[abarro81]

You're just argumentative Barrows

I can't argue with that, much to my disappointment

[Andy W]

You're just argumentative Barrows but it adds something and even you could have made a similar decision. It seems a shame that an 8b+ onsighter can't get paid

You can get paid on sighting 8b+, who pays for that? Can I get paid digging out and cleaning FA 7's?

[abarro81]

You can get paid on sighting 8b+, who pays for that? Can I get paid digging out and cleaning FA 7's?

Stu did once make me a flapjack if that counts.

[petejh]

Ok Pete, I take it you've ceased all operations?

We’re currently carrying out work that at least carries some pretence of being useful - maintenance and removing redundant assets on nuclear power stations. Although you could easily persuade me that most construction/maintenance work could have waited, during the peaks of the pandemic.

What’s going to happen if sponsored climbers don’t travel to euro crags - are the crags going to fall down?

And we aren’t stooping to writing disingenuous publicity material that has to get creative with the truth in order to justify the whole endeavour.  AKA bullshitting.

[Andy W]

You can get paid on sighting 8b+, who pays for that? Can I get paid digging out and cleaning FA 7's?

Stu did once make me a flapjack if that counts.

Is that the 8b+ or the other? A good flapjack is a fine thing.

[abarro81]

Actually I don't think it was either, I think it was for doing a 9a that's probably only 8c+. Bet he feels scammed.

[Steve Crowe]

Actually I don't think it was either, I think it was for doing a 9a that's probably only 8c+. Bet he feels scammed.

Ah, back in the good old days when scouring Spain for the easiest 9a wasn’t at all controversial.

[Stu Littlefair]

You misremember Steve. It was very controversial because someone suggested a downgrade after a woman did it.

Thinking more about Will’s trip, the last time I can think of a similarly impressive brits abroad ticklist it was probably Malc in Cresciano. Or Ben in the South of France.

[gme]

Totally agree. I can’t think of anything since the 80s routes wise.

[Bradders]

Bouldering wise Aidan Roberts in Rocklands was certainly not shit.

[moose]

Bouldering wise Aidan Roberts in Rocklands was certainly not shit.

He was pretty handy in Colorado too (Railway 8c etc. - has it been repeated?), and then there's his campaign in the Lakes.... Superpowers, Outliers, the problems at Kentmere and Coppermines.

[remus]

(Railway 8c etc. - has it been repeated?)

Yes, Matt Fultz has repeated it https://climbing-history.org/climb/381

Certainly not easy though, pretty sure dwoods has put decent time in and not done it.

[gme]

I was specifically thinking of the brits abroad slant and whilst Aiden doing 8Cs in the USA is impressive its not in the same league as what Will has just done.

Climbing 8C is not that uncommon, I would go as far as saying its become a regular occurrence with 100s of people doing them. 9b+ is close to cutting edge with will being the 6th.

Its up there with the 80s when Jerry and Ben went out to France and repeated all the worlds hardest routes, i cant think of another time since then that compares.

[abarro81]

Yeah, undoubtedly the most successful routes trip from a Brit since I've been a climber. Wonder if he did much hard onsight and flash too? Still no Brit done 8c first try...

[36chambers]

I was specifically thinking of the brits abroad slant and whilst Aiden doing 8Cs in the USA is impressive its not in the same league as what Will has just done.

Climbing 8C is not that uncommon, I would go as far as saying its become a regular occurrence with 100s of people doing them. 9b+ is close to cutting edge with will being the 6th.

Its up there with the 80s when Jerry and Ben went out to France and repeated all the worlds hardest routes, i cant think of another time since then that compares.

I don't know the precise details about how it went down, but what about Mat Birch going to America and putting up the Swarm? Anyone know if it was the hardest problem in America at the time?

After Jade, I think it's still the next hard test piece that all the America wads want to do. Pretty sure Jimmy Webb left empty handed when he was last there and I'm also pretty sure there's a video of Tomoa Narasaki in tears after he couldn't do it (most likely around the same time he was dominating the comp scene).

[gme]

Bouldering wise the one that sticks out is Ty Landman in font.

[remus]

I was specifically thinking of the brits abroad slant and whilst Aiden doing 8Cs in the USA is impressive its not in the same league as what Will has just done.

