SACIN - CLIMBING NEWS ARCHIVE 2001

CLIMBING NEWS ARCHIVE 2001

CURRENT NEWS * COMP NEWS * ARTICLES * NEW ROUTES * HARDEST ROUTES * CALENDAR

The fall of the 27s Posted 25/03/2002
At Waterval Boven Andrew Pedley, visiting from the UK onsighted 'Tripolactic Fairytales' 27, 'Jambo' 25, 'Be quick or be Dead' 25 and 'Task Saturated' 25. He also repeated 'Grimslade' 27 at The Chosspile. Carl Kritzinger pointed 'Tripolactic Fairytales' on his second go - not bad for his first 27. Joffrey Hyman also gave it a repeat and then also got 'Paradise by the Sea' 27 all at the Wonderland crags.

Down in Natal both Greg Streatfield and Rodger Nattrass repeated 'Crease Master' 27 at the Magnetic Wall in Shongweni. Scott Sinclair and Thomas Vergunst both wrapped up 'Viper' at the Canyon in Kloof Gorge and Scott also redpointed 'Invertigo' 28 at the Wave Cave in Shongweni.

Paul keeps at it Posted 18/02/2002
Still at it Paul Brouard onsighted 'Dance of the Devil' a 27 and got 'Parastaxis' 29 on his second go at Coombs near Grahamstown.

SA's first 30 Onsight Posted 06/02/2002
Paul Brouard has onsighted 'Fatboys Aerobic Workout' at Howies in Grahamstown, a short powerful route. This is the hardest onsight to date in South Africa. A few years back Justin Hawkins managed to flash a 30 in the Wave cave.

Dreamtime V15/8C gets its third repeat Posted 03/02/2002
A developer has bought Cresciano, the bouldering area in Switzerland made famous by having the world's hardest boulder problem, 'Dreamtime' an 8C/V15 opened by Fred Nicole and repeated by Bernd Zangerl. Dave Graham on hearing that the developer planned to raze the boulders decided to go and repeat the classic hardest problem while it still exists. Rumour has it that after much protesting, mainly by climbers the developer is reconsidering. On the same trip Graham sent many more hard problems including an 8B/V13 flash.

Swinburne's Bouldering Posted 28/01/2002
After a substantial revision to Swinburne's bouldering route guide there has been quite a bit of activity there. Sean Cremen opened up 'Ebb' a V8/7B on the Reservoir boulder, 'Energy' V6/7A on the Bolted boulder. He also repeated 'Dunce' V6/7A a classic problem. Shaun Harris repeated 'Ebb' V8/7B, opened 'Spatchcock' V8/7B down at the Long Tonk area and flashed 'Energy' V6/7A. Joffrey repeated 'Dunce' V6/7A and 'Die Krupps' V6/7A both on The Reservoir boulder.

The Brouard's Road Trip Posted 20/01/2002
Late last year Paul & his sister Faye, now 14 went off to The Restaurant. Paul wrapped up 'Hack and Slay' 31 with his new Miuras, this is probibly the first repeat since one of the holds broke. Faye repeated 'Nuns on the Run' a bouldery 28 at The Gym and 'Tripolactic Fairytales' a 27 at The Superbowl that WAS thought to be reachy. She also onsighted 'Frozen Flesh' 24 and 'Miss McKinly' 23. On returning home Faye repeated 'Venom' a solid 26 at The Canyon in Kloof.

Paul was then off to Swinburne where he & Joffrey continued their epic route up the main face, called Miracle Fountain. This will be a 5 pitch monster, all on bolts of course. On a rest day from bolting Paul onsighted 'Swordfish' 29 and 'Bogey' 28. Joffrey also opened up 'Tritan' a 25/26 on the Pacific Ocean Boulder'

Next stop was Montagu where Paul quickly repeated 'Strange Days' 31 on his second go. Then after substantial new years celebrations and much resting Paul was off to Rocklands. First day, first problem was 'Evan's Problem' a V9 (7B+/7C), then a gradual wearing off of all his skin until the last day. This last day he ripped it up repeating 'Stargate' V10/7C+ at the Fortress, 'Sunset Arete' V10/7C+ and 'Pinch of Herbs' V9/7C at the Roadside boulders. After these last few quick sends several of his finger tips were bleeding.

Paul Brouard on 'Hack and Slay' 31, Restaurant

December Bouldering Posted 15/01/2002
While in Rocklands both Sean Cremen & Greg Streatfield repeated 'Tyrolean Traverse' V8/7B, Greg also did another unnamed V8/7B at the Roadside boulders. Sean at topside repeated 'Slam Dunk' V6/7A and 'Jeremy's Jump' V7/7A+.

Clinton wrapps it up in Rocklands Posted 28/11/2001
While on a trip to Rocklands in the Cederberg Clinton wrapped up several of the bolted routes there. On the Saturday he onsighted 'Blockout' 26, 'Alto Rouge' 27 and 'Billy the Kid' a 22 slab in hiking boots after being bet a six-pack! He also repeated 'Coppertone' 28 and 'Factor 15' 29 both on his second try. On the Sunday he got 'Skinless Arete' 31 also on his second try, ONSIGHTED 'Soviet Dancer' 26 and flashed 'Magic Mushrooms' 28.

Cukoos Nest Errata Posted 15/11/2001
We would like to apologise for the report that Clinton Martinengo repeated 'Cuckoos Nest' on Table Mountain. This is apparantly incorrect.

Fossil Fuel Repeated Posted 12/11/2001
Pieter Martin has repeated 'Fossil Fuel' 32 at The Chosspile, this is likely the routes third repeat after Ralph Brucher and Paul Brouard.

Twilight Floozy - Second Ascent ? Posted 05/11/2001
Paul Brouard gets 'Twilight Floozy' a testpiece 30 in Cederberg, Magaliesberg. Paul wrapped the route up in a few tries. The route was first put up by Richard Lord in 1992 and so far as we know it has not had any repeats since then. The route has 2 bolts but requires a few trad pieces as well.

Thomas gets Barricade Posted 01/10/2001
Thomas Vergunst has repeated 'Barricade' 32, in the Wave Cave, Shongweni. On the same day he also onsighted 'Reality Check' a 25 in Rasta Cave. Barricade has now seen over 10 repeats by local climbers as well as several international repeats.

Hits around the country Posted 29/09/2001
On the bouldering front Evan Wiercx repeated 'Bitter & Twisted' 7c/V9 at Amazon.com, Topside while Kevan Watkins did 'Phat & Thin' and 'Straight Up' both 7a+/V7 at Alicadale near Grahamstown. Justin Hawkins repeats 'Low down & dirty' at Lookout, 7b+(V8/9).

