Jonathan Siegrist has made the first repeat of BJ Tilden’s The Hunted (9a) at Wolf Point. The 39-year-old has now logged 88 routes 9a to 9b and he is #3 in the annual ranking game. ”So much hard climbing on this thing. I fell in the top a number of times - Even in the end when I felt 99% at the final rest, the huge pulls in the last boulder still felt hard. 9a/+”

It seems you are having great time at Wolf Point having done six route 8c+ to 9a+ the last four weeks including The Hunted?
June has been so fun. I love the community and the vibes here around Lander - BJ is also one of the strongest climbers in the US and so there are always more hard routes from him to try. This season in particular there has been a lot of hard sends!

I finished ‘The Hunted’ a few days ago - it’s a long, slightly overhanging route with a very difficult opening boulder problem and another one guarding the end. Wolf Point is a great challenge for me because the moves are usually huge on the hard routes, with nothing in-between. It really forces me to be powerful.

What is next?
I have one more hard one I would love to finish before the season ends (too hot) next week. It’s called Show Your Teeth (9a) and for me the difficulty all comes down to one enormous accurate move to a pocket. I’ve tried it 3 days. Hoping I have the time and strength to finish!

Martina Cufar Potard, Lead World Champion in 2001, has done Parasite (8b+) in Foron, commenting it is probably 8b. The 48-year-old was the first Slovenian to win an IFSC senior competition, and since then, the country—with 2 million inhabitants—has won another 100 such golds.

Can you tell us more about the ascent?
It is a line that traverses the cliff of Foron from right to left, crossing six routes—about 120 moves—but none of them are extremely hard. You just need to deal with pumped forearms. There is definitely a crux just before joining the last route, but it's on crimps, and that suits me. I did it on my third day. I had to put much more effort into Bouffadou, a roughly 20-move-long 8b that I did last year—it took me more than 20 attempts, I think :-)

How is your daily climbing life nowadays?
I’m still really motivated, and I try to find time for climbing between the kids (who don’t really like climbing), my work as a massage therapist, and also as a climbing instructor. I manage to climb three to four times a week. I still have some 8b’s to do around Chamonix, but it’s often complicated with the conditions. First it’s wet, then it’s too hot... but in general, I prefer when it’s too hot rather than too cold—I have problems with cold fingers. Recently, I’ve been doing a lot of easy multipitch climbing with friends. I enjoy it, and we’re often surprised by the grades from the ’80s... a 6a can be hard!

What is the biggest change on the comp scene since you were active?
Haha... it's much more dynamic now! I found a videotape of my victory in Chamonix in 2001. It’s so boring to watch—I was going up and down I don’t know how many times before deciding how to continue. I had 12 minutes for the route and almost ran out of time. You can’t do that nowadays on the huge slopers! And there were no coordination moves or jumps. I’m happy I competed 20 years ago and didn’t have to do risky jumps in the middle of a route!

Stefano Ghisolfi, one of the best route climbers both outdoors and in competitions over the last ten years, has sent Anam cara low (8C) in Silvretta and L'oppio dei climbers (8B+) in Val Daone. Next up for the Italian is the World Cup in Chamonix.
Can you tell us more about your late bouldering focus and doing your first 8C?
With the heat it is easier to find some bouldering in cold places than routes, I spent few days in Valdaone close to home and then we went to Silvretta.

I was surprised my shape was quite good on bouldering, I could climb Anam Cara (8B+) in few attempts and the low on my second day, quite fast considering it is my first 8C.

Ben Harnden, who did his third 9a in 2021, has done the second ascent of Connor Herson’s Midnight Way (9a+) in Squamish. The line follows all the hard climbing on Spirit Quest (9a) and then climbs straight into several hard boulders. (c) Tempei Takeuchi

Can you tell us more about the ascent and the process behind?
Midnight Way is a striking sport climb located in Paradise Valley, just north of Squamish, British Columbia. This cliff is one of the most stunning sport walls in the Sea to Sky corridor and has played a significant role in my climbing journey. I started climbing on Paradise Wall early in its development, getting on some of the first repeats of Queen Bee, Spirit of the West, Spirit Quest, and Killer Queen. I also found myself in a friendly race with Mike Foley for the first ascent of what would become Spirit Quest (9a)—a process that unfolded during the intense heat dome over southern BC. Mike sent it first, and I followed a few weeks later. Midnight Way links the entire crux of Spirit Quest into a stout V9 boulder problem known as Spectre de Norte, and finishes on the technical testpiece Killer Queen. It’s a demanding and unique line, blending several of the wall’s hardest sequences into one continuous challenge.

