Innholdsfortegnelse for October/November 2017 i Gripped: The Climbing Magazine

Adam Ondra Sends First 5.15d Ever Adam Ondra wrapped up is multi-year project, Silence, in the Hanshelleren Cave at Flatanger, Norway in September. He made the first free ascent of Silence and graded it 5.15d, the first ever of the difficulty. He said afterwards that it “felt like another ordinary day on the project. It was hot, but the air was crystal clear and dry. I felt very little pressure and a lot of psych. Key ingredients for sending the world’s first 9c [5.15d].” The crux is 10 moves with a V15 boulder, which Ondra said is one of the hardest boulder problems in the world on its own. John Lauchlan Award Success East Coast climbers Max Fisher and Fred Giroux were awarded the 2017 John Lauchlan Award to climb…

To the ordinary eye, concrete joists holding up a parking garage do not look particularly enticing. But to Randy Leavitt and Tony Yaniro, two teenagers hooked on crack climbing in 1977, they offered a unique training opportunity – a series of cracks, including four roof cracks – and a chance to reinvent the sport. “There were 45-foot long roof cracks,” recalls Leavitt, who said it was a Wells Fargo garage in Los Angeles that they would visit at night. “One was hands, one was wide hands, one was fists and the other was an offwidth.” Leavitt and Yaniro would do laps in tennis shoes, with duct tape on their hands. The thinner cracks were easier, but the offwidth presented a challenge. “We realized it wasn’t chicken-wingable because it was a…

I began climbing in 2004 in the era when Realization was regarded as the world’s hardest route and 5.15a was the frontier of sport climbing. At that time, 5.15a was never something I dreamed of doing and wasn’t a goal of mine. I’ve always focused on personal progression in the sport and I slowly advanced my way through the grades until I sent Bunda de Fora 5.14d in 2013. That was the first time 5.15 was on my radar. Up until that point, the Bow Valley had always provided the next logical project at the next grade for me. Back then, Bunda de Fora was the Bow Valley’s hardest climb. There were a few open projects to try but mostly I dispatched them fairly quickly. So I forked up the…

Black Diamond Momentum $109 This new shoe is one of the best on the market for indoor climbers. With a knit upper that will help shed the heat, keeping your shoes on at the gym won’t be so bad. Good for small edges and smearing. Two tabs and a roomy heel make them easy to slip on and off. Mountain Hardwear StretchDown $190 The new-for-2016 top-performing jacket was improved slightly for this fall with stretch-welded panels that better trap heat and keep bulk down which improves stretch. Arc’teryx Cerium LT Vest $340 Vests are one of the best layer options for cool and dry conditions in the fall. The Cerium is 185 g and has Premium 850 fill down. Great for rock and mixed climbing. Petzl Boreo $TBA The helmet…

Honour and Glory is Canada’s Second 5.15 Evan Hau became the first Canadian to climb 5.15a with his first ascent of Honour and Glory in Echo Canyon in Alberta. See more on p.40. Anak Verhoeven's Big 5.15 Anak Verhoeven made the first ascent of Sweet neuf 5.15a in France, becoming the first female to make a first ascent of the grade. Kim McGrenere Sends Her First 5.14a West Coaster Kim McGrenere sent her first 5.14a with a tick of Galactic Emperor in Ten Sleep, Wyo. She said, “My favourite climbing style is a combination of powerful and technical.” Summit or Plummet on Vancouver Island Karsten Klawitter and Hunter Lee climbed a new 13-pitch alpine route up Victoria Peak on Vancouver Island at 5.10 A1 and called it Summit or Plummet.…

As the sport of ice climbing becomes more popular every year, climbers across Canada will spend much of the fall anticipating their first swings of the season. The journey from your driveway to the crag takes a lot of planning, organization and patience. Below are 10 tips to get you to the crag safely, climb comfortably and get home before dinner. 1 The Drive: Be sure your car has winter tires, an emergency kit, some extra food, chargers for your electronics and extra warm clothing. Be sure your headlights are in working order, you have a scraper for the windows and the f luids are topped up. Car troubles stop many climbing days before they get started. 2 The Energy: Whatever you like for breakfast, whether it’s eggs and bacon…