At Fernkloof in the Magaliesberg Joffrey Hyman repeated 'Acromax' 29.

The first SA Woman to get a 30 Posted 27/09/2001
Robin Holwill has just repeated her first 30, 'Cantina Boy' 5.13b(30) in Rifle, USA. This is her first 30 and the first 30 by a South African woman.

Guy Holwill with Robyn in the US got 'Handy Boy' a 5.12c (27) in Rifle on his second go.

Cave Rave gets a repeat! Posted 25/09/2001
Paul Brouard on a return trip to the Wave Cave wrapped up 'Cave Rave' 31 which was opened by Francis. Greg Streatfield pointed 'Riders in the Storm' 30 also in the Cave.

Meanwhile Justin Hawkins is still wrapping up routes at Montague, this time 'Whoa She Poopie' a 30 as well as 'Red & Bad' and 'Hypoxia' both 29 all at the Supertubes crag. Kyle O'Donoghue repeated 'Paws' the classic 26 at Oudtshoorn and flashed 'Rennaisance Man' 25 at Thornkloof. Joffrey also wrapped up 'Hallucinogenic Toreador' 27, 2nd go at The Superbowl, Restaurant.

News from Abroad Posted 24/09/2001
Martina Cufar usually known for doing well in the World Cup competitions has also been putting together an impressive list of onsights and repeats. She onsighted 'Spigolao' 8a(30), 'Superattica' 7c+(29), 'MS' and 'Disneyland' both 7c(28). She also got 'Frego' 8b(32) on her 2nd go and 'Open Area' 8a+/b(31/32) on her 3rd go!

The young Czech Thomasz Mrazek flashed 'Athena' and 8b+(33) at Massone in Arco, Italy.

On a stopover at Fontainebleau Jorge Tost put together these few problems, all in a day, 'Futurs Barbares Direct' 8a+/V12, 'Jaccadi' 8a/V11, 'L'ange Naif' 7c+/V10 and 'L'arrache Couer' 7c/V9 as well as 'Hale Bopp'.

John Gaskins put up his first 8b+/V14 at Woodwell, this is also his first V14.

Still on the bouldering front Bernd Zangerl managed a flash of 'No Liberty' 8a/V11 in Switzerland.

In Canada Sonnie Trotter put up what could be the hrdest route, 'Superman' a 5.14c(35) which is 'Captain America' which finishes up 'Heat'. He also repeated 'Pulse' 5.14a(33) and 'Division Bell' 5.13d(32).

In the States Joe Kindner grabs a repeat of 'China Beach' a 5.14b(34) at Rumney.

Rising Star Posted 18/09/2001
Faye Brouard continuing a run of hard climbing, redpointed 'Gladiator' 28 at the Wave Cave while only 14!. This is certainly the hardest South African female youth climbing ascent thus far. Gladiator took her a few weekends of work and she commented that she wasn't that pumped at the chains. Well done Faye and keep up the strong climbing.

News from the Cape Posted 17/09/2001
Local hero Justin Hawkins, psyched to get strong, went on a route ticking mission at Montague, redpointing 'Point Break', 'Glutony', and 'Ben Dover' all graded 29 and done over one weekend. Kevan Watkins, also at Montague climbed 'The optimist' 26 and recently redpointed 'Lentil' 28 at Thornkloof on his 3rd go as well as opening 'Magic Mushroom' 26 at Hogsback. Still at Montague Martin Renz onsighted 'Stealin' 23 and 'Love Machine' 23, he also did 'Thruster' 26 and three 25's called 'The Jester', 'Brim Service' and 'Eddy of Bovidence'. With these redpoints & onsights as well as his recent first ascent of 'Halebaloo' 26 he is putting in some impressive climbing time. Kyle O'Donoghue's Montague highlights included 'New Wave' 25 and flashes of 'Brim Service' 25 and 'The Jester' 24. Marinus Smigelskis climbed 'Thruster' 26, 'The Jester' 24 and flashed 'Cleinous Hing' 25. Edvinas Smigelkus redpointed 'Eddy Of Bovidence' 25 and 'The Jester' 24.

Chris Sharma Disqualified Posted 16/09/2001
At the World Championship in Switzerland Chris Sharma is disqualified after being tested positive for drugs with traces of cannabis in his system. He could be facing a minimum of three months suspension from competitions.

Back in Gauteng Posted 16/09/2001
Eric Riemann redpointed 'The Fest' 26 at Strubens Valley, this could be a new route as details were vague, he also pointed 'Slight Change' 25 at Fernkloof.

Riders in the Storm Posted 29/08/2001
Thomas Vergunst has repeated 'Riders in the Storm' 30 in the Wave Cave, Shongweni. Martin Renz got 'Madam Gollywog' a 28 and 'Sputnik' a 27 both in Howsins Poort near Grahamstown.

Accross the Country Posted 20/08/2001
In the Cape at Rocklands, Cederberg Jason Whyte repeated 'A Question of Balance' V8/7b at the Roadside boulders and also the 'B2' problem V8/V9 (7b+) at Cedar Rouge. Also in the Cape Justin Hawkins wrapped up the classic 'Cool Like That' a 29 at Montagu.

In the Freestate Faye Brouard repeated 'Alice in Chains' 25 at Alternative Rock, Mnt Everest Reserve and 'Green Eggs & Ham' a 23 on her second try, Faye is only 14. Shaun Miles also repeated 'Spectre' a 24 at Thornies and Kath Fourie 'Heracy' 24 near Grahamstown in the Eastern Cape.

Back in Natal Thomas Vergunst has repeated 'Cyclone Central' 28 in the Wave Cave and 'Vampire' 27, at the Canyon, Kloof.

In Gauteng Gavin Rech repeated the classic 'Vandals' 26 at Fernkloof in the Magaliesberg.

Anthrax gets another repeat & some Posted 14/08/2001
Thomas Vergunst has redpointed 'Anthrax' 29 in the Wave Cave and then went on to repeat 'Beta Master' 27 at The Canyon, Kloof and 'Zero to Hero' at Delville Wood also 27. A bit further south Kyle Odonoghue onsighted 'Behr Hug' 24 and repeated 'Rapscallions le Codge' and 'Phallic Mechanic' both 24 at Outdshoorn. Shaun Miles repeated 'Heracy Avoided' 25 at Howies.

