Sebastien Bouin: "Tautavel is a historical place here in France, close to the Spanish border. There is one particular sector, with an impressive route. It looks like the famous Chilam Balam, a prow of tufas climbing followed by an amazing wall. It's an esthetic line for sure. This route was bolted 30 years ago by Manu Da Silva and it has been waiting for a First Ascent since that time."

Angie Scarth-Johnson, who last year did two 9a’s, has done Pal publico (8c) in Margalef. ” Great route! The moves felt really far for me so I used a few intermediates that I think made it a little harder.”

The next day, the 18-year-old onsighted Rodillar (8a), also in Margalef. Here is an article with Angie, who has been a globetrotter since the age of 9. "I write my own programs and have done this since I was 8. I find that this really works for me."

Tanguy Merard, who earned a bronze in a Euro Youth Cup last year, has done Les yeux plus gros que les roubignoles (9a+) in Russan.

Can you tell us more about the route and your ascent?
The route, (Les yeux plus gros que l'antre (9b)) was free-climbed by Seb Bouin in 2018. and it starts from the bottom of the cave. When I tried, I went there just out of curiosity because I didn't have the level to do it from the bottom of the cave but I found it too beautiful (to forget) so I went back. I started to try the route starting higher in the cave, in an 8a. It had been a long time since I had been so motivated by a route, so I threw myself into it and I didn't give up because I really liked climbing on the route. I progressed very quickly in the route and ended up doing it. It took me around 10 sessions on the route spread over a month. I hope it will motivate people because it's worth the detour, it's not only the hardest route I've done but above all the most beautiful 🤩.

How much shorter is your line compared to Seb's?
I think Seb's line is 80 meters and my line 35 meters.

What are your competition goals for 2023?
For 2023 I want to be qualified for the Lead World Cup, I have to do (make) the final in the France Championship for this.

Yannick Flohé, who last week did his second 8C+, has done the FA of Return of the Dreamtime (8C+) in Cresciano. "Start like Dreamtime but go right after the Dyno and finish on Somnolence (8B).".

This has been an open project for many years and links 8B/+ into 8B.

Jesús Muñoz Vaquero (Chuchi), who previously has done three 8C's, has sent Lemento sit (8C) in La Pedriza.

Can you give us the lowdown on Lemento?
The history of the "Lemento" boulder goes back some twenty years, when the brothers Israel and Abraham Olcina, pioneers of difficult bouldering in the central area of Spain, proposed one of the first 8A+/8B in La Pedriza. Subsequently, Carlos Ruano considered adding the sit-start, something that after much trying, he managed to make a reality in April 2019, thereby proposing the first 8C of the emblematic granite school. Three years passed until the first repetition arrived, in January 2022 by the Italian Lorenzo Puri.

I had already done the standing version (8B or 8A+) a long time ago, even before Carlos Ruano did the sit version. At that time the boulder was like that, we did not raise it in any other way. After they sat it down, I started to think about it, and I've been hitting it a bit, but I didn't really start trying it until last year, in the winter of 2022, when I came close to doing it. Then the heat set in, I went to Switzerland and I already left it until this season, when I resumed it more or less at the end of December or the beginning of January.

It is a boulder that requires a lot of skin, more than usual in La Pedriza, which is already an abrasive granite. Here the coincidence occurs that on two moves there are edges that cut the same finger. Last year I got a split, and as soon as I touched it again, it would open again in the same place. It's a bit frustrating because you can't hit it many times in a row, and that's also why I think the send has taken a longer time.

This year the game started again and yesterday the process came to an end. I am very glad that this was the case. Honestly, it hasn't been easy for me to enjoy it. Making my skin not destroyed in a few tries and finding good conditions has been, on many occasions, desperate. However, today the conditions and the company were perfect. Today everything fell into place and it was very easy to enjoy it.

Jose Luis Olivares Ferrandiz, who previously has done nine 8c+, has done the second ascent of El osteopata (9a) in Mula.

Can you tell us more about the ascent?
I started trying the route in mid-November when it was still a project, half through December I injured my thumb skiing so I had to take a rest. Over Christmas time Alex Ventajas came back to Murcia and sent it really quickly, proposing 9a. A couple of weeks ago I started to try it again, not been completely recovered but able to do the moves as there are only a couple of holds where I had to use my thumb. With cooler conditions, it felt much better, and last Saturday after two failed attempts and quite relaxed because I thought I wasn’t doing it, somehow I managed to top it out.

So you did your first 8c+ in 2016, why did it take so long to come to 9a?
Before COVID I had a couple of 9a projects ready to send or at least try in a local crag, Santuario, with COVID I couldn’t climb and when I wanted to come back there, the crag was closed due to some problems with the owner of the base of the wall. Since then I have had periods of climbing very little, at least sport climbing, and last year I started to climb a lot again. I managed to send some projects near home and this one was on my list for winter.

