Zach Wilson, who did his first 8B+ last month, has done Sound of Violence (8C) in Joe's Valley (UT). On his first Insta for 15 months, he comments the posted video. "Had to sit down for 2019 due to nerve damage in my finger 2020-2021 I had multiple surgeries on my knee and shoulder. Didn’t touch rock again until last august."

Could you tell us about how much climbing/training you have had since 2019?
I got about three months of climbing/training in 2019 before the nerve injury in my finger I got from a slot crimp/finger jam. By the time it recovered I got two or so months of climbing in 2020 until I got the knee and shoulder injuries. In December 2020 I had surgeries on my ACL, Meniscus, labrum, and bicep. I got out of my sling and knee brace in the summer of 2021 and started bodyweight rehab then got to climb in the gym for the first time again in July 2021. So besides those few months split up between 2019-2020 I was not climbing/training at all, full no activity resting.

How did you get that bad injury in 2020 and are you fully recovered now?
An awkward fall while bouldering at my local gym. It was a dyno to a duel Tex grip and I slipped off at a weird angle while controlling the momentum. Yes, I’d like to say that I’m fully recovered now. I decided to try Sound of Violence to test the limits of my recently repaired shoulder and knee on its hard drop knee and gaston swing. So psyched to be back climbing.

The World Cup season starts once again with the Bouldering event in Meiringen in Switzerland. The qualification starts on Friday 8/4 followed by the semi and final on the weekend. From the starting list, we can see that there will be 17 competitors from Switzerland, 16 from Japan, 13 from Slovenia and 10 from France, Great Britain, Germany and Israel. There are also four competitors from Ukraine that will participate and as previously mentioned, Russians are not allowed to take part.

In practice, each country is limited to fielding five males and five females but extra spots are given based on the results from last year, and the host country is allocated extra spots. The big names not taking part are Adam Ondra, Jan Hojer and Shauna Coxsey (pregnant) and Akiyo Noguchi who stopped competing after the Olympic Games.

Friday, 8 April:
9:00 AM Women's Boulder qualification
4:30 PM Men's Boulder qualification

Saturday, 9 April:
11:00 AM Women's Boulder semi-final
6:00 PM Women's Boulder final

Sunday, 10 April:
11:00 AM Men's Boulder semi-final
4:00 PM Men's Boulder final

Marine Thevenet reports on Insta that she has repeated Fred Nicole's White Strip in Brione. In total, the full time lawyer, has now done some 70 boulders 8A to 8B. (c) Clément Lechaptois

"White Stripe is just one hard move; good holds and a jump up to a big crimp. I tried the basic beta but I couldn't even imagine touching the good crimp! So I am pretty happy that a little crimp decided to exist between the first hold and the good crimp! It allowed me to figure out my own beta and not miss my chance in this super line ;)"

Dave MacLeod reports on Insta that he has done the second repeat, after Steve McClure, of Neil Gresham's Lexicon in Pavey Park. The original grade was E11 (7a) using the British grade which takes into account both how hard and how dangerous it is to onsight. Neil has said the climb itself warrants 8b+ due to the risk of falling 25 meters doing the final 7C boulder crux, which is the reason why R has earlier been added to the grade. If it would have been a risk of death then it would have been an 8b+ X, while it would probably have been an E12.

Dave reports that he found an extra gear placement and also that he did it on his first attempt having worked on it since last autumn.

Noteworthy is that the average age of the three climbers is 47 although Dave is just 44 years old. He has been cutting edge for 20+ years and just recently done 8B+ and 9a. Full detailed story on Dave's blogspot:

"Unfinished climbs have always been a source of chronic pain to me, an ache I can tolerate for long periods when there is no other option. But the minute I can change the picture, I’ll do anything I can to resolve it. When I say ache, I mean that in a good way, like the ache of burning muscles in training. It’s good pain! The minute I resolve it, I’m almost instantly looking to cause it again and have lived this way for 25 years. There is an expression that pain is the cost of being alive and as far as I’m concerned, it’ll stop when I’m dead."

Jonatan Flor reports on Insta that he has done the second ascent of Alex Garriga's Malleus Maleficarum 9a+ in Cuenca, which was bolted by Dani Andrada. (c) Javi Pec

A few days ago he also did El Subnormal Del Antihydral 9a and earlier this spring he has done El carnicero de Rostov 9a, Cordia Maleficarum 9a and more than a handful of 8c/+ to 8c+/9a. On the 8c+/9a and harder list, he is #7 with some 65 such hardcore routes. The 25-year-old started making 8a headlines ten years ago when he did his first 8c. Interesting is that almost all of the hardest routes he has done since 2019.

Onsight training article commented by Adam Ondra below:
It's hard to not feel vulnerable when onsighting which is possibly one reason why many of us avoid it. This will make you climb slower as your highest priority is to minimize the risk of every move. Instead of trying your luck pushing through the crux, you often hesitate and try every hold and sequence that in the end, even if you go for the optimal sequence, will make you fall anyway due to fatigue. As a matter of a fact, even if you make it to the top, you are probably so pumped that you can not go for a hard climb the same day and actually you might even need a rest day.

