Mat Wright has done the sixth ascent of Dave MacLeod ’s Rhapsody (8c+) [E11] at Dumbarton. (c) Ryan Balharry

Can you tell us more about your journey with Rhapsody?
om My process on Rhapsody has been a rollercoaster ride. There were times when I felt on top of the world during this journey, but I experienced plenty of moments of self-doubt too. My main takeaway from it all, is that Rhapsody is just an incredibly hard route to actually do. The climbing is insecure, the conditions are fickle, and the runout is bigger than any I have experienced before.

This all began for me in the summer of 2022, shortly after doing "Lexicon" (my first E11), and Rhapsody's neighbour "Achemine". I was fairly new to trad at this stage, and whilst everything had been a pretty smooth ride up until this point, Rhapsody stopped me dead in my tracks. I knew then that the only way I would succeed on the route, was by becoming a better climber.

Fast forward to the spring of 2023, the conditions began to improve, and I began to sink my teeth into the route. I had just taken a two and a half month break off climbing to complete a cycle touring expedition with Anna Taylor, my fiancée. My motivation was the best it's ever been, and I felt a strong attraction to Rhapsody. Whilst I physically found the moves okay, my fitness was just not coming quickly enough, and the conditions just kept getting worse. By mid-May, I had spent a month falling off the same move, a slippery and insecure deadpoint to a three-finger edge mid-way through the Font 8A boulder crux.

Whilst I was pleased with my progress at the time, I couldn't help but take it personally that I didn't make any upward progress. I was no longer scared of the runout, and I was able to do the headwall clean on top rope. I think the reality was that it just wasn't the right time, and I needed to build some more experience and fitness.

It wasn't until mid-March this year, that I really began to think that I could climb this route. I returned from a winter of bouldering, doing circuits and mental training, with one goal in mind. To send the most challenging route of my life! My first impressions of the route this year went well. I was able to link the headwall on my first session, and progress just escalated from there. I made bigger and bigger links, and within only a handful of sessions, I got back on the sharp end.

Jumping back on lead was very interesting. I was excited, but my experiences from the previous year had knocked my confidence - I felt intimated, and the pressure was crippling. I knew I needed to get a few goes out of the way to get rid of the butterflies, but to my amazement, my first attempt from the ground went extremely well. I got through the crux traverse and got a new high point! I couldn't quite believe it.

Every go from that point on would see me getting a new high point. It was a smooth process from start to end. Each go, I would gain yet more confidence, and the route seemed to no longer feel so huge and scary. Every attempt demanded every ounce of my focus, and thus, I felt like I had to limit myself to only one attempt per day. The key to success was to constantly give myself a pat on the back and celebrate every small bit of progress – even if it was just a move feeling slightly smoother than the last.

On my 3rd lead attempt of the year, I found myself fighting hard, high up on the route. I did all the crux hand moves, and had a tricky foot move left before I'd be able to become secure. I desperately tried to bump my foot into place whilst climbing about 5m above the final piece of gear, a #1 half nut. I just about got my foot up, but sadly had nothing left in the tank and went for the ride of my life. The length of the route means that there's a lot of rope in the system, and I needed a soft catch so that I wouldn't hit too hard into the slab below. As I was falling, I spun slightly and hit the wall at an angle. As a result, I hit my arm hard into the slab and bruised it. At this point, I knew that every fall was going to be a game of Russian roulette. That night, I spent some time reflecting and I worried about the many times that the rope goes behind my leg on the crux moves. It was clear to me that a fall in these positions would almost certainly cause me to take an uncontrolled fall, flipping me in mid-air and risking swinging headfirst into the crag.

Upon returning to Dumbarton Rock, I felt nervous for two reasons. Firstly, I knew I could do the route as I got so close on my third attempt. But I also knew that I was no longer falling off in a safe space. As I was gaining height on the route, things were getting more dangerous. I knew that I just had to give it my all and get to the top.

My 4th attempt was similar to my third. I got to the same point, but I felt better than before. I felt that I couldn't have been any closer! The fall this time was less eventful, but still intimidating. On my 5th lead session, I woke up early and I didn't feel quite right. I was second day on, more tired than normal and struggled to feel any psyche in the morning. My home fingerboard warm up felt slow, so I decided that this session was just going to be a "putting in the hours" day. I didn't think there was any chance of me sending, but I was happy to turn up and continue chipping away. I met up with my good friend Sam Lay, who’s been trying Achemine alongside my journey on Rhapsody. He's great company and quickly helped me improve my mindset. Sam encouraged me to jump straight on lead, and to sit on the gear at the top of the crack. Then to just have a few burns of the headwall on lead to break the butterflies. I climbed Requiem as smoothly as I've ever done it and rested on the gear for 5 minutes. I then set off and lead the entire headwall clean, which is basically doing the meat of the route! I'd never done this link before, and it felt easy. Sam and I knew it was on.

The next go, I felt this confidence. I told Sam that I thought I was going to do it on this go and he was of course as encouraging as ever. I set off and as I was climbing the 6b+ slab at the start, I knew I was going to climb it on this go. I arrived at the base of the Requiem crack, placed the gear, and rested for a few minutes before setting off. Requiem felt the easiest it's ever felt. I was in the perfect frame of mind. I was focused, confident and having so much fun. When I arrived at the 2/3rds height ledge where Rhapsody breaks away from Requiem, I wasn't pumped at all. I must have climbed Requiem in less than a minute. I shook out for about 5 minutes and whilst hanging there, I took everything in. I was looking out to the mountains that surround Loch Lomond, a view I was so familiar with at this point. Whilst taking this moment in, I knew that this was the go. The first half of the headwall is about French 8b. I climbed this perfectly and before I knew it, I was entering the crux. I almost fell off every move, but it doesn't matter, as I still knew that I was going to climb the route on this go. I was in the zone. Next thing, I had completed the crux and was cruising past my previous high point. Above the crux is a final 7A+ ish boulder. I had climbed this many times and it's my favourite bit of the route. I always anticipated that I would get through this if I got there. It's the perfect level of climbing for me where it's hard, but I knew I could always do it, even whilst I was pumped. These final moves felt utterly wonderful. Moments later, I was pulling over the lip of Dumbarton Rock, having just climbed Rhapsody. I couldn't quite believe it!