Up in Gauteng Gavin Rech got 'Gandalf' 26 at the Chosspile and Shaun Kroukamp onsighted 'Frozen Flesh' 24 and repeated 'Pocket Rocket' both 24s at The Restaurant.

Edu Marin & Ramon Julia at it again Posted 14/08/2001
The duo of Ramon Julia, 19 and Edu Marin 15 are still at it with a vengance, now in Basqueland Spain. In one weekend Ramon did 'Sunami' 8c (34) in 4 tries, 'Ultima Aldea Gala' 8c (34), 'Gora Begira' 8b+ (33) in 2 tries, 'Pannoramix' 8b+ (33) in 4 tries and 'Fetuccini' 8b+ (33) in 2 tries. Not to be outdone the 15 year old, Edu did 'Mafias' 8c (34), 'Panoramix' and 'Gora Begira' both 8b+ (33) and both in only 2 tries. He also wrapped up 'Daniandroide' 8b (32) in 4 tries. Oh and they both onsighted 'Mamba' 8a (30).

Dave Graham's Europe Trip Posted 09/08/2001
Dave Graham has been on a roadtrip of a lifetime through Europe. During this long trip he has racked up a ticklist better than most could dream of. This includes 'Action Directe' 9a(36), 'Barracuda' 8c+(35), 'Biographie' 8c+(35), 7 x 8c(34) routes, 6 x 8b+(33) routes. 7 x 8b(32) routes. He flashed 'L'amie de tout le monde' 8b(32) in Ceuse, France and onsighted 'Centre Court' 8a+(31) in Frankenjura as well as 20 other 8a/8a+(30/31) routes and 13 x 8a(30) onsights and 20 x 7c+(29) onsights. The above excludes his first ascents of 'Best Friend Lets Go Surfing' 8c+(35) in Switzerland at The Boki and 'Perpetually Stoked' 8b+(33) also at The Boki in 2 goes.

Dave managed to get to Chris Sharma's previous highpoint on the extention to 'Biographie' as well but could not get past the 'pocket stab' move on this trip. Keeping in mind Sharma spent many trips over a few years trying the extention before he finally sent it earlier this year.

Dave also managed to squeeze in some bouldering on the trip doing the first ascent of 'Problems Sideways Daze' V13/8b and repeating 'Mad Maxx' V13/8b both in Fontainebleau. His other V13/8b problems were 'Little Roof', 'Reve de Frere', 'Maharadsha', 'Zerburus' and 'Lointoine de Hueco'. 10 x V12/8a+ and 9 x V11/8a problems were also sent with Dave flashing 'Miserycorde' V11/8a in Font.

Young Guns doing upto 35! Posted 08/08/2001
Edu Marin at only 15 redpointed 'Honky Tonky' at Onate in Spain 8c (34). He also onsighted two 8a (30) routes at Sant Llorent. He did 'White Zombie' 8c in Baltzola, Spain in only 2 tries. He also sent 'Magic Eye' 8b+/8c (33/34) also in Onate, Spain, 'EduHonky Tonky' 8c (34), 'Mala Vida' 8c (34) in 2 tries. He has only been climbing for 3 years and did his first 8b (32) when only 14.

Ramon Julia, 19 sent 'Honky Tonky' in only 4 tries and 'Mafias' 8c (34) in only 6 tries at El Convento. He then repeated 'Llum' a 8c (33) in Montserrat. He went on to do 'Honky Mix' 8c+ (35) in 5 tries, 'Mala Vida' 8c (34) in 2 tries and 'White Zombie' 8c (34) in 3 tries

Also at 19, Adam Pustelnik from Poland sent 'Power Play' 8c (34) in 5 days, 'Showdown' 8c (34) in 3 days 'Wall Street' 8c (34) 3rd try, 'Raubritter' 8c (34) 2nd try and 'Nice Boys' 8b+ (33), now that a key hold has broken off, 1 other 8b (32) on his 5th try, 3 x 8a+ (31) routes in 2 or 3 tries each and 7 x 8a (30) onsights!

Back at Home Posted 07/08/2001
Clinton Martinengo has had a good season so far, he wrapped up 'Point Break' 30 at Supertubes, Montagu, 'Cool Like That' 29 and a first ascent of 'Tradesman' 29 both at The Scoop. At the mone he wrapped up 'Bolero' 26 and 'Mono' 29 and at Peers Cave he did 'Thundering Tyhpoons' 27.

Greg Streatfield wrapped up a redpoint of 'Siamang Blues' 31 and onsighted 'The Red Baron' 25 at Delville Wood. Martin Renz opened up 'Omega Scandal' at NSA in Grahamstown at 26. Also in Grahamstown Shaun Miles did 'Heracy Avoided' 25, 'Anarchy Avoided' and 'Herasy' both 24 all at Howies. Kath Fourie on her trip to Oudtshoorn wrapped up 'Behr Hug', 'Rapscallions le Codge' and 'Phallic Mechanic' all 24.

Eric Riemann repeated 'Paradise by the Sea' a 27 in 2 tries, onsighted 'Rude Bushmen' 24 and repeated 'Booger Being' 25 all at The Restaurant.

On the bouldering front Jason Whyte did 'Jeremy's 7b' V8/7b at Amazon, Topside and Evan Wiercx put up two new problems at Echo Valley, Topside namely 'The Full Beast' V9/7c and 'Shrek' V8/9 (7b+), this was the old B1 project.

Guy opens routes in the US Posted 06/08/2001
Guy Holwill opened up a few routes in Wyoming, USA. He did 'Where the Wind..' 28, 'Wind and Onions' 24 and 'Cool Hand' a 23. See his previous route list while touring through the US.

Banff Film Festival Posted 30/07/2001
The BANFF FILM FESTIVAL 2000 will be held on 27 & 28 September in Cape Town at the Baxter Theatre 20h00 or attend the matinee at 17h00 on the 28th. Tickets are R35, available from Computicket. For more information please e-mail, banff@hotmail.com.

The Best of The Banff Mountain Film Festival World Tour is produced by the Banff Centre for Mountain Culture. 213 entries from 24 countries (this years selection includes films from the United States, France, Switzerland, and South Africa) have been received. Powerful stories reflect a wide range of mountain experiences and portraits, from mountain sports to mountain culture and the environment including:
- paragliding in the shadow of Nepal s Annapurna Range: "A Higher Calling", produced and directed by Neal Michealis, follows six friends as they paraglide cross-country in western Nepal. With the Himalayas as the films backdrop, these adventurers and paragliders become vehicles into the unique cultures of Nepal as they experience instant immersion upon landing.
- skiing bottomless powder in Whistler, British Columbia.
- scaling El Capitan in Yosemite.
- "Skilletto", a film by Derek Westerlund, in which world champion unicyclist Kris Holm demonstrates that one does not necessarily need two wheels to ride extremely technical terrain.