Your more "crazy" friend just might fall early on the same onsight but if she/he will continue with the same strategy, at the end of the day or during your climbing trip, her/his onsight ticklist is probably better. At the same time, being able to go for more onsights, means that such training ultimately, in the long run, produces a better climber, which Adam Ondra is an example of.

So how do you train your head to be willing to accept bigger risks of failure while climbing onsight? One way to practice this is simply by climbing faster and falling more often during training. If during your training you think you cannot not even reach the next hold and you are about to give up, just jump and try to get as close to the hold as possible and you might be surprised by doing the move or at least touching the next hold. It is about changing your mindset and trying to remove all these warning signals your brain sends out. It will take some time but once you start, you will get more adrenaline in your system, adding to the fun.

One easy way to be able to have more onsight possibilities at your gym is to combine harder routes with different colours. Alternatively, you can opt for one colour for your hands and another with your feet etc. Another option is to climb with just one foot in order to create new "onsight" sequences that you need to solve quickly.

The best onsight climber in the world is Adam Ondra and he has been since age 14, when he he did five 8b+ and one 8c onsight. Currently, he has onsighted close to 100 routes 8c and harder and meanwhile the closest runner ups have done just a handful of such hard onsights. We asked Adam if he could comment on a draft of this onsight training advice article.

"You definitely have the point. In general, I would say that people dislike onsighting because if they are going really "safe", they are hanging there forever, it is tiring, climbing has no flow and they do not enjoy, (climbing) and that is exactly the point. I would not enjoy onsighting in this way either! I love onsighting when I am just flowing up the route, when everything feels automatic and natural. Very good practice and a way to improve is to climb ALWAYS with flow and without hesitation even on your warmups or warmdowns, even if it means you end up falling off very easy routes below your limit. Don't be embarrassed in case it happens. On the other hand, be happy if you manage to onsight an easy route with perfect flow.

Your last suggestions I do not find very useful in the long term point of view - it could be an interesting refreshment of training from time to time, but climbing a lot on different new routes is impossible to replace. The solution for training is having a good spraywall and climb a lot of different new boulder/circuits, including figuring your own boulders. That helps with the visualization and reading of new sequences."

How has your onsight focus helped you grow as a climber?
My approach has always been to be the most complete climber, and I have always thought of onsighting as the complex climbing style where you get to learn the most. And today, despite admitting that working on a route for a long time has its beauty as well, I strongly recommend to the youngsters to focus on onsighting. Up until I was 11-years-old, I rarely gave a route a 2nd try and my onsight and redpoint level was very similar. The other important thing is to climb in different styles, not only the style that fits you well but try to climb as hard and as much as possible everywhere. I was lucky to grow up in my home crag where I was struggling a lot at the beginning, but I had no other option than to accept the style and today, the climbing fits me really well and I love it.

All in all, to be a good onsight climber, you need to climb a lot and mostly onsight. And lead competitions are about onsighting, and my onsighting experience from the rock might actually give me the cutting edge there.

Adam Ondra has enjoyed some great days in Padaro, close to Arco, where he flashed Goosfraba (8c+), "Climbs better than looks and all natural! Pretty happy to do it." The day before he sent Omen Nomen (9a). "What a bummer not to flash it! With a broken hold on the top, I did not know which beta to choose and ended up choosing the worst one... casual 2nd go."

One week ago the 29-year-old also made the FA of Pungitopo (8c+). "Bolted by Francesco Morandi. Epic line, epic rock! Hard to say the grade, tried one day with soft skin and wrong beta, then did next day with better beta. Could be 8c+." (c) Petr Chodura

(April Fools’ Day) In addition to clothing and accessories inspired by climbing, the 2XTREME4U line also features Prada’s newest fragrance: The Essence of Sending HRDSHT. Prada’s renowned designer and the project’s principal overseer and oversprayer, Gianvittorio Grandestronzetto said, “In all my years working in the fashion industry... How do you say? Ah yes, this is for sure my proudest line yet! I had moments of self doubt but I looked down at my hands and I said out loud and to the cameras: Grandestronzetto, tho it’s hard, you still gotta send it! Let’s go! Let’s go Grandestronzetto!”

“We named the fragrance The Essence of Sending HRDSHT because it was this project’s crux sequence. To balance out the patchouli, we had to bottle that suffocating chalk cloud mixed with perspiration that you often find in climbing gyms, along with Janja’s tears of triumph from the Olympics. I’m telling you, this is really next level! Gucci, Fendi, Dolce and Gabbana... I don’t think they can repeat this let alone downgrade it!”

Prada will be presenting the 2XTREME4U line this weekend as well as announcing their 2XTREME4U Super Humble Ambastardors. Rumour has it they aggressively bought a handful of climbers out of their existing endorsement contracts and are offering their top signings five-year contracts worth over seven figures.

One of Prada’s 2XTREME4U Super Humble Ambastardors who, out of humility, didn't want to be named said, “Erm, I was pretty sure Prada and Grandestronzetto’s line was going to change climbing when I saw it. Immediately I was thinking like, oh man who is going to appreciate this new age, no sending, low point stuff that's been coming out when now there’s like this all-time super complete line. It's full send, total high point. You guys at 8a.nu are going to have to make a new Time Comparison Grading and Fashion Scale.”