I began working the route consistently during dry spells in January. I used a variety of tactics—top-rope soloing to rehearse the upper crux and climbing with Alex King to rework the bottom of Spirit Quest, which he was also projecting. The process was about rediscovering the wall—its subtleties, its movement—and building the power required for the full link. The vision for this line had existed for a few years. It was originally bolted by Tom Wright, who later climbed the first ascent of Spirit of the West. Then, last year, California climber Conner Herson completed the first ascent of Midnight Way. His send was inspiring and motivated me to return to Paradise Wall after a long break. Relearning the intricacies of the movement and re-experiencing the wall with fresh eyes was both humbling and energizing.

As for the grade, tools like Darth Grader place it in the 5.15 range. Ultimately, though, consensus will come with more repeats from climbers who are familiar with this style and this wall. Regardless of the number, Midnight Way is one of the most special and challenging climbs I’ve done. It represents an evolution of climbing on Paradise Wall and a meaningful chapter in my own progression.

How old are you and have you done any specific physical training to get this progression?
I’m 41 years old with no specific training. The previous season, I worked on and eventually repeated Didier’s Crack of Destiny (8c) and added two new 5.14 sport routes to Squamish. Which was a great season for me . This past winter, I wasn’t able to climb or train due to a severe case of elbow tendinitis that kept me off the walls. But with rehab and keeping weight on my feet, I was able to still climb in paradise wall.

Jorge diaz-rullo has during the last ten days in La Saume ticked 18 routes including The famous gem (9a) and an onsight of Lou Merzeou (8b+). ”50 meters of incredible rock and movements. Hot conditions, good fight and an attempt to remember!” (c) Mariana Fierro

The 26-year-old Spaniard has previously onsighted five 8c routes and a dozen 8b+, making him a contender for the runner-up spot in the onsight ranking game after Adam Ondra and Alex Megos. In the annual VL ranking game, the Spaniard holds the #1 position.

Neo Suzuki won the World Cup in Innsbruck on countback, being the only climber to top the semifinal. The runners-up were Olympic gold medalists Toby Roberts and Alberto Ginés López.

”I’m very happy with my first gold medal. I believe the route was a bit easy, but I found it difficult in the middle section, that's when I felt tired. Innsbruck is an awesome venue, there were so many people supporting me. My season is going very well, I would like to win the overall title.”

” I’m really tired, after three days of climbing. It was exhausting, but at the same time I’m so happy I climbed like I wanted to. The route was so fun, so nice, there was a little bit of hesitation on the swing, but I think it was because I didn’t know if I could reach or not. I know the crowd was worried a little bit, I was not. I love Innsbruck, that’s why I chose this competition for my return after the Olympic year, the crowd is fantastic, they give you fuel, they give you energy to climb, I just love it. And I hope Innsbruck loves me too.”

Sera Gearhart, with five 8B’s to her name, has completed Nuthin' But Sunshine (8B) in RMNP. The 28-year-old, who did her first 8B two years ago is the new #1 in the ranking game.

Can you tell us more about the ascent and how long the process was?
I’m in Colorado for a week to try The Automator (8B) and tried this boulder too! It took me two days, I did it second try of the second day. It felt a lot more approachable than Automator, so I’m hoping it’ll give me the momentum I need to siege the other.

Janja Garnbret, the two-time Olympic gold medalist who had not competed for nine months, won her 47th World Cup gold in Innsbruck. Interestingly, the Slovenian was fifth in the qualification and then fourth in the semifinal before winning the final in superior style.

”It feels amazing. I didn’t know how I would feel coming back, but this amazing Innsbruck crowd welcomed me back. I really enjoyed myself on the wall, had a bit of a shaky start in qualification, then it felt 100% better in semi-final, and now I felt like my old self in final. I really enjoyed being back.

You never forget how to compete, but being back after nine months, in the middle of the season, was not the easiest thing. I had a lot of doubts: ‘Am I ready? Am I not? Am I even motivated?’ But I’m so glad I came back, I enjoyed it so much.

I’ve been training and I’ve been rock climbing a lot, it was something for my heart, for my soul. I spent a lot of time outside, I trained in the gym as well, but mostly I was taking time off and enjoying other things besides competition and training.”

Cy McIntosh has sent Untwisted (8c+) at Wolf Point and Mutation (9a) in Wild Iris Main Wall. Earlier this spring, the 19-year-old was living in a truck but now he stays with his good friend and mentor, Aaron Hjelt. ”I’m really thankful for that opportunity because it’s let just climb whatever I want whenever I want while having a comfortable house to go home to.”

Can you tell us more about the ascents?
It started with Genetic Drifter (8c+). A classic link up on the rodeo wave which was really fun. After doing that I was really motivated to try the extension mutation. But it got a bit colder for a few days so I wanted to take advantage of that and go to wolf point. One of those days I ended up doing untwisted in a few tries. I’ve never done an 8c+ that fast before so perhaps the grade is up for debate.

After a rest day I went back and climbed mutation. Which is basically a link up of the entire rodeo wave with a rope swap in the middle. I really like goofy routes like that. Partially because sideways is my favorite direction to climb and they also just remind me not to take it to seriously. It’s cool BJ originally had that vision and made it happen.