UKBouldering.com
the shizzle => news => Topic started by: JackAus on August 18, 2013, 08:52:17 am
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Alex Megos has just done the FA of a long standing project in the Blue Mountains.
Bolted by Garth Miller (I think back in the late 90s), loads of people have thrown themselves at "The Red Project" at Diamond Falls.
Not sure on the name yet, hopefully not something shit like Das Pumphouse...
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Pumpenhaus mate.. ;)
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Wheel of Life is 9a though? First on a rope then.
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Pumpenhaus mate.. ;)
Thought it was obvious that I didn't need the ::)
Wheel of Life is 9a though? First on a rope then.
9a+/V15... Yeah first route/on a rope.
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If you want to do slash grades it should be V14/9a/V15/9a+ ;)
Or 9b if you have to battle a drop bear just after the crux.
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And its now called "Retired Extremely Dangerous".
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And some pics:
(http://www.nickfletcherphotography.com/blog/wp-content/gallery/red_project/1_mg_7156.jpg)
(http://www.nickfletcherphotography.com/blog/wp-content/gallery/red_project/1_mg_7325.jpg)
(http://www.nickfletcherphotography.com/blog/wp-content/gallery/red_project/9_mg_7366.jpg)
http://www.nickfletcherphotography.com/2013/08/r-e-d/ (http://www.nickfletcherphotography.com/2013/08/r-e-d/)
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Someone really needs to school that kid on problem naming.
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Someone really needs to school that kid on problem naming.
Word.
Looks like a class line though.
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+ to the above. Beware, dropbear would be a better name.
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I like the name geeky comic book(/film) reference and keeping with the project name.
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Aha, didn't get reference.
And great pics from our own control freak.
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Good stuff from Simon Carter here:
http://www.onsight.com.au/2013/08/oz-gets-grade-35-9a/ (http://www.onsight.com.au/2013/08/oz-gets-grade-35-9a/)
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Was pretty impressive to watch - I photographed him the weekend before also flashing an 8b and doing another route next to it first go, that takes in the same start but a different finish and weighs in at around 8b+\8c. He's by far the smoothest climber Ive ever seem and its really difficult to judge how hard the moves are as it all seems so effortless.
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I heard you were elbowing Simon Carter in the face like a proper pap! :)
In other news https://www.facebook.com/# (https://www.facebook.com/#)!/VerticalLifeMag?hc_location=stream
In a little bit of previously unreported news, Simon Carter has just told us that Alex Megos did a new link up in the Hollow Mountain Cave that is even harder than the Wheel of Life (which he though was 9a/35). The new link up is called Wheelchair (9a+/36)
The climbing gets harder, the names get shitter.
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He's a lot better at climbing than naming FAs :lol:
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I like how he gives things silly names. To the rest of us, they might seem like grand, epic lines deserving awesome inspirational titles, but he's ticking them off in a day or two - they clearly aren't monster projects for someone at his level. Cue daft names. Wait until he projects something for a month, then see what he comes up with...
...And I'll love it if its equally irreverant.
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Strange that Oz has only just entered the 9th grade given the rock there and the beasts that visit .Wales has had it for 17 years and its much smaller
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Strange that Oz has only just entered the 9th grade given the rock there and the beasts that visit .Wales has had it for 17 years and its much smaller
Have to remember that the climbing population is so much smaller here..... Definitely about time... Only got the first 8c+ in 2006... And there's only 4 of them now... (think its still 4)(and the first one is only half hour away)
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What and where are the 4 8c+s, out of interest? I'm kind of surprised Garth never got this done. I used to sit on the boulder balcony at the St Peters wall in Sydney and watch him casually flash all the epic roof testpieces, spending more time shaking out than most people spent on the whole route. I reckon we're going to see a lot more big numbers in Australia in the future.
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White Ladder - Nowra 2004 (thought it was 06!)
