Bouldering

And so from Big is Best to Small is Beautiful, i.e. bouldering, which whilst not being exactly new on the scene is enjoying a massive following at present and is now almost de rigour in some postcodes/zip codes around the globe. And with such role models as Jerry Moffatt and Ben Moon dedicating their time exclusively to bouldering it's going to be a few years yet before the dust settles. That said, modern bouldering hero’s such as Fred Nicole, Klem Loskot, Toni Lamprecht, Chris Sharma and Dave Graham, to name but a few are (allegedly) taking bouldering to new heights. With nearly 15 problems reported at Font 8b+ and whilst the first, Leviathan from Malc Smith, dates back to 1994, last year saw the first Font 8c claimed by Fred Nicole. Boulders problems are getting longer too, a problem which the Bleasards figured yonks ago and got around by introducing a second or traversing grade. Perhaps it’s time to re-write the rules; maybe problems should be less than 10 moves, anything longer should get a T grade? Anyway read on for the beta.

UK

Early in the year the giant (6’ 5") German boulderer, Thomas Willenberg, caused a furore in the bouldering heart-lands of the UK, i.e. the Peak District, by firstly repeating Brad Pit via Jason Myers’ original (jump) finish and then adding on a sit-down start which bumped, in his opinion, the grade up to Font 8b+. Although sit-down starts per se are accepted, and increasingly sought out by the cognoscenti, this one was rubbished as it was proved to be entirely ‘reach dependant’. The word on the street is that providing you have the reach and if you use the new sequence for Brad Pit, then Willenberg’s link can be done at less than the claimed Font 8b+. Willenberg’s repeat of Brad Pit, the first using Myer’s original sequence as at least put that ghost to bed. Font 8a+/8b was his conclusion.

Anyway, the sit-down start was ‘in’ for the year and our own self-professed gods of power chose to unleash their might at the (relatively) new venue of Gardoms. Jerry Moffatt started the ball rolling by adding what was reported as a sit-down start to Soft on the G, a Font 7b at Gardoms to give Full Power (Font 8a+). Ben Moon promptly repeated it but figured that the suggested sit-down start was more of a crouching start and hence promptly set about producing an even bigger extension by adding a four-move traverse-in. Subsequently, Moon released Eight Ball, which weighed in at Font 8b. A departing (for the US) Moon figured it was the hardest thing he'd ever done. Somewhere in all of this John Gaskins repeated something that was reckoned to be a cross between Full Power and Eight Ball (maybe Seven Up or perhaps Power Ball?). Anyway if you add Black Lung (see later) to Eight Ball, Moon’s 2000 bouldering list looks pretty impressive. And he might well have added to it further had he not bust his shoulder falling off a snowboard on his first day in the States; arse!

Some other home-grown hero's are starting to see returns on their investments. The quiet and unassuming John Welford, he of The Bastard fame - an unrepeated would-be F8c+ at Rubicon, has been concentrating exclusively on his bouldering of late and a repeat of Superman (Font 8a+) was his reward. Both Neil Bentley and Mo Overfield, unusually climbing at home for a change, have repeated Moffatt’s The Joker, although both did it with a right-hand lead rather than the left-hand lead that Moffatt and Moon used. The grade is said to drop from Font 8a+ to 8a using the alternative method. Mo also figured that Moffatt's unrepeated top-rope problem, Slingshot, at Froggatt needed sorting. After some considerable effort, also on a top-rope, Mo finally soloed it above a landing packed out with mats and spotters. And the grade, English 7b, just like Jerry gave it a decade ago! And as for a Font grade, well Mo ain’t sure as he tends to use V grading (a.k.a. the Huecu system). He does reckon though that it's at least half a grade harder than The Joker (Font 8a) at Stanage and harder than a couple of V12’s he’s done in Hueco. This would make it at least Font 8a+. Irrespective of it’s grade, Mo’s solo is reckoned to be well impressive and some now reckon that it crosses the divide between bouldering and routes. And finally for the year, Jerry who kept his focus and showed all his usual determination during the wettest autumn in an age, eventually added an extended start to The Joker that went at Font 8b and is known as Ace. You’d have to say that with this Jerry has gotten back to the very top of the UK bouldering ladder.

Elsewhere in the UK bouldering continues to gain devotees with just about every climbing area in the country now getting a share of the action. One of the most venerable of bouldering venues, Northumberland, continues to attract a steady stream of activists. Working Class (Font 8a+) at Bowden has seen a number of repeats since a hold broke from Andy Brown, Malc Smith and Ben Moon. Farther west, John Gaskins continues to search out new problems, including Isla de Encanta, which at Font 8b is also one of the countries hardest problems. John compared it grade-wise to Fatman at Fontainbleau. High praise indeed. Heading south, Welch boulderer, Chris Davies, has solved a long standing project on the Cromlech Boulders which he called Diesel Power (Font 8a).