Repeats at The Restaurant Posted 30/07/2001
Thomas Vergust during his visit to The Restaurant has been wrapping up the routes there. He managed to flash 'Hallucinogenic Toreador' 27, repeat both 'Tripolactic Fairytales' and 'Mostly Harmless' both 27. He also onsighted 'Dutch Popcorn' a 26 and 'Task Saturated' 25 at the Hallucinogenic Wall and repeated 'Playpen' 26 on the Restaurant Face. With him on the trip Eric Riemann also ticked off several routes, he repeated 'Nuns on the Run' 28, 'Hallucinogenic Toreador' 27, 'Playpen' 26 and 'Task Saturated' 25. He also onsighted 'Women aint nothing but trouble' 24 and ticked off 'Pocket Rocket' 24. Its proving to be a good winter for these two.

All in Europe Posted 29/07/2001
Vadim Vinokur from the US, after repeating 'Biographie' 35 (8c+) has also repeated 'Chronique de la Haine Ordinaire' 34 (8c) in about 6 tries and this after competing in the World Cup event in Munich. Tony Lamprecht from Germany has opened a new route 25m at Leonhardstein and puts the grade smewhere between 35-37 (8c-9a). Steve McClure who was also in Ceuse went on an onsighting spree where he onsighted 'L'Empire de sens' 32 (8b) and 8 other routes 30 (8a) & harder!

Polish Strongman Posted 25/07/2001
Adam Pustelnik from Poland is showing his mettle, he has repeated 3x34 (8c) routes including 'Raubritter' 2nd try & 'Wallstreet, 3rd try, He also onsighted 'Slimline', 'Spiderman' & 'Witchcraft' all 30s (8a).

Vadim Vinokur Repeats Biographie Posted 25/07/2001
Vadim from the US has just repeated Biographie in Ceuse, France. This is the 4th ascent of this 8c+ (35) after Arnoud Petit opened the route, Silvain Millet & Chris Sharma also repeated it. Of course Sharma has also now added an extention.

Clinton Wrapping it up Posted 21/07/2001
While in Montagu Clinton Martinego has opened up a new route at The Scoop in Badkloof called 'Tradesman' graded 29. He also repeated 'Cool Like That' 29 and 'Point Break' 29/30 at the Supertubes. At the Twin Fins crag in Cogmanskloof, Montagu he onsighted both 'Sisterhood' and 'Another Lonely Day' both 26.

A new 9a+/37 in Ceuse, France! Posted 20/07/2001
Chris Sharma has been trying the extention to Biographie in Ceuse, France on and off for over 3 years now and has finally put it together in an 18 minute push. The last few weeks have seen both Chris and Dave Graham belaying each other on the route. Biographie itself is an 8c+/35 and has seen few repeats. He has graded the route 9a+/37 which possibly puts it as the world's hardest route. See our Hardest Routes page.

The Vergunst's on the move Posted 19/07/2001
Francis Vergunst and Steve Bradshaw (Jnr) on a recent trip to The Restaurant both wrapped 'Snapdragon' up fairly quickly. Thomas his brother got 'Faberge' 28 on his third try at Fernkloof.

MCSA Expedition leaves for China Posted 17/07/2001
The MCSA team leave for Western China today with over 470kg of gear!. They are headed to the Kuksay area which is unexplored with unclimbed peaks from 5000m to 7000m which they will attempt to climb. The team is being lead by the experienced and accomplished Ulrike Kiefer. To get more information on the expedition and its progress with satellite updates and radio interviews goto www.inow.co.nz/mcsa

Fighting Back on Restaurant Crime Posted 17/07/2001
A group of kids from Natal were mugged recently at The Coven by 4 locals with a gun. All valuables were stolen but not climbing gear. The cops were called in and 3 of the 4 were arrested, the kids will need to come through for a court case. Most of the valuables (except for the cash) were recovered.

Hip Hop & Other Repeats Posted 13/07/2001
Julian Nadiras repeated 'Hip Hop Assis' a 8B+/V14 boulder problem which was opened by O.Lebreton in Fontainebleau, France. Dave Graham now in Ceuse flashed an 8b/32 and Steve McClure also flashes two 8a+/31 routes in Ceuse. Ralf Kowalski from Germany repeated a 8c+/35 called '1001-Nacht' in Raucherschinken.

Thomas Vergunst in Gauteng Posted 13/07/2001
Thomas Vergunst up from Natal visited The Chosspile at Hartebeespoortdam and flashed 'Grimslade' 27, onsighted 'Morn not Overmuch' 25 and 'Gandalf' 26 in a day. At Fernkloof in the Magaliesberg he repeated 'The Looking Glass' 25, 'True Sailing is Dead' 25, 'The Sultans of Swing' 24 and 'Crook and Crime' 24 also in a day. Eric Riemann also repeated 'Grimslade' 27 in three tries.

Guy and Robyn ticking them off in the US Posted 09/07/2001
Guy and Robyn still on their trip in the States have visited Wild Iris. Guy onsighted 'Poker Faced Alice' 26 and flashed 'Ghost Rider' 25. Both Robyn and Guy redpointed 'Coyote Vacuum' 26, Guy then pointed 'Bobcat Logic' 27 and onsighted 'Hot Tamale Baby' 25 all at Wild Iris. See his prior repeats.

Kevan Watkins redpoints Paragon Posted 08/07/2001
During his trip to Durban Kevan redpointed 'Paragon' 30 at The Wave Cave, he also repeated 'Headology' a 28 at the Magnetic Wall on his second go.

Dave Graham wraps up his third 9a Posted 07/07/2001
Dave Graham has repeated his third 9a (36), after 'Action Direct' in Germany and his own route 'The Fly' at Rumney, USA. The route this time is 'Elfe' the route opened by Fred Nicole in 1997 at Valle du Grimsel, Switzerland. The route was first repeated by Klem Loskott and then by Iker Pou more recently. In Dave's usual style it only took 5 tries to get the route. Luke Parady who is accompanying Dave repeated the route as well! Fred Nicole is also not idele and has just repeated another V14/8b+ and flashed a V12/8a+ although details are still sketchy at this point. Bernd Zangerl also in good form has repeated 'Unfinished Business' V13/8b in Austria and 'High Spirit' V14/8b+ in Switzerland.