I owe a special thanks to Anna, who's belayed me for dozens of sessions in all sorts of conditions. She's listened to me talk about Rhapsody for hours and hours on end, and supported me every step of the way. Sam Lay has also been a huge part of the process, and again his humour, positivity and enthusiasm has been another element to making this story so special for me (but let’s face it, nobody wants to hear about the ins and outs of mine and Sam's belationship).

How long was your biggest fall?
Around 50-70ft - This route has some huge winger potential!

Did you place the gear on the actual send go?
Absolutely, there's not much point doing trad climbing if you're not going to place the gear in my opinion! It's part of the fun.

Did you do any special training beside the 30 sessions?
Most of the training that I did was mental training. Being able to try hard whilst scared is a skill. So I did plenty of trad last year which included many bold routes.

Shauna Coxsey, known for being one of climbing's most successful competitors, has climbed The Boss (8B+) at Yarncliffe, which was first done by her husband, Ned Feehally, in 2020. Shauna did her first 8B+ in 2014, before focusing on competitions; earlier this spring she did her second.
(c) Dave Parry

“[The Boss] has been on my list ever since Ned did the first ascent. It is such a gem! The climbing is steep and powerful with some bad holds. It feels improbable at first. The last move is a huge blind slap overhead from a horizontal position. It is really committing and a bit spooky”.

Compared to her other 8B+ ascents, Shauna says: “It felt hard! I have been waiting a long time to believe I was strong enough to even try The Boss. It’s hard to compare it to the other 8B+’s/V14’s I’ve done as it’s a very different style but it sure felt a lot harder than Fat Lip [at Raven Tor] a local 8B/V13 which although on different rock it climbs kinda similar”.

Sebastien Bouin has made the FA of Les Rois du Lithium (9b) at Pic St Loup, and says it just might be his best 9b to date. In total, he has now done twelve 9b’s, out of which seven are FA’s. Additionally, Seb has a further five 9b+ ascents to his name, as well as the FA of the world's second 9c route, DNA.

”This part of the wall was attracting me since a long time. From the ground, “Les Rois du Lithium” looked like the perfect line. Straight in the wall with a 20m hardcore ending. When I bolted it, I couldn’t imagine there will be so much perfect holds. And when I firstly tried it, I was amazed by the moves and the line.

“Les Rois du Litthium” is basically split in two parts. There is an easy approach around 8b / 5.13d tiering you for the main part. And then, there is this beautiful power endurance part counting 22 hard moves in a row. The line and the moves are so fun. Every try was a pleasure. It’s like surfing a wave.

“Les Rois du Lithium” is possibly my favorite 5.15b climbed. The difficulty meets the beauty here. And there is something more: it’s fun. The fun fact is quite important on a hard project. When you like the effort, when riding the rock is inspiring yourself, you know you got the right project.

I tried this route during the fall season 2023. I was so psyched to finish the job this spring. I needed time to learn properly the 22 hard moves. There is no room for a mistake. The last hard move is so stunning. From two bad gastons, you have to reach left hand a sloppy crimp and take a swing with it. I fell few times upthere.

There is another hard and inspiring project in Pic Saint Loup : The “Wolf kingdom”project. It will be harder than “Les Rois du Lithium”. Let’s continue the fight !”

Anatole Bosio has done his third 9a+ by climbing Sachidananda (9a+) in Orgon. (c) Armand Navarette

Can you tell us more about the ascent and the process behind?
Sashidananda is a route with a resistant style, featuring powerful movements in a big overhang. There's a physical start followed by two consecutive cruxes without rest: the first in the most overhanging part with a complex heel hook that requires feeling and a lot of core strength. The second, the hardest, involves a big drop knee to hold a small edge before throwing laterally to the right onto a crack. For me, the difficulty of the route was managing the sections preceding the crux quickly to conserve energy but without any mistakes, then making explosive throws and believing despite the alteration of my ability to sense the movement due to physical and mental fatigue.

I don’t usually count sessions on projects when they drag on, but I know I had 9 sessions this year, maybe the same last year, and I had already been on the route in previous years. That's a lot compared to Supercrackinette, which took only 8 sessions, but for me, they are at the same level, the entry-level of 9a+.

Dylan Chuat, who's already done 16 routes graded 9a to 9a+, has repeated Seb Bouin's Beyond 9a+ in Pic St Loup, giving it an upgrade to 9a+ due to a broken hold. The same day he also sent Moksha (9a), which he says might be 8c+.

Can you tell us more about Beyond?
This is one of the 5 most beautiful routes I’ve ever climbed in my life, that’s for sure! I’d never have thought that such a small hold on such a big overhang could work and not even be that extreme! A very smooth approach [intro section] to climb, a first major boulder that finishes by jumping onto a tufa, then a transition to a second huge boulder and all this while finishing on the most beautiful colonette in the south of France, apparently! I think that’s the perfect definition of a king line, right? I’m glad to be back in shape after my operations and to be able to climb routes like this again! Now that the vacations are over, I hope to be able to get back on some really hard routes soon!

You mentioned an operation?
It was appendicitis that went wrong, and I had to be operated on twice because I was having septicemia, so they opened up my stomach twice. The first one in the beginning of December.