Sport routes

A link up combining the lower part of Joe Blau with the upper part of La Marroncita.

Le Bombé Bleu was a legendary project bolted by Marc Le Menestrel in 1991. In an era when chipping was prolific Marc wanted to keep the route unchipped, as a challenge for future generatons, and in return opened the project up for all to try. In 2026 Erwan Legrand, son of François Legrand, made the first ascent in a relatively quick 15 sessions.

The route consists of an easy intro section to a big ledge where you can rest completely. There is then a very hard boulder problem, originally tried as a morpho span from the right, but finally solved with a dyno from the left. This leads into a hard upper section of around 8c+/9a depending on whether you climb it with or without shoes!

Many big names dabbled on the route over the years, including Ben Moon, Fred Rouhling, Stefan Glowacz, Iker Pou, Chris Sharma, Nico Januel, Charles Albert, Nico Pelorson and Lucien Martinez. All made relatively modest progress, the hard dyno at the start of the route proving the major obstacle.

References

[1] https://www.planetmountain.com/en/news/interviews/interview-erwan-legrand-on-first-ascent-of-le-bombe-bleu-at-buoux.html

[2] Interview with Marc Le Menestrel (2026) https://www.grimper.com/news-la-contre-interview-marc-menestrel-equipeur-bombe-bleu

Bolted by Kim Carrigan in 1982 this route was ahead of its time (Kanal im Rücken, typically considered the first 8b in the world, was only climbed in 1984). Carrigan came tantalizingly close to making the first ascent but it had to wait for Stefan Glowcaz to finish it off .

Carrigan:

Yeah, The Ring Route aka Serious Young Lizards really proved a bridge too far. The astounding thing was, that I'd bolted this route in 1982, long before anyone thought this would even be possible, which meant that I spent a long time learning the moves and developing the strength and