The Brouards are setting the standards! Posted 03/07/2001
Paul Brouard consolodating his position as SA's number 1 climber has just opened his project at The Wave Cave. He has called the line 'Eros' and graded it 33, well done Paul. The route is an extention to 'Sip and Fly' with about 12 super hard moves through the roof. Paul was one draw short and had to top out from the cave to finish the route. He said jokingly afterward "Second ascentionists had better do the same for it to be considered a redpoint." On the same day his sister Faye at age 14 repeated 'Sip and Fly' 26, her hardest redpoint so far. Greg Streatfield did 'Reflections' 27 at the The Magnetic Wall and 'Anthrax' 29 at the Wave Cave. Scott Sinclair also repeated 'Reflections' at the Mag Wall.

Bindhammer Ticking them off Posted 01/07/2001
Christian Bindhammer has repeated 'Shangrila' a 8c+(35), 'Raubritter' a 8c(34) and 'Friends Like You' a 8b+ (33) in the Frankejura.

Bradshaw ticks Short Circuit Posted 01/07/2001
Steve Bradshaw junior during a visit to Outshoorn ticked off 'Short Circuit' 32 on his way to Durban.

Bouldering in SA Posted 01/07/2001
Evan Wiercx has bouldered 'The Beast' 7b+ and opened up 'B1 Project' also 7b+ at Echo Valley, Topside. He also did 'Sean's Problem' 7a and 'Jeremy's Problem' 7b at Amazon, Topside. Jason Whyte also did 'Ponder' a 7b at Amazon. Martin Renz in Grahamstown did 'A for the MFK' a 7a+ at the Grots.

Fernkloof gets a new 30 Posted 25/06/2001
Paul Brouard opened up the long standing project of Hermans left of 'Glass Menagerie' on the Mirror Mirror wall at Ferkloof. The route is very thin with an awesome sideways dyno of miniature grips. He called the route 'A will to Cower' and graded it 30. He also did a quick repeat of 'Mirror Mirror' 26, now that it has been fully bolted, with permission of course. Greg Watkins has also now repeated 'Acromax' the bouldery 29. Eric Riemann flashed 'Morn not Over Much' a 25 at the Chosspile and also repeated 'Gollum' 24.

SA Women Posted 20/06/2001
Robyn Holwill became the third South African women - after Shannon Law and Tessa Little - to climb 29 with her impressive redpoint of 'War Lords' at Mt Charleston in the US. So who will be the first to redpoint 30? Other women in the running are Debbie Viljoen and Marianne Pretorius who have both climbed 28.

The Serengeti Crag Posted 20/06/2001
The new crag in Hilton, Natal known as the 'Serengeti' crag has seen some development. Greg Streatfield opened 'Blue moves'
21, and 'Slave to the Unicorn' (22). Other routes in progress have been nicknamed 'Position Impossible' and 'Brothel Creeper'. The Brothel Creeper project may turn out to be 30. I detect a certain theme in these route names, maybe the crag should be renamed The Porn Star crag. It's good to see some development in Natal so keep it up guys!

Font Vandalism Posted 15/06/2001
Shocking reports indicate that someone called Luc has destroyed some classic Fontainbleau boulder problems in Cuvier Rampart. The most famous being 'Karma' (the crux right hand grip is gone), 'Boucherie' (the underclings gone), 'Fatman', 'Gourmandise' and 'Carnage' (which no longer has a starting hold). So if anyone knows where he lives won't you do us all a favour and forward his address to Fred Nicole.. Other affected problems are '13iSme Travail', 'la Medaille en Chocolat', 'Dalle du Dromadaire', 'Antithese' and 'Boucherie'.

The Power of Youth Posted 15/06/2001
A 15 year old British boulderer called Stewart Watson has climbed a Font 8a called 'Boston Mess'. The ascent is possibly the hardest done in the UK by someone of this age. Other British News is that Steve McClure - well known for his 36(9a) 'Northern Lights' - has notched up two 8a+ onsights in the Past Quarry and has ticked off the notorious 'Bastard' 34(8c) at Rubicon.

Guy in the States Posted 15/06/2001
Well known South African climber Guy Holwill, on a trip to the US, climbed 'Kiss the Cobble' 30(5.13b) at Maple Canyon and 'Straight Outta Compt' 29(5.13a) at Mt Charleston.

Elfe Gets Another Repeat!! Posted 13/06/2001
Iker Pou well known for his repeat of 'Action Directe' had little trouble getting up 'Elfe' originally opened by Fred Nicole. Klem Loskot who has also repeated it thought it to be 9a(36). Iker felt that it was easier than Action Directe, perhaps only 8c/8c+(34/35). He also pointed out that he was well suited to the route.

RamasuriPosted12/06/2001
"A 24 move concert of flying fingers, swinging feet and squeezing stomach..." The description given by Klem Loskot of his new route 'Ramasuri' on the Limestone of Austria. His other comment was: "Getting up it is like being beaten by ten guys with baseball bats!!" Sounds like fun.. So hard is it? Klem won't comment.

Honki Mix Posted 12/06/2001
Patxi Usobiaga a 20 year old from Basqueland repeated 'Honki Mix' 8c+(35) and 'Ondoloin' 8c+(35).

Dave Graham Warm Ups Posted 11/06/2001
The unstoppable Dave Graham once more showed his mettle cranking 'Barracuda' 8c/8c+(34/5), at Kitersberg in a day. At Sustenpass he bouldered 'Pit Bull' 8a+, 'Red Snapper' 8a+ and 'Traumland' 8a in one day! Do you think perhaps he's warming up for the 'Biographie' extension? It's thwarted all attempts so far including a substantial effort by Chris Sharma, it could well be the hardest route in the world.

Polish Sends and a 34 Slab! Posted 10/06/2001
Miroslaw Wodka a 40 year old Polish climber, scraped up 'Tyranozaurus Rex', a super thin supremely technical 8c(34) slab.
Grzegorz Plesniak repeated the Polish testpiece 'Power Play' 8c(34), on Pochylec near Cracow. Krzysztof Sas-Nowosielski sent Pijane Trojkaty a 8c(34), on Wielka Cima at Podzamcze.

Local News Posted 10/06/2001
Grahamstowns resident hard man Kevan Watkins got the first ascent of 'Parasite' 29 out at Coombs, he also opened "Rats in the Roof' at La Poort graded 27. Martin Renz who's studying at Rhodes University recently took some time out from exam pressure to onsight 'Le Zoulou Blanc' 23 at Le Poort & redpoint 'Lizard of ID' at grade 25/26. Rowan Toselli aged 13 onsighted 'Shortcut to Mushrooms' 21 & 'Lady of Lorien' 22 at the Chosspile.

