Zach Galla repeats The Process

Zach Galla has done the second ascent of The Process (8C+) in the Buttermilks. Daniel Woods put it up in 2015, and at that time it was one of few boulder problems graded 8C+. In the ranking game, Zach is #3 after having also done three 8C’s, as well as, Sleepwalker (8C+) over the last three months. The 23-year-old was #8 in the Salt Lake City WC last year but he has said his focus 2024 is outdoors. (c) Brennan Robinsson

Can you tell us more about the ascent?
The process was a very special one to me. I saw Daniel do the FA in real rock when I was 14 and the boulder has been in my mind as one of the most mega things out there. Feels crazy that it’s remained unrepeated for 9 years, and my climbing has leveled up enough in that time to climb it for its 2nd. The boulder is definitely scary but not too dangerous. the crux jump to the lip is about 18 feet [5.5 meters] off the ground and feels like it will swing you off and cause a weird fall, but I was lucky to never take a bad one from there. After the lip, the boulder starts to get into a no fall zone as you execute around a V8 [7B+] boulder before making it onto some easy slab terrain. It felt as if there was nothing else around me and I was climbing in a bubble. A unique climbing experience I’ve never experienced before.

How many sessions did it take and how did it all unfold?
It took me three trips and somewhere around 10 sessions. I first flashed the drop off boulder Social Distortion 8A+ (B), then started working the next section off of a ladder and was able to complete that link on my first trip as well. I thought it may go quickly but the boulder is a logistically hard one to try. I needed at least one day of rest after a short session with only a few tries, and often multiple rest days after a sesh due to skin.