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Moving the Needle

How an Average Climber Can Do the Hardest Route in the World

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Moving the Needle

By: Dave MacLeod
Narrated by: Dave MacLeod
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About this listen

How can an average climber do the hardest route in the world? Dave MacLeod wasn’t even the best among his fellow rock climbers in Glasgow, until a sequence of key decisions and influences catalysed his progression from an unremarkable intermediate to one of the best all-round climbers in the world. Dave shows that much of his advantage came from easily trainable skills or behavioural traits that could be replicated by any climber.

Moving the Needle is a story of the ups and downs of a struggle to answer a deep curiosity and its side effect of making the first ascent of Rhapsody at Dumbarton Rock, then the hardest trad climb in the world and the first to earn the grade of E11. Through an autobiographical exploration of his apprenticeship as a climber, the book is intended to function as a guide to transform your own climbing. Foreword by Dave Cuthbertson, and edited by Deziree Wilson.

©2024 Dave MacLeod (P)2024 Dave MacLeod Adventurers, Explorers & Survival Climbing & Mountaineering Extreme Sports Outdoors & Nature Inspiring Heartfelt Thought-Provoking
All stars
Most relevant
Frank and varied. Much more than just a description of the routes he'd climbed. Fascinating.

A1

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Since starting climbing in the early noughties I've followed Dave's story from his blog to 9/10 climbers and his recent foray into YouTube. He has been a constant source of both inspiration and practical advice, from managing injuries to the neuances of training. In a lot of ways, I and many other climbers will feel like they know Dave's story, pieced together from snippets of media throughout Dave's career and in parallel to their own journey in climbing. It is testament to Dave's skill as a writer and narrator that I consumed this book in a single sitting (mostly whilst climbing of course), engrossed from start to finish. The audible edition adds something extra. Dave delivers the story effortlessly, with a closeness to the words that only he can have. 10/10 and essential for anyone who has followed Dave's journey in climbing.

Definitive Dave

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Definitely my favourite audiobook ever, narration is great, loads of dry humour, with plenty of serious stuff and tales of epics in between.
Cannot imagine there is a single person interested in climbing (or not?) who would regret listening to this.

gripping! and enlightening

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Inspiring for average climbers. Dave talks a lot about the ‘unsexy’ side of climbing. What I mean is despite Dave being an absolute beast on rock walls, he talks a lot about his personal psychological perception through all of his climbing career. His fears, doubts, frustration etc.

Dave is clearly a very dedicated person, but he does away with typical facade that high performing athletes are superhuman. He demonstrates that dedication and consistency is the secret formula to impressive list of feats.

I’ve read other climber biographies which have more dramatics stories that could make brilliant film adaptations. However pushing the needle is perhaps the most inspiring book for average climbers like myself.

Dave is authentic and honest

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This book was certainly an eye opener to Dave's story from first starting out climbing to the famous FA of Rhapsody.

Unrivaled insight into Dave's life and journey through the grades

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