Mr Pink - Blueys 2006
Too Hot To Handle - Blueys 2007
Sneaky Old Fox - Blueys 2009
Southern Delight - Gramps 2012 (Forgot Killian had done this)
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I heard you were elbowing Simon Carter in the face like a proper pap! :)
In other news https://www.facebook.com/# (https://www.facebook.com/#)!/VerticalLifeMag?hc_location=stream
In a little bit of previously unreported news, Simon Carter has just told us that Alex Megos did a new link up in the Hollow Mountain Cave that is even harder than the Wheel of Life (which he though was 9a/35). The new link up is called Wheelchair (9a+/36)
The climbing gets harder, the names get shitter.
He told me that he did something starting at Sleepy Hollow (v11) into Stimulation (v11) via a snippet of Stuck South but climbed backwards. I'm pretty sure that'll be it!
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I'm surprised Garth Miller never did a 9a in Oz, he seemed plenty strong enough from his bouldering!
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Strange that Oz has only just entered the 9th grade given the rock there and the beasts that visit .Wales has had it for 17 years and its much smaller
It's not confirmed that Wales has any 9's though is it.
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2 votes for 9a from Carson and Caff. How many more does it need? Also Ben Moon and Pete didn't seem to quibble
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Obviously Carson 'voted' for 9a, it's his route! First ascensionist with no 8c+ routes experience (afaik) doesn't exactly guarantee the 9a grade does it. He's quoted as saying he had no idea really, just that it felt a lot harder than Infanticide (a soft 8c?). There hasn't been a consensus by climbers with a pedigree of 9a's on either of the 9's in Wales - there being a dearth of climbers who've actually climbed confirmed 9a's in the UK to be able to give a consensus. A pity Megos had such shit conditions in Wales, he's probably been put off for life.
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http://www.nickfletcherphotography.com/2013/08/being-alex-megos/ (http://www.nickfletcherphotography.com/2013/08/being-alex-megos/)
Interview with Megos by Control Freak.
Can Nick's blog be added to the blogpile?
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Thanks JackAus. Garth did climb 9a at some point, didn't he? I just searched and couldn't find it but I'm sure I remember hearing about it at the time.
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If Caff confirmed The Big Bang as 9a I would have thought it would remain confirmed at that grade until someone else repeats it and downgrades it.
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If Caff confirmed The Big Bang as 9a I would have thought it would remain confirmed at that grade until someone else repeats it and downgrades it.
Of course. And I think it's very likely that Caff would be well psyched for somebody with a pedigree of climbing confirmed 9a's to climb either of the ones in Wales and confirm that they are indeed 9a.
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Of course Big Bang is 9a, stop being silly.
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Thanks JackAus. Garth did climb 9a at some point, didn't he? I just searched and couldn't find it but I'm sure I remember hearing about it at the time.
Not sure... On his old 8a profile the hardest he did was 8c+ (in only 3 attempts too...)
http://www.8a.nu/user/Profile.aspx?UserId=4373 (http://www.8a.nu/user/Profile.aspx?UserId=4373)
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Obviously Carson 'voted' for 9a, it's his route! First ascensionist with no 8c+ routes experience (afaik)
Not exactly a route, but he did do Going Down at Longridge, which is 8c+ - never heard of anyone suggesting a downgrade.
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Of course Big Bang is 9a, stop being silly.
There's nothing silly about being open minded. Quote from Neil Carson for the history section of NW Lime:
'As for the grade, I felt it must be a lot harder than the 8cs that I'd done and it was a route that suited my style.....so why not give it 9a and let the future ascentionists down-grade it?'
At the time he hadn't climbed 8c+.
The only 'future ascentionist' to date would probably happily say he isn't well qualified to say whether it's 9a or not.
So what's silly about me wondering based on that?
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http://www.verticallifemag.com.au/2013/08/alex-megos-new-grampians-problems/ (http://www.verticallifemag.com.au/2013/08/alex-megos-new-grampians-problems/)
After making short work of The Wheel of Life (WOL; which he thought was 9a/35) a few weeks ago – and with foul Victorian winter conditions restricting the amount of dry rock on offer – Alex Megos set about establishing a few new link-ups in Hollow Mountain Cave. And in so doing could have put up both the hardest route and the hardest boulder problem in the country.
