban Fox arriving at the Brad:pad War-room to partake , other adventures fading into the memory. Read the rest of this entry »
Vertical Limits
April 2011
My own sense of reality struck as I harnessed up at the base of the jib. The City of London is a noisy city, sirens screaming at all hours of the day, and as Neb explained how he would lead up the crane, climb down and then allow me to top-rope up, my legs turned to jelly and cotton-wool mouth took over. As often as we big ourselves up on blogs and forums, it’s remakably easy to feel very small when faced with a new and intimidating task such as this. I withdrew, electing instead to play a supporting role in Neb’s climb by belaying for him.
Cut and Cover #4 – Kings Cross
April 2011
The pursuit of the ‘LU’ continues. Kings Cross was one of the first stations I believe to have been visited by this generation of explorers, but this was before my attentions turned to mass transit – by the time I got involved, the old access had been secured. Read the rest of this entry »