Third Women to redpoint 34!! Posted 29/05/2001
Marietta Uhden has just become the third women to redpoint 8c(34) with her ascent of 'Sonne im Herzen' or Sun in Heart. The route a 30 metre long stamina testpiece is located in Southern Germany near Kochel. Watch out Jozune!

Dave Graham the strongest? Posted 28/05/2001
Dave Graham has just repeated "Action Directe" 9a (36) at Waldkopt, Frankenjura, this is the routes third repeat. It is the fastest repeat, it only took him about 20 tries in 6 days, in addition he did no special training unlike the others who have repeated the route. The same day as his repeat he 'warmed down' on "Downset" 8c (34)! In his same trip to the Frankenjura he repeated almost most of the 8a+ and harder route, at least the one 8b (32) took him a whole 3 days! Whilst there he ticked off another 8b+(V14) boulder problem called 'Zerberus' details are vague but we believe it was opened by Markus Bock. Other recent news is that Yuji Hirayama nabed the second ascent of Tommy Caldwell's "Kryptonite" 5.14d (36) at The Fortress of Solitude, Rifle! Luke Parady recently repeated "The Fly" also graded 5.14d (36). It appears 9a is becoming well established with 20 routes graded 9a or harder!

Natal News Posted 28/05/2001
Just in from Natal is that Thomas Verguenst finished off 'Paragon' 30 at the Wave Cave, good going Tom!
The 'This and That Wall' at the Canyon in Kloof Gorge has been completely retrobolted by Ewan Olds and Grant Cleaveland causing some heavy traffic on these routes, the highlight being Ewan's repeat of 'Viper' 27. The ultra classic 'Venom' 26 saw repeats by Scott Sinclair, Greg Streatfield and our Norwegian imports Anders Bille-Johnsrod and Kjartan Rosfjord-Askim. Kjartan also wrapped up 'Dance Macabre' 26, 'Voodoo Guru' 27 and 'One Crater Later' 26 , Anders also did 'Dance Macabre'. Moving off to Mount Everest, Harrismith Kjartan did well to onsight 'Alice in Chains' 25 and 'Bird Brain' 25. Out at Hilton Kjartan redpointed the scary and airy 'Scratching the Air' 26.

Bouldering in Natal Posted 28/05/2001
Some Belated congratulations to Shaun Harris for his repeat of 'Mooning Miss V' 7c at Swinbourne and Greg Steatfield's third go ascent of 'The Third Dimension' also 7c. The latter is the problem done by Ralph Brucher on the Monkey Pump video.
Greg is hard at work developing the bouldering at Ferncliff in Pietermaritzburg. The classics in the area include 'Snookered' 6c+ opened by Paul Brouard, 'Bomber' 6c opened by James 'Bondage' Benson, 'What might have been' 6c opened by Greg, 'Whats on the slab' 6c and 'Biggles's Dyno' 7a both opened by Paul and 'Ruthless' 6b opened by Dave Drummond.

More Mandala Traffic Posted 27/05/2001
Tim Clifford a 34 year old UK climber got a quick ascent of the Mandala V12/8a+ at the Buttermilks, Bishop. Staying in the US he repeated "The Dominator" the famous Camp 4 testpiece. This is it's fourth repeat after Ben Moon, Jerry Moffat and Fred Nicole.

Jozune does it again Posted 27/05/2001
Jozune has repeated yet another 8c (34), this being her fifth at this great. The route is called "Welcome to Tijuana" which is in Rodellar.

Spitzkoppe MeetPosted 27/05/2001
Mark Seuring, Alard Hufner and Marianne Pretorius did the second ascent of "Hero Arch" 26. Marianne and Alard then did the "South West Wall" route, this they managed in 6hrs & 28mins from campsite to campsite. This is the first female ascent of the route.

15 Year Old Girl Flashes 8a! Posted 27/05/2001
Simone Sant a 15 year old Italian who's only been climbing for one year flashed "La Mano Rossa" 30\8a and "EU" 29/7c+ just after onsighting "Pancio" 28/7c and "Reve Amour Cherub" also 28/7c. Some very impressive climbing.

Grahamstown CrankersPosted 25/05/2001
Just to prove to you that people do climb in the Eastern Cape (and bloody well at that!) Kevan Watkins redpointed "El-Nino" 30, "Seven" 29 second go, both at Oudtshoorn. He also wrapped up "Parataxis" 29 and onsighted a unnamed 25 at Coombs.
Also at Coombs Guy Hubbard upped his redpoint grade with an ascent of "Dance of the Devil" 27. Kathy Fourie redpointed her first 23, her yell of enjoyment reportedly startling an innocent farmer tending his sheep Km's down the road!

Fernkloof RepeatsPosted 24/05/2001
At Fernkloof Eric Rieman repeated "Through The Looking Glass" 25, the ex trad route now with shiny new bolts with permission from Peter Lazurus. Joffrey Hyman also repeated "True Sailing is Dead" 25 at Fernkloof.

First all Female ascent of Blouberg Posted 20/05/2001
Marianne Pretorius and Tessa Little climbed "Hey Jude" a stiff 20 up Blouberg, the route is usually 10 pitches.

The Boulders are Rolling Posted 11/05/2001
Chris Sharma has repeated "Black Lung" V13/7c, the problem Ben Moon put up in Joe's Valley, this is now the problems fourth. Thomas Willenburg has been to Australia and has repeated "Cave Rave" V14/8b+, "Ammagamma" V13/8b and he put up "Rim Rave" a V14/8b+ at the Grampians! James Scarborough from Australia at only 19 has also repeated "Ammagamma". Iker Pou is still in form and has flashed "Les Doigt Verts" V11/8a and also repeated "Raindogs" V11/8a and "Le Pillier Direct" V11/V12/ 8a/8a+.

Recently Fred Nicole opened "Dreamtime sitdown" the world's first V15/8c boulder problem near Cresiano in Switzerland. Bernd Zangerl managed to get it's second ascent apparently at 10pm by the light of a gas lantern!, he also sent "Voigas" a V13/8b shortly afterwards. This climber is relatively unknown but definitely very strong. He opened his own V13/V14(8b/8b+) "Die unendliche Gesichtehis" in Switzerland a few days prior to his Dreamtime repeat. This 22 year old Austrian has five V13/8c and 2 V14/8b+ problems under his belt as well and this for someone who only started bouldering in 1999.

