Flex Luthor | 9a+ Sport route at Fortress of Solitude

First ascent.

The hardest route in the US before Chris Sharma established Jumbo Love to establish the first 9b in the US.

Second ascent.

References

[1] https://www.instagram.com/p/CU8unzKjmLj/

Third ascent.

No real opinion on grade, so going with Matty's suggestion for now. Definitely not easy. [3]

References

[1] https://www.instagram.com/p/CWGuUCVl72B/

[2] https://www.instagram.com/p/CWT37golzRf/

[3] https://www.8a.nu/news/flex-luthor-9b-by-carlo-traversi-4k2wr

Fourth ascent.

Very cool to revisit this crag after 12 years! TC [Tommy Caldwell] is forever a massive inspiration for me - I didn't realize how important it would feel to climb on this route. Went fully A Muerte after getting through the bottom crux for the first time. On the grade, for me personally, the route does not compare to the 9b I have done or tried - that being said it is still one of the hardest in Colorado for sure.

References

[1] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_QfDDnFS6T8

Fifth ascent.

This one felt hard the whole time. Figuring out the beta took a lot of work. I never watched the video, but a few days into projecting I had a phone call with Matty and we discussed the beta. Going in blind is such a fun way to go work a route. Especially something hard and complicated as Flex. I climbed this with almost the same beta as Matty, but I used the hand jam method for the final boulder. Sometimes routes just flow and feel easy by the time you actually send them. This one did not feel that way. I had to fight hard on the send go and that felt cool.

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 don’t know and you can’t take a slash grade on 8A. I’ll take the low the grade to keep the conversation going but I want a "/" because I’m over 40 and walking up that hill isn't easy either. [1]

References

[1] https://www.8a.nu/news/dan-mirsky-completes-flex-luthor-9a-+-at-age-41-m7gpq