Innholdsfortegnelse for December 2021/January 2022 Vol. 23 Issue 6 i Gripped: The Climbing Magazine

Matty Hong Repeats Flex Luthor 5.15b In 2003, Tommy Caldwell redpointed his long-time project at the Fortress of Solitude near Rifle, Colo. He called the 40-metre overhanging limestone line Flex Luthor. Caldwell said it was the hardest thing he’d ever climbed. It’s found 30 metres right of Caldwell’s other powerful climb at the crag called Kryptonite 5.14d, which was the first of the grade in the country. American crusher Matty Hong made the second ascent of Flex Luthor, nearly two decades after the first, and gave it a personal grade of 5.15b. Hong told us, “I really relied on Margo. She stepped up to the plate and offered to be my partner, to support me up there. Having her be there as a support system is just massive in sport…

German Solveig Korherr climbed Titan 5.14a at Lion’s Head this fall. With her send, she became the first woman to redpoint the famous Ontario sport route. Earlier this year, she climbed her first 5.14d with La cabane au Canada at Rawyl in Switzerland. The 23-year-old had previously climbed three 5.14c lines with Southern Smoke Direct and Lucifer at Red River Gorge in November 2019, and La cabane au Paradis at Rawly in August 2020. The latter shares the start with La cabane au Canada. Solveig, who is from Steißlingen, was introduced to climbing by her father when she was six. She started competing when she was nine and at 11, started training with a coach in Switzerland. Then 2014 marked a milestone as one of her best competition years, where…

Billy Davidson was a big wall climber from the 1970s who established bold climbs in the Rockies and repeated big aid lines in Yosemite. He then moved to Canada’s west coast and lived a life living off the land, paddling a sea kayak between his self-made camps, pushing the limits of what was possible on the water. To Be A Warrior: The Adventurous Life and Mysterious Death of Billy Davidson is a new book published by Rocky Mountain Books written by Gripped editor Brandon Pullan that explores Davidson’s life, adventures and death. Below is an excerpt from chapter nine of a journal entry by Davidson which he called Nine Nightmarish Nights on Nothing: I felt my foot slipping – damn rain! Rock and sky became one big vertical blurr –…

Mountain Hardwear Compressor Hoodie Men’s $325 A perfect layer for anyone looking for a lightweight and warm jacket. The wrist cuffs pair well with the four pockets as standout features. The internal chest pocket is small, which is nice for having things close and easy to grab. The hood has a three-point adjustment system and small brim. The waist has the standard two-point cinch system. A great option for climbers looking for a belay coat or backcountry skiing. Arc’teryx Alpha Parka $999 It seems like a lot of money for a belay puffy, but trust us, this park is 100 per cent worth the price. It’s Arc’teryx’s warmest down-insulated parka this year. Yes, it’s sheds cold and will keep you protected from the wind, but there are so many great…

Hooking Up: The Ultimate Big Wall and Aid Climbing Manual By Fabio Elli and Peter Zabrok Edizioni Versante Sud 2019 Alpinists say that the best views are to be had on the hardest routes. Big Wall climbers, those week upon week denizens of the vertical, will say that the only way to reach the bitchin’est campsites is to bring as much iron and perlon that money will buy. They’ll you that there’s really no need to rush things on a wall; no need to spend the night with anyone or be anywhere else than on portaledge. if not on a wall, they ask. If the friends that you met at the gym tell you that your best bouldering years are behind you, you should retreat to someplace safe and set…

Matty Hong on his repeat of Flex Luthor 5.15b in Colorado: “The process felt almost like trying a first ascent. I didn’t have any beta for the route, so I spent a lot of time just working out sequences and trying individual moves. It took a long time. It took multiple trips to the cliff before I figured out a sequence that worked. Usually after someone’s climbed a route, you have so much more information than you do if you’re the first person to climb something. A route like Flex Luthor, it doesn’t make sense right away. You have to put your body in different positions and really figure it out move by move.” Lucas Uchida on his flash of Shelter V13 in Squamish: “I knew it was possible. I…