(http://www.verticallifemag.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2013/08/Wheelchair-Hollow-Mountain-Cave-Grampians-Foto-Dorothea-Karalus.jpg)
Alex proving he is a long way from needing one on Wheelchair (9a+). Dorothea Karalus
Wheelchair (9a+/36) starts as for the WOL, but halfway through Sleepy Hollow traverses into Stimulation and climbs the whole of Stimulation (with the exception of the first move) till its end, which is also the finish of Silverchair – hence Wheelchair.
Of the grade Alex writes, “It’s hard to give it a grade. I think it’s not possible to give it a boulder grade, although it’s more a boulder then the Wheel of Life because it has no rest. Everyone calls the Wheel 9a and I think Wheelchair is harder then the Wheel, I would call it 9a+. But it would be nice to see someone repeating it to give his opinion on the grade.”
The second link-up begins as for Stuck South of the Border (V12) and climbs the rest of the WOL. Stuck South of the Border starts at the starting hold of Stimulation and climbs into Sleepy Hollow. Alex says, “I basically did an extension to Stuck South of the Border as I climbed after the end of Sleepy Hollow the rest of the Wheel. This link is probably as hard as the Wheel (9a). I called it Stimulating Cartwheel.”
Alex also established a new V13 by cleaning up a project at Caves Club. Starting on the right side of the cave, Alex describes it as “a sit start with a pocket for the right hand and the aręte for the left hand. Then you do a big move up with the left hand, place your right heel at the right starting hold and do another big move out right to gain a shoulder grimp. Then just follow the obvious line (kind of an aręte) to the top. I called that one “Sultans of Swing” and I would give it V13.”
If Wheelchair is confirmed at 9a+, and Retired Extremely Dangerous holds it lofty grade of 35 (the big route in the Bluey’s we reported last week here) that would mean that on his trip to Wide Brown Land, Alex has put up both the hardest route and the hardest boulder problem in the country. An impressive contribution from the German phenom.
(http://www.verticallifemag.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2013/08/Sultans-of-Swing-V13-FA-Grampians-Australia-Foto-Dorothea-Karalus.jpg)
Big move out right to the ‘shoulder grimp’ on Sultans of Swing (V13). Dorothea Karalus
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He's bloody good
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I looked at the V13 thing when I was down a few months ago. Usually on hard problems, I can generally see how to do it but this... After the horrible shoulder move, the holds just ran out completely... It was chalked up abit and still nothing... Very impressed with that.
The links in the cave, not so much. Maybe when someone manages to reverse Simulation, that will open up a bunch of harder links (Krusty>reverse Simulation>Stuck South>and out... etc.)
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The links in the cave, not so much. Maybe when someone manages to reverse Simulation, that will open up a bunch of harder links (Krusty>reverse Simulation>Stuck South>and out... etc.)
Nevermind links. There are little holds coming out of the left side of the cave. Using those would be super impressive.
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The links in the cave, not so much. Maybe when someone manages to reverse Simulation, that will open up a bunch of harder links (Krusty>reverse Simulation>Stuck South>and out... etc.)
Nevermind links. There are little holds coming out of the left side of the cave. Using those would be super impressive.
The line left of American Pie? Agreed, that would be amazing...
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White Ladder - Nowra 2004 (thought it was 06!)
Mr Pink - Blueys 2006
Too Hot To Handle - Blueys 2007
Sneaky Old Fox - Blueys 2009
Southern Delight - Gramps 2012 (Forgot Killian had done this)
White Ladder whilst undoubtably hard is only a few extra moves on an existing 8b+ which in itself is an extended boulder problem. Mr Pink could possibly be 9a from what I hear.
The problem with hard routes on sandstone is that good conditions are so hard to come by - finding that ideal balance between being cold but having enough humidity so that the holds dont get glassy
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A pity Megos had such shit conditions in Wales, he's probably been put off for life.
I don't think he will be back at LPT in a hurry, he thought Liquid Amdet was a vertical carpet of Algae with the odd bolt stiking out of it...
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Such a shame....