Climbing 8C is not that uncommon, I would go as far as saying its become a regular occurrence with 100s of people doing them. 9b+ is close to cutting edge with will being the 6th.

I think it's hard to make direct comparisons between bouldering and sport like this because I think top end bouldering grades (8B+ and 8C in particular) are very broad. To make the comparison with sport grades, there are 42 routes graded 9b (2 grades below 9c) whereas there are at least 208 problems graded 8C (and likely many more, the bouldering numbers I have only go to 2019).

Depending on the 8Cs he was doing Aidan's performance could well have been in the same ball park as what Will has been up to.

[jwi]

To make the comparison with sport grades, there are 42 routes graded 9b (2 grades below 9c) whereas there are at least 208 problems graded 8C (and likely many more, the bouldering numbers I have only go to 2019).

That's just because it is a lot less effort to put up boulders than routes, surely? Finding, cleaning and climbing boulders at my max level is trivial compared to doing the same for routes in my experience.

(I have no idea if 8C is broader than 7B, obviously, so I'll have to trust the climbers who do them. If the grades are linear anyone who regularly do 8B in a session should be able to do 8C with siege tactics, and anyone who regularly do 8B+ in a session should be able to do 8C+ etc...)

[Stu Littlefair]

You get the same feeling from repeats though. I don't keep detailed records, but repeats of 8C boulders seem pretty common and I can list lots of people off the top of my head who've done them.

I have absolutely no idea about the breadth of top end boulder grades, but I think it's true at all levels that you can always find a hard boulder that suits you perfectly and thus feels easy. Not sure the same is true of routes, just because there are more moves and the law of averages applies.

I reckon those in the know have more idea how Aidan's US efforts stack up, but as a low-grade punter they didn't jump out in the same way this did.

[Bradders]

9b+ is close to cutting edge with will being the 6th.

It's this bit that does it for me actually, spot on. And surely not just close to the cutting edge but right on it.

[remus]

You get the same feeling from repeats though. I don't keep detailed records, but repeats of 8C boulders seem pretty common and I can list lots of people off the top of my head who've done them.

421 ascents of 8C boulders (up to ~2019), and 88 repeats of 9b routes for an ascents/climb of ~2 for boulders and ~2.1 for routes.

[Wood FT]

The cutting edge is 9c. Sounds like splitting hairs but imagine if it was 9c+ and 10a.

I look forward to seeing how this training translates to comp climbing. I wonder if this tops coming 1st, 2nd etc in a comp, feelings wise.

[remus]

That's just because it is a lot less effort to put up boulders than routes, surely? Finding, cleaning and climbing boulders at my max level is trivial compared to doing the same for routes in my experience.

Good point. I was trying to draw some conclusions about the shape of the grade distribution (i.e. the proportion of problems at 8C, 8C+ and 9A vs proportion of problems at 9b, 9b+ and 9c), but I think it's shaky given the low number of climbs at the upper end.

[crimpinainteasy]

To make the comparison with sport grades, there are 42 routes graded 9b (2 grades below 9c) whereas there are at least 208 problems graded 8C (and likely many more, the bouldering numbers I have only go to 2019).

That's just because it is a lot less effort to put up boulders than routes, surely? Finding, cleaning and climbing boulders at my max level is trivial compared to doing the same for routes in my experience.

(I have no idea if 8C is broader than 7B, obviously, so I'll have to trust the climbers who do them. If the grades are linear anyone who regularly do 8B in a session should be able to do 8C with siege tactics, and anyone who regularly do 8B+ in a session should be able to do 8C+ etc...)

Seems to be different for different people. Maybe from Will's perspective, they're equally hard considering he's only climbed 8C boulder so far despite putting in the effort to improve his bouldering.

[jwi]

My point was that since it takes absolutely ages to bolt, clean rock / cement loose holds with sika, and find out if it is climbable when hanging on a rope compared to standing on the ground it is not surprising that the world has more 8C boulders than 9b routes (if that is of equivalent difficulty---I would not know).

Of course, it is a lot faster to put up routes when David Brasco has already done all the hard work of establishing the project for you.