British climber Will Bosi has made the second repeat of Alphane (f9A), proposed to be the world's fourth Font 9A boulder. Will has shared some details of his experience on the boulder, and some initial thoughts on the grade. 

Will has had his eyes on Alphane for some time, having shared videos on Instagram of him working a number of replicas of the boulder, as well as joining fellow Brit Aidan Roberts on his home board to try his replica. The two of them flew out to Chironico earlier this month to work the problem together.

Will spent ten sessions on Alphane this trip, in addition to having spent two sessions on the boulder alongside Shawn Raboutou last year, prior to Raboutou getting the first ascent. If Alphane is confirmed to be Font 9A, Will's ascent will make him just the 8th person to have climbed the grade.

In a press release sent out earlier today, Will said:

'A few sessions back I was unsure as to whether Alphane would go on this trip, the temperature has been unseasonably hot, some rainy days had made it really humid and the route was damp in places. However, the crew out here managed to keep the psyche really high and the problem came together quickly. The moves on this line are so good and after a lot of time on the wall, I was really happy to claim the third ascent!'

Alphane (f9A) is one of just four boulders that currently have a claim to the grade of Font 9A, after Nalle Hukkataival's Burden of Dreams (f9A), Daniel Woods' Return of the Sleepwalker (f9A), and Simon Lorenzi's The Big Island (assis) / Soudain Seul (f9A), the grade of which remains contested. Alphane has attracted the attention of some of the strongest boulderers in the world, with fellow Brit Aidan Roberts making the first repeat of the boulder just thirteen days ago, having worked the line earlier in the year.

When asked to comment on the proposed grade of Font 9A, Will was reluctant to confirm the grade.

'In terms of a grade, I personally felt that Honey Badger (8C+) was more of a challenge for me and proposing a grade for that at the time was daunting as it was my first 8C+. At the cutting edge of climbing, grading feels so much more difficult as the margins are that much finer and personal strengths and preferences really come into play'.

'Is it 9A? Honestly, I do not know and as I gain more experience of climbing around this grade range I may have a better view, but it is a fantastic line established by Shawn and I look forward to seeing more experienced climbers comment on where the grade sits'.

Having previously dedicated much of his time to competition climbing and hard outdoors routes, such as his route King Capella (9b) in Siurana, Will has recently comitted to climbing outdoors full time, and has turned his attention to top-end bouldering.

Earlier this year, Will visited Adam Ondra on his home turf of Moravský Kras, where he took down nineteen boulders at 8A+ and above in less than a month, including four 8C boulders. On a single day on that trip, with Ondra watching on, Will managed an 8C first ascent, an 8B+ flash, an 8A+, and an 8A.

Will's form continued when he returned home and put up the hardest boulder in the Peak District - and equal hardest boulder on British soil - with his first ascent of the twenty-two move Honeybadger (Font 8C+), at Badger Cove.

Alphane is the twelfth boulder problem graded 8C or above that Will has climbed this year. See below for a full list:

• Alphane (f9A) 9A(?)
• Honey Badger (f8C+) FA
• Beautiful Mind (f8C) FA
• Outliers (f8C)
• Trance (f8C) FA
• Silent Singer (f8C)
• Iceberg 8C
• Tekute Stesti 8C
• Ghost Rider (8c)
• Bulbasaur 8C FA
• Pata Ledovce 8C
• Drift 8C