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Nathaniel Coleman does Defying Gravity
About a month ago, I wrote about Noah Wheeler’s fast third climb Defying Gravity, a problem that had not been repeated since it was raised by Daniel Woods in 2013 and Jimmy Webb in 2014. The problem largely revolved around a very hard, very low-rpm movement that Wheeler believed was probably a V14 on its own her. Because it suited his style (Kilter Board type dynamic power), he was able to pull off this move after just three days of trying. He was working on it with Nathaniel Coleman, Charlie Barron and Austin Geimin. And this week, Mellow released a Ben Neilson video of Coleman trying and trying and — on the eighth day of trying — finally connecting with that move and dispatching the problem.
Maya Ene (13) and her father John Ene (49) do 5.14c’s on the same day
In late November and early December, 13-year-old breaker Maya Ene spent several days battling cold conditions at Mike Doyle’s. Lucifer (5.14c) alongside Natalia Grossman and Annie Sanders. Saunders sent first, followed by Grossman (who also sent another 5.14c that trip). Then, on December 8th, Ene cut the chains, to run Southern smoke (a 5.14c Ene sent last April), so her sire, Ionel “John” Ene, took advantage of the good conditions. He sent too. It was the last day of their trip.
Maya Ene first made headlines two years ago when she climbed her first 5.14a at the age of 11. This year she won the Youth Nationals in her age group (Youth C). Her father, John, is a longtime climber (he competed in over thirty World Cups in the 90s, multiple podiums in the American Bouldering Series, and was 4th at Lead Nationals in 2004) who now owns a climbing gym in New Jersey.
Steve McClure hits his 1,000th 8—and it’s history
The legendary Steve McClure (E11 climber and father of the UK’s first 5.15b) keeps track of his climbs in notebooks and recently realized that he had done—wait for it—999 climbs graded 5.13b (8a) or harder. For his 1,000th ride, he decided to do something interesting: he chose a climb called Let the Tribe grow which used to be 5.13a but was upgraded due to waiting breaks. It was also a route that was very important to his development as a climber when he first attempted it 30 years ago.
Speaking to Niall Grimes, the ever-joking host of the Jam Crack Podcast and frequent Climbing partner, about the route in the BMC team video (you can see below), McClure says that the mission Let the Tribe grow Thirty years ago was something of a revelation for him—in large part because it was difficult for him and he had to redefine it. “At that time I had hardly put anything red,” he says.
But he sent it in one day and that made him realize it was under his limit. “I knew I had an 8 in me,” he told Grimes. “Maybe not that day. Maybe years later. But I knew I would climb one day. And that was so exciting. That was the beginning.”
“Keep doing 8a?” says Grimes.
“I did. I continued to do 8a. And then another 998 of them.”
And now? Well, now that a few handles have been broken and Let the Tribe grow considered 8a, McClure returned to the Rubicon Wall in the Peak District to make the route that started it all serve as his 1,000th 8a (or harder) expedition. “It has come full circle. The whole trip is booked.”
Fun fact: McClure skipped 5.13b and 5.13c. His first ascent of 8a or harder was 8b—5.13d.
Jacques Gala Saints Sleepwalker (V16)
Zach Galla continues the endless mission train at Jimmy Webb’s Sleepwalker, sending it to its third session this year, seventh overall. “Still in disbelief this came together the way it did,” she wrote on Instagram.
Although he was able to make all the moves fairly early in his projection, Galla struggled to make serious connections. Then one day—on his seventh session—”the climb felt completely different.” Realizing he was making progress, he decided to give it a few tries at the start, benchmark and see if he could take the climb in overlapping halves. On his second attempt, however, “he managed to keep scaling and before I knew what had happened I was in the jug. By far the most surprised I’ve ever gotten over anything!”
There was a moment earlier this year when it looked like the tall man beta-break pioneered by 19-year-old Zander Waller (who suggested the climb might be as easy as V14) would change the grade of the boulder for others. But Galla, like other climbers since Waller, seems to think the V16 makes more sense for him. This is Galla’s second V16, after all Grand Illusionwhich he sent in 2021. He has also made four V15s.
Alex Megos does 10 routes between 5.13d-5.14b in 10 hours—e-bike between them
It’s just good old fashioned fun.