UKC

Last year, Alex Luger made the first ascent of PsychoGramm, 8b+, just left of the more famous Prinzip Hoffnung, 8b/+ E9/10, on the Bürser Platte at Vorarlberg, Austria.
Alex, who is a Vorarlberg local, made the second ascent of Prinzip... in 2010, and comparing PsychGramm it to its neighbour, he...

Read more at http://www.ukclimbing.com/news/item.php?id=69448

In reply to UKC News:


Well said...

In reply to HeMa:

Haha I like the way the German words 'groundfall' and 'toprope' are the same as english. Can't some German equivalent be found?

In reply to teddy:

Not to mention, 'perfect' and 'placement'. Still, no doubt they listen to our videos and think it's strange how we use the same words as German.

Nice vid, anyway, and cracking-looking route.

jcm

In reply to UKC News:

What a great route. Good vid too. Looks quite well protected, albeit my small pro,until the top section, but could have that wrong.

Nice to see DMM gear being used.

And I see we all share a common expression after getting strung out on a route....

In reply to HeMa:

Well, not really. You might as well say Change doesn't need a French grade because everyone who wants to try it will realise how hard it is.

jcm

In reply to johncoxmysteriously:

Actually no...

The physical aspect of freeclimbing is generally much harder to foresee than the possibilities of protection...

A tiny, but critical feet crystal is pretty much impossible to spot. But can make a huge difference on the hardness of climbing... But evident lack of cracks and pockets pretty much tells that protection is going to sub-optimal or non-existant even.

In reply to HeMa:

ridiculous comment

In reply to Franco Cookson:


Yes, indeed...


Come here, and I'll show a lovely f7b'ish line with every tiny crystal on the right spot...

And then 1m to the right, it looks exactly the same... but it ain't f7b , not anywhere near that...

In reply to HeMa:

Unlike trad protection that can always be spotted "cause it's in cracks innit".

In reply to Franco Cookson:


Nope, but for single pitch stuff, you do have a better change in seeing possible placements. Generally protection is in cracks, pockets or other crevices. Which are a lot easier to spot than crystals.

Sure, always a crack does not take gear... But that changes are that it will...

In reply to HeMa:


Big bomber cam placements are probably about as easy to spot as jugs, but the quality of tiny RP placements is probably as hard to assess (assuming you can see them at all) from the ground as the usefulness of crystals as holds.

In general I'd rather know the E grade of a route than a French grade because I'd be less likely to get myself killed trying it.

In reply to Robert Durran:


True to some extent... But if you don't know what french grade it is (or any other technical grade), do you even dare to try?

Me thinks not, it's the combination of both difficulty of climbing (french rather than UK tech, but break into boulders and so fort is even more accurate) and also how hard to protect. The former will tell ya if you even have a change of getting it up. The latter will tell ya, how bad it is going to be if you don't OS/Flash it .

In reply to HeMa:


If I know it is safe, then there's no harm in trying even if it turns out to be way too technically hard for me. But if I know the French grade but not the E grade, I could get into real trouble. Of course the E grade /UK adjectival grade is an overall grade, not just a protection grade so gives a very good indication of whether I should be able to do the route - which is why the UK system is so much superior to every other grading system in the world.

In reply to Robert Durran:

That gear looked pretty bomber and easy to place to me, Rob. I'd say you're not going to hurt yourself... give it a go.

In reply to jon:


In the unlikely event of my getting far enough off the ground to hurt myself, I doubt I could hold on to any of those holds long enough to wiggle in any of those RP's. And even if I did and was capable of climbing 8b+, I'd be way too chicken for that runout at the top however bomber they were.

Good video though!

In reply to Robert Durran:

He looked a bit round and chubby compared with your normally honed self, so I reckon you're in with a chance.