© Audray Sniezek/DPM
Many of the world's best climbers are now in or on their way to Kentucky's Red River Gorge, famous for its beautiful and severely overhanging sandstone.
Already, Jon Cardwell and Daniel Woods have made some impressive ascents, including a 3rd go of 50 words for pump, 8c+, (Jon) and Southern smoke, 8c+ (Daniel), and the other day, 11 year old Ashima Shiraishi arrived.
Ashima has stunned the bouldering world this year by repeating three 8B boulder problems and it seems she wants to do the same to the route climbing world.
On her first day, on the Gold coast wall, she made a swift 2nd try of the day ascent (she gave it one go last year) of God's own stone, 8b+, a route which has previously been repeated by Brooke Raboutou who's the same age as Ashima, earlier this year.
On her second day, now used to route climbing again, she felt it was time to attack the Madness cave at the Motherload. This wall is ridiculously overhanging, and tall, probably 40 meters tall and overhanging nearly as much.The first part is more or less vertical, which makes the second part, well... steep.
Anyway, she decided to go for a flash of Omaha beach, 8b+, a route first onsighted by Katie Brown way back in the day.
Nick Duttle talked to Deadpoint mag: "On the ground before she started, I gave her a few tips about which holds to grab but it was pretty much an onsight. She just climbed up there, shaking out wherever, and eventually got up on the headwall. She went to the anchor of The Madness first and clipped it but didn't take. I had to yell up, "Hey Ashima! You have to go to that other, higher anchor!" She kind of looked up there and unclipped her rope from The Madness anchor and then just climbed up there like it was no big deal."
Stay tuned for more news from the RRG as more climbers are coming in. People like Mike Fuselier, Gérôme Pouvreau, Florence Pinet, Melissa Le Nevé, Nina Caprez, Cédric Lachat and.. oh, that's right this young Czech guy, Adam Ondra is going too.
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