22 November 2023
Dan Mirsky ticks Flex Luthor (9a/+) at age 41!
Dan Mirsky has done Flex Luthor (9a+) at The Fortress of Solitude, logging it as a 9a. A couple of guys have actually suggested an upgrade to 9b of the route. The 41-year-old did his first, out of four, 9a in 2018.
"Classic day at the Fortress with Waltus Burger. It was cold, hot, rain, sun, clouds, wind and at some point, the condies got pretty damn good; luckily it was my turn and I had that good floaty feeling. Overall, I put in a season of effort last Nov/Dec battling wet holds, epic snows and massive icicles on the route. This year I got 6 sessions in before yesterday, each one making some amount of meaningful progress. I have been feeling really down about my climbing for a while, so in addition to being psyched to send this amazing and historic route, it felt extra good to remind myself that I still know how to clip chains.
As for the Grade... I figured out and used a different method in the crux from the other recent ascents. I think it was likely a hybrid of Tommy's OG beta and Matty's new school beta. I am pretty ok at kneebarring on Western Slope Limestone and I definitely made use of that skill (the left calf pump was real). Is my way easier? Does it change the grade to 9A or 9A/+? I honestly donโt know and you canโt take a slash grade on 8A. Iโll take the low the grade to keep the conversation going but I want a "/" because Iโm over 40 and walking up that hill isn't easy either."
"Classic day at the Fortress with Waltus Burger. It was cold, hot, rain, sun, clouds, wind and at some point, the condies got pretty damn good; luckily it was my turn and I had that good floaty feeling. Overall, I put in a season of effort last Nov/Dec battling wet holds, epic snows and massive icicles on the route. This year I got 6 sessions in before yesterday, each one making some amount of meaningful progress. I have been feeling really down about my climbing for a while, so in addition to being psyched to send this amazing and historic route, it felt extra good to remind myself that I still know how to clip chains.
As for the Grade... I figured out and used a different method in the crux from the other recent ascents. I think it was likely a hybrid of Tommy's OG beta and Matty's new school beta. I am pretty ok at kneebarring on Western Slope Limestone and I definitely made use of that skill (the left calf pump was real). Is my way easier? Does it change the grade to 9A or 9A/+? I honestly donโt know and you canโt take a slash grade on 8A. Iโll take the low the grade to keep the conversation going but I want a "/" because Iโm over 40 and walking up that hill isn't easy either."
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