Dave Graham has been rather busy in Switzerland and the surrounds. He did "La Boule" V12/8a+, "Franks Wild Years" V12/8a+, "Super Platte" V11/8a, "Grotte de le Soupirs" V10/7c+ and opened up "Mystic Journeyman", V9/10. In Chironico he did "Casa Pecora" V14/8b+ (possibly easier according to Dave) and another V11/V12 (8a/8a+).

Christian Roumégoux repeated "Fatman Assis" a V14/8b+ at Fontainebleau, this is its third ascent, he also fired "Mad Maxx" V13/8b which he thinks could be only V12. Sean-Pierre Bouvier has opened a traverse problem at Font grade V14/8c+ this is at Cuisiniere it is called "Fou Rire".

Dave Birkett in South Africa Posted 10/05/2001
Dave Birkett from the UK has been in SA for a while now, he is famous for opening some of the hardest lines in the Lakes district in the UK. At Rocklands, Cederberg he wrapped up a quick second ascent of "Skinless Arete", Scott Milton's 31. He also repeated most of the harder routes in the area and did some impressive bouldering.

While in SA he also entered the Agama Atra competition and took first place. He is off to Milner Amphitheatre to repeat the super-classic routes there.

Hardest route in Slovenia Posted 10/05/2001
The route called "Martin Krpan" has been opened by Jure Golob who linked "Konec Mira" 8c/8c+(34/35) and "Strelovod" 8c(34). He thinks the route is 8c+/9a (35/36).

Paul Brouard repeating and opening several 32s Posted 10/05/2001
In the last year alone Paul has climbed 5 x 32 and harder routes, a few of them being first ascents. His latest first ascent of a 32 is "Strata" just left of "Tripolactic Fairytales" at The Restaurant. On this same trip he onsighted "Tugela Blue" 27, the steepest line at The Restaurant, "Chunkey Monkey" 27 and "Eraserhead" 28. After taking third at the Agama Atra competition in de Doorns he left for Outshoorn where he wrapped up several routes. He repeated "Up for Grabs" 32 and onsighted "Seven" 29 both routes opened by Tommy Caldwell. He got "El Nino" the classic 30 and "Kohler/Turkstra" the 31 both on his second try! He also onsighted "Tears for Fears" the 27 just right of "Paws".

International News Posted 10/05/2001
Luke Parady of the US has become the first person in 2001 to repeat a 36/9a route, he repeated Dave Graham's "The Fly" in Rumney. Christian Brenna repeats "Vitamania" 8c+ (35) opened by the Bindhammer brothers in Annot. "The Last Way" 8c+ (35) at Erto in Italy has also been repeated by Luca Giupponi.

Restaurant RemindersPosted 10/05/2001
MCSA members can now enjoy a discount for camping at the Elandskrans resort in Waterval Boven when visiting the Restaurant. Just present your membership card at the office. Also remember that you should park at the farmers house as described in the guide when climbing at the Wonderland area. Remember a whole new crag has is being developed further along from the 'God No Wall' a handfull of new routes and some damn hard projects are up already.

El Capitan gets yet another Free line Posted 09/05/2001
The 33 pitch "Muir Wall" 5.13c (31) on El Capitan in Yosemite, USA has been freed by Tommy Caldwell and Nick Sagar in a single push. There are 3 x 5.13 (29-31) pitches and 18 in the late twenties. This route is definetely amongst the hardest of the free lines on El Cap now.

Local Climbing News Posted 08/05/2001
Greg Streatfield has opened his project at Beacon's Buttress, Hilton calling it "Penguin in Bondage" graded 29. While at The Restaurant he also repeated "Nuns on The Run" 28, "Tripolactic Fairytales" 27 and "Hallucinogenic Toreador" also 27. At The Chosspile near Hartebeespoort dam Eric Riemann redpointed "Gandalf" 26 and Joffrey Hyman onsighted it.

Marianne redpoints Faberge Posted 08/04/2001
Marianne Pretorius has redpointed the super classic 'Faberge', 28 at Fernkloof in the Magaliesberg. This route has seen many repeats of late. James Chapman also redpointed 'Vandals' the classic 26.

Gauteng Classics get repeated Posted 22/03/2001
Pieter Martin redpointed 'Faberge' 28 and 'Acromax' 29 in one day, these are testpiece routes at Fernkloof. On a previous trip to Mnt Everest he also redpointed 'Swiss Cheese' 29. Eric Riemann redpointed 'Lawyers Guns & Money' a 27 also at Fernkloof. Joffrey Hyman also pointed 'Faberge' 28.

Local strong kids Posted 18/03/2001
Brendan Hurner from Durban aged 12, flashed 'Cholestrol Bomb' a steep 22 at Mnt Everest. Faye Brouard redpointed 'Take Away' a 25 at Magnetic Wall, Shongweni.

Possible new 9a/36 by Pedro Pons! Posted 17/03/2001
Pedro Pons from Spain has opened a new route called Mestizaje, 8c+/9a 35/36 & La Negra, 8c+/35 at el Bovedón.

Alien Carnage gets a repeat Posted 16/03/2001
Alien Carnage an 8c+/35 at Castillon France has been repeated by Gianni Duregato of Italy.

Austria gets V13/V14 Posted 16/03/2001
Bernd Zangerl from Austria has established what could be the hardest boulder problem in Elferwandle, Loruns Austria. He called it KI and it is V13/V14 8b/8b+.

Hip Hop gets a sit Start Posted 16/03/2001
Olivier Lebreton added a sit start to Hip Hop and called it Hip Hop Assis clocking in at V14/8b+. Zangerl sends 8b/b+, V13/14

Fontainbleau News Posted 15/03/2001
Fatman the V13/8b testpiece at Cuvier Rampart in Fontainebleau has been repeated by Matt Adams and Harald Röker. Harold got the problem on his second go. Sebastien Frigault has added a new problem called Dune V14/8b+ at Rocher de la Salamandre. JB Jourjon repeats Gourmandise right of Fatman V13/8b at Cuvier Rampart.

Klem Loskot flashes several hard problems in The States Posted 02/03/2001
At Little Cottonwood in the US Klem Loskot flashed Bully V11/V12 8a/8a+, Copperhead V10/7c+, Shingles V10/7c+ & Mr Mom V10/7c+. He did Chong a route of Garth Miller's V12/8a+ in a few tries. In Ibex he also flashed The Atomic Bomb a V10/7c+.

