Boycott the Beijing Olympics
by Nick Smith 31st July 2008
I love sports, and I normally enjoy watching the Olympics and supporting the dedication of athletes in the UK and from all over the world.
However I've decided to not watch any coverage of the 2008 Beijing Olympics on TV, in newspapers or websites. I'm doing this for two main reasons - firstly their long-standing and continuing human rights abuses including their illegal occupation of Tibet and their arms sales into the Sudan. Secondly their environmental record, which is getting worse at a terrifying rate. While almost every other country in the world is making efforts to reduce their impact on the environment, China is vastly increasing the pollution they emit with newly-built dirty power stations and huge industrial complexes.
Of course any boycott at government level was always doomed to failure because of the huge international pressure that China can command. It just doesn't make economic sense to upset them... My boycott of the games will change nothing, but I hope that a few people will read this blog and take more notice of what China is doing.
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Exhibiting at Cliffhanger - 12/13th July, Sheffield
by Nick Smith 29th May 2008We're very excited to be exhibiting at Cliffhanger this year - an annual festival for outdoor people in Millhouses Park, Sheffield, 12th & 13th July 2008. There will be the British Bouldering Championships, dyno competition, free climbing wall, caving, mountain biking, Orienteering Ultra Sprint,... more
Photography:It's all gone dark!
by Nick Smith 12th May 2008The standard Climbers.net website is uses light colours, with plenty of white space. However some people prefer to view photography with black or dark backgrounds, as you can get better visual contrast, so we've added a new option to the site: At the bottom of every page there is the option... more
Running:Gear - Garmin Forerunner 50
by Nick Smith 24th April 2008
I've resisted the urge to splash out on a fancy GPS-tracking/heart rate monitor/watch for several years now (most unlike me 
) but I've finally given in and bought a Garmin Forerunner 50, with the foot pod & heart rate monitor.
I decided against the GPS-enabled versions because they are... more
Getting back into running
by Nick Smith 11th April 2008My running is very much stop/start unfortunately: a couple of months of regular running and then a few months off, either because of injury or a lack of motivation. I had a series of nasty colds in December/January last year and didn't want to risk any aerobic exercise, which then ended up turning... more
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