Looking at the world today, it seems rather odd to reflect now on a climbing trip that took place over one year ago, when covid-19 barely had a name. “China has this thing on lockdown,” said one friend. “You’ll be fine. Enjoy yourself,” said another. But I couldn’t, not entirely anyway. With two young kids at home, a loving wife (working triple time to care for them), and news streaming in daily about a growing pandemic, climbing rocks was admittedly not at the forefront of my mind. I wish it could have been. This would be my fourth time to Spain (over two decades), and the last trip in February 2015 was exactly five years ago, to the week. I was both ecstatic and tense boarding the plane. I could…

DMM Apex $330 The Apex has been on the market for a few years and is many climbers’ top choice for arctic-like conditions. For those who may remember, one of the best early tools (circa late 1990s) climbers loved for digit-numbing days was the dmm Fly. Of course, the simple wrist-leash design would freeze after hours out. The Apex excels on pillars, gnarly mixed lines with technical rock to ice sections, and cascading waterfall ice. The curve matches that of the Petzl Nomic, which means you’ll have plenty of clearance on those big bulges. Cassin X-Dream $366 Cassin is one of our favourite and most trustworthy ice gear brands. Their X-Dream is an excellent high functioning, modular tool. Its handle can be adjusted between “dry” and “ice” modes offering roughly…

Ian Welsted is one of Canada’s most experienced alpinists and high-altitude climbers, having experienced many trips abroad to the great ranges. He’s established dozens of technical mixed climbs on remote walls, climbed with some of the greatest of all time, and works as an ice climbing guide in Canada’s mountains during the winter. In 2013, he and Raphael Slawinski made the first ascent of K6 West’s northwest face at 7,040 metres, over 1,800 metres of climbing, at WI4+ M6+ and over six days of climbing. They received the prestigious Piolet d’Or for their effort. This year, he attempted something never tried before: an alpine-style attempt at the west face of K2 with Graham Zimmerman. The two were stifled by extreme heat, permit issues and crowded basecamps, but still climbed high…

New Rockies Alpine A long new route was climbed on Mount Whyte over 430 metres at AI3 M4 by Sebastian Taborszky, Austin Goodine and Paul Taylor. Taborszky, one of the Rockies’ top winter climbers, said, “We ran from avalanches and got dusted, hence the name, Whyte Noise.” New American V16 In Joe’s Valley, American boulderer Taylor McNeill established the widest-move V16 in the world. His process took over three years, and he called it Moonlight Sonata. Laura Rogora Climbs 5.15b Italian phenom Laura Rogora is quickly climbing her way to the top of the short list of the world’s strongest sport climbers. This fall, she made the second ascent of Erebor 5.15b/c in Arco, Italy. Rogora had climbed around 20 routes from 5.14+ to 5.15b. Few climbers have ticked anything…

Climbing can be a heavy sport, with hard work, long days, never-ending projects, injuries, rockfall, avalanches, death and more. So, during these dark months, take some time to find the lighter side of climbing with jokes and funny online videos and memes. Below are a few classics to get you started, and some always-inspiring climbing quotes. 6 Climbing Jokes How many boulderers does it take to screw in a light bulb? One. And nine to cheer them on. “Mommy, when I grow up I want to be a rock climber!” Sigh! “Well, son, you can’t do both…” What is the difference between a sport climber and a skunk? You have to provoke the skunk to spray. How can you spot a climber at a party? Don’t worry, they’ll tell you. What’s…

In 2018, Jean-Pierre “JP” Ouellet and Hugo Charette were halfway up the Pilar Rojo of the Aguja Mermoz in Patagonia. The route was one of the most beautiful crack climbs in the world, with 19 pitches of perfect finger and hand cracks on a prow of orange granite. It was their first trip to Patagonia. “It was mostly easy, just 5.11+, but you know,” JP said, “with the cracks covered in ice, like it was that day, it might as well have been 5.13.” They didn’t summit, but JP thought it was one of the best lines that he had ever been on. Not even ice and Patagonian weather could ruin his enthusiasm for a big granite climb. JP’s hard crack climbing record includes numerous 5.14s, several being first ascents,…

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