Hotel on Everest!Posted 01/03/2001
It is reported that Russel Bryce from New Zealand has been granted permission to construct a hotel in the Rongbuk Valley in the Tibetan side of Everest at about 17,000ft. This will be the world's highest hotel.

Banff Mountain Photography Competition Posted 01/03/2001
The Banff Mountain Photography Competition is seeking entries.
Deadline May 31. Contact: www.banffcentre.ca/cmc/photo1.html; 403-762-6347

Fred Nicole opens new V14/8b+ in Hueco & repeats in The ButtermilksPosted 01/03/2001
Fred Nicole has opened a new problem called Esperanza V14/8b+ in Hueco, Texas, USA. While there he repeated Rumble in the Jungle V12/8a+ and added Une pointe de Bleau dans un Hueco V11/8a. At the Buttermilks Fred repeated Dave Graham's The Spectre a V12/13 8a+/8b, The Buttermiler V12/13 8a+/8b and Sam Edward's Goldfish Trombone a V13/8b.

Fossil Fuel gets a second ascent (32/33) Posted 28/01/2001
Paul Brouard visited The Chosspile near Hartebeespoort Dam this weekend and redpointed 'Fossil Fuel'. This is the routes second ascent, it took paul 6/7 tries to do the route. The route was a project for quite a while and Ralph Brucher opened the route last year. It seems the route is a solid 32, perhaps a 33.

Ralph has another harder project right of 'Fossil Fuel' and Paul has his eye on a few really hard lines at the crag too. We should be seeing the countries hardest routes going up here soon. Paul is pictured doing the crux of the route in the image to the left.

Paul Brouard and his sister send at The Restaurant Posted 26/01/2001
Paul and his sister visited the Restaurant mid January and did some impressive climbing.

Paul opened up an old project which was left of 'Snapdragon' at The Superbowl. In only 4 tries he opened up 'Frazzle' a 31/32, the route is almost 30m long with some excellent climbing, it is set to be a classic. He also managed to onsight 'Paradise by the Sea' and 'Hallucinogenic Toreador' both 27s at the Hallucinogenic Wall.

His sister Faye who is only 13 and quite short redpointed 'Be Quick or be Dead' a 25 at the Hallucinogenic Wall. She also repeated 'Screaming Demons' a 24 and 'Mad Cow' a 23 both at The Coven. This last route was said to be reach dependant... At the Gaper area she redpointed 'Pocket Rocket' a bouldery 24/25.

Jerry Moffat and Ben Moon are still going strong Posted 26/01/2001
Jerry Moffit from the UK has added a sit start to 'Joker' at Stanage. It is now graded 8b/V13.

Ben Moon meanwhile opened up '8 Ball' a while ago at 8b/V13. While in the States he opened up 'Black Lung' a V13 in Joe's Valley. Dave Graham repeated this problem recently.

Thomas Willenberg gets 2 8b+/V14s Posted 23/01/2001
The German Thomas Willenberg sent an impressive list of problems in Switzerland at Tessino. He opened 'Casa Pecora' 8b+/V14, 'Capocira' 8b/V13, 'Caldo Fumo' 8b/V13, 'Terzo Cane' 8a+/V12 and 'Secondo Uomo' 8a+/V12. He then repeated an 8b/V13 by Markus Bock and an 8b+/V14 by Fred Nicole. He flashed 'Grotte de Soupirs' a 7c+/V10 and repeated 'Dreamtime' 8b+/V14, the standing start in just 2 days.

Ines Westenhofer repeated 'Prima la Signora' 8a/V11, her second problem at this grade.

Piolet d'Or Mountaineering Award Posted 19/01/2001
This award was given to Thomas Huber and Iwan Wolf for their ascent of the north pillar of Shivling, 6543m in the Himalayas. The route is extremely difficult and gets A4/VII at over 6000m.

Fred Nicole pushes V15! Posted 17/01/2001
Fred Nicole, the rather strong Swiss climber spent a few weeks near Cresiano in Switzerland working a sitdown start to 'Dreamtime' which was 8b+ (V14) without the sit start. This will be the hardest boulder problem unless later downgraded, which is unlikely.

While at The Buttermilks in the USA Fred repeated 'The Mandala', its fourth ascent and confirmed a grade of V12. He also repeated 'Goldfish Trombone' a V13 of Sam Edwards in Bishop, California.

Another 9a (36) ? Posted 17/01/2001
In France at Les Calanques Francios Legrand opened up 'Robi in the Sky', the route is 45m long, overhangs 25m and the grade is proposed at 8c+/9a (35/36).

15 year old opens up 8b/V13 slab in Font Posted 17/01/2001
Loic Ledenmat aged 15 opened up 'Lacrima' a slab 8b (V13), this could well be the hardest slab problem around.

Brenna at workPosted 06/01/2001
Christian Brenna from Italy repeated 'The Big Mother' an 8c+ (35) at Erto in Italy. He got the route in about 8 tries. He also quickly repeated 'Alien Carnage' another 8c+ (35) in France in only a few tries. Christian has now repeated 8 8c+ (35) routes!

Dave Graham hits Fontainebleau Posted 05/01/2001
Dave Graham, the guy that climbs with vice grips spent a month and a half in Fontainebleau, unfortunately much of the time saw rain hindering the climbing. He climbed the following problems, 'Michael Ange', 'Hipotese', 'Infidele', Eclipse', 'L Abbe', Resina', 'Aerodinamite', Tristesse' and 'Envie dailes' all 7c/V9. 'Big Boss' 'Alta' and 'lLarrache Couer' also 7c/V9 but he flashed them. In te 7c+/V10 range he did 'Antithese', 'Balance', 'T-Rex', 'Sale gosse', 'Big golden', Fourmis Rouge', 'Loeil de la Sibille'. The 8a/V11s that he got were 'Hyper Tension', 'Atresie', and 'Karma' which he did in light rain, he also flashed 'Cetait demain'. He did 3 8a+/V12 problems, 'The Maxx', 'L integrale' and 'Partenaire particular' which was a second ascent after 10 years. Two 8b/V13 problems went, 'Gourmandise' being repeated after 5 years for the first time and 'Fatman'. He initially did 'Fatman' from the wrong starting grips but did it properly later on.

After all these ascents Dave said that some of his problems back in the states were possibly undergraded such as 'Nothin but Sunshine' which he said should actually be 8b+/V14.

Dave Struther another American also had a very impressive ticklist at Font with his ascent of 'Partenaire Particulier' 8a+/V12 in a hour! being the highlight.

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