Alex Ventajas ticks Omen Nomen (9a)

Alex Ventajas, with 16 routes 9a and beyond under his belt, has done Omen Nomen (9a) in Arco. (c) Crimp Films

Can you tell us more about the process behind the ascent?
I have already tried the route on two occasions. The first time was around three years ago, and I remember it felt really hard! It was spring and since the wall gets a lot of sun, the tiny holds, and slippery feet combined with hot temperatures discouraged me from trying it again. The second time was the past autumn, even if I already had another project in mind, I randomly went back to Padaro and found Simon Raffeiner trying Omen Nomen. I decided to share some tries with him and thanks to his betas I managed to do all the moves.

Even if the route caught my attention, I didn’t come back since last week. That day I had no expectations, I just wanted to revise the sequences! After warming up on the route, I gave it a second try and unexpectedly found myself falling on the last hard move before the chain!

This Monday, after five intense route-setting work days for a boulder competition and a few skins left on my fingers, I came back to Padaro! Everything flowed perfectly, letting me send the route on the first go of the day! It’s kind of strange because I have never thought about Omen Nomen as a real “project”, the send just happened!

It’s funny to see how our perception might change over the years! The first time I couldn’t fully appreciate the line but, on the contrary, the past days I found it five-star, varied and spicy, and enjoyed every move!