Loic Zehani has done the FA of La diagonale des fous (9a+) in Spot sud-est. "Amazing climb in an amazing place. 140 movements all natural. A lot of diversity, crimps, tufa, one finger pocket... A long approach, a knee bar, then a perfect boulder section. I fell 3 times in the last hard move, mentally hard to return to "fight". *****."

The 21-year-old, who previously has done close to 60 routes 9a and harder, also recently sent, Electoman (8c+) in the Calanques giving it a personal 9a grade. "It is a route bolted by Laurent Simoni in 1992 which Rémy Bergasse made the FA of in May 2015. He had announced 8c+ but since then a hold has broken in the crux, which requires a tough change of hands. The route of 40 movements in a big overhang is broken down by an 8b start followed by a bouldery section where the hold broke (approximately 8A bouldering) then an 8b+/c to finish. I think now it’s a big 9a. It took me more or less ten sessions."

Martin Stranik has done 4-Lo (8C) in Valle Bavona. "After failures on other hard climbs, felt pretty good on this one."

What climbs did you "fail" on?
I failed on Dreamtime (8C) and La Rustica (8C), then moved on to 4-low and sent it in one session (+ 1 two years back). I felt pretty good on the powerful moves and struggled with the start move, but I found a toe hook which helped me to solve that first move and sent it fast.

Will you try to qualify for the Olympics?
I will focus on Lead in the World Cup and try some boulder World Cups and will see what can happen. In fact, I need a huge amount of luck to get an Olympic ticket, but I will give it a shot.

Martin won silver in the World Championship in 2007, at age 17, and has been one of the best climbers in the world since then. In total, the Czech has done 17 8C's, out of which four were done in the last year. Up until 2019, he focused on Boulder WCs but later he started doing Lead events as well. In 2021, he made the podium twice at the WC and was #4 at the World Championship.

Sebastien BOUIN reports on Insta that he has done the FA of Rei de Bering in Meio Mango. It has an eight bolt 8c (+) start variation, compared to Mar de Beiring 9a/+ which he opened last week. (c) Clarisse Bompard

”Ones of my favourite trips for sure and the rock is really good, some of the best limestone I’ve seen. After sending Mar de Bering, I was searching for something harder. There is a left start, coming from the very end of the cave. This start added a lot before joining the actual Mar de Bering (like jumbo love direct). It adds a lot of endurance before and I was coming on the crux quite tired everytime. The rock is amazing and this route is a true kingline.

After sending this new route (Rei de Berin, 9a+/b), I had two more days. I decided to find an even more futuristic line for my next trip. I found a cave with a good potential and bolted a line straight through it. The quality of the holds is amazing. It looks a bit like Flatanger rock, but it's limestone. I tried the route briefly during my last day. I was tired, but I figured out almost all of the moves. I am really psyched to come back here again soon!”

Andre Neres who bolted Mar de Beiring comments. "Meio Mango and Atlântida are world-class crags, next to each other in Cabo Espichel, Portugal. The routes are just incredibly good. The downside of such a good limestone is the exposition to the conditions (sea). Seb is by far the most impressive climber we’ve had spending some time around. Came on a sponsorship event trip without great expectations and very quickly saw the potential and fell in love with the surroundings spending 3 weeks around here. Rarely complained about the conditions, climbed “à muerte” every time regardless of humidity or the size of the waves. Very inspiring! In the last few days he bolted a roof project in Atlântida for some future visits."

Jana Švecová (Vincourková) has done the FA of Lion King (8B) in Al Tawian. This was her second trip to United Arab Emirates and together with her boyfriend they have put up some 100 boulders 5B to 8B. "Today, the last climbing day of our stay, 15 tries, no success I even made a split during the last unsuccessful try and gave up. An hour later, while going to the car, I decided to give a couple of last tries with the tip of the index finger taped, and surprisingly the no expectation helped! Even without warming up, I managed to send it first try🏆😍🔥"

Could you tell us more about your trip and the potential in the UAE?
We came to the United Arab Emirates for two months. We decided to go to the Emirates because we know that the weather is basically great all the time. Most of the time it is about doing FAs. Now when we experience the weather in December, next time we would choose January and February because the temperatures are even lower in these months. There are plenty of valleys, but you have to search for the one where water flows annually :) but I would say there is a lot of riverbed climbing. The valley of Tawaian is several kilometres long and we made two sectors, separated by just a couple of hundred meters. We for sure went to explore the valley a little further and there were so many even bigger boulders… I would say that valley only could have up to 500 boulders.

Were there already locals climbing at this spot?
This year we met already a couple of people climbing there. The topo is almost done, I think that will make it a lot more accessible and the climbing community in Dubai is quite big. I guess (nearly) nobody knew there is some good climbing around. If anyone wants the topo, they can just reach out @uae_bouldering on Insta, The guys will be happy to share it and there is a climbing festival 25/2 :)