3 April 2017

Alex Huber was right and deserves more credit

In 1994, Alex Huber put up Weisse Rose in Schleier Wasserfalle as an 8c+, which was based on Action Directe being 8c+. In a recent interview he says, "Today, the grade of “Weisse Rose” is definitely 9a+," making it the first in the world (see picture). In fact, three of his hardest routes have all been upgraded and only repeated by Adam Ondra. Huber says that it was in 1995 after the 9b proposal for Akira by Fred Rouhling that grades started to become softer. In 2003, Bernabe Fernandez put up Chilam Balam as a 9b+, which Huber questioned, "I cannot take Bernabé's proposal seriously as I can't see any references that would demonstrate his skills of climbing at such a high level -- far above the rest of the world," for which he was criticized for. Now we know he was right. He also said that La Rambla original does not add so much difficulty in comparison to his first anchor 8c+. He was questioned again, but now we know he was right, and his variation is now considered 9a. In fact, he said back then that due to grade inflation, most of the hardest old-school routes need to get upgraded. As of 2017, we know that Alex Huber was both ahead of his time when it comes to climbing and understanding the grade system. This includes his world class FA big walls and having done the hardest solo route in the history: The Communist 8b+ in 2004. It is time to say that he is one of the very best and most influential climbers in the world!
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