If a climbing gym has opened in your town, Hugo Voyer probably knows about it. As the product manager for hard goods at mec, Voyer can tell when a new gym opens just by looking at his sales sheets. “Three summers ago, there were four climbing gyms that opened in the Toronto area and I can go back to the store sales numbers and tell you when those gyms opened,” he explained. “And it’s not just a spike and then it dies, it pops up and keeps going.” According to the Climbing Business Journal, more than 20 new climbing gyms opened across the country between 2015 and 2016. Across North America, the Physical Activity Council found that nearly 150,000 people started either gym or sport climbing in 2015 and almost…

There are countless aid climbing stories, routes, pitches and adventures from Squamish. Aid climbing is how most of Canada’s early climbers reached the tops of their objectives. A look through West Coast topos show the history of aid climbing that preceded long free routes. The climbers included Fred Beckey, Darryl Hatten, Perry Beckham, Andrew Boyd, Chris Geisler, Matt Maddaloni and many others. The Grand Wall was first climbed by aid in 1961 by Jim Cooper and Ed Baldwin In 2017, Squamish has countless free climbs. It makes sense that climbers don’t want to bother hauling heavy packs up a wall close to town to hammer beaks into little seams and risk a whipper on body-weight-only pieces. And we all know that the longer you spend on a wall, the more…

After draining our bank accounts and 15 hours of airtime, we landed in a city that seemed disturbingly similar to the one we just left. A coastal, humid metropolis surrounded by rainforest, Sydney could easily be mistaken for Vancouver. And of course, it was raining. Since first thumbing through the photography of Simon Carter, I had been mesmerised by the aesthetic nature of the rock in Australia. Stunning lines rising from the ocean, exposed arêtes hovering above forests of eucalyptus and the striking orange and black stripes of the Taipan Wall. The world class cliffs of the Blue Mountains and Grampians were calling our name, but first Vikki Weldon and I had to escape this city. After two days of hustle and bustle, we acquired a charming little van named…

Moab, Utah, is one of the most popular fall road trip destinations for climbers throughout North America. The Moab area offers thousands of routes, including the short and tall classics at Wall Street. There is unlimited climbing to choose from, but after my recent trip, I’ve narrowed it down to a few spots you don’t want to miss. The climbing season in Moab is best in the spring and fall if you’re looking for clear, sunny skies and nice temps. If it does rain, it’s often not for long and there’s a selection of activities to do in Moab if it gets wet. Make Moab a destination for your fall road trip this year and you won’t be disappointed. Arches National Park Arches is located just outside of Moab. There…

Petzl Sarken Leverlock $245 If you’ve ever used a Petzl crampon, then you know how well they perform and how long they can last. This 12-point set-up is good for long glacier approaches and the wild ice formations that can appear at any of Canada’s ice areas. Better than other crampons on steep front-pointing terrain. The chromoly steel is durable and can survive a beating in arctic temps. Cassin Bladerunner $389 One of the most nicely crafted tools for your feet to ever hit the market, the Bladerunners lock you into the ice in mono- and dualpoint mode. Areas abused from kicking are given special attention and thicker metal. Despite being so burly, they are on the lighter side. If these are your first pair, don’t be discouraged by the…

Maxim Pinnacle 9.5 2XDry $289 Maxim has been one of the industry leaders for years and the Pinnacle 9.5 is as good on ice as it is on rock. The durable sheath lasts long despite high abrasion. For fall drytooling or mixed climbing where a single rope is the way to go, this is the go-to line. There isn’t a halfway mark, but you can solve that quickly with a marker. Edelrid Skimmer 7.1 $529/set Thanks to rope designs, colour patterns and overall product, Edelrid has become one of our favourite rope manufacturers. The Skimmer 7.1 set meets twin- and halfrope standards. These ropes are crafted for multi-pitch ice climbs where speed is a factor. At 70 metres and with some stretch, you can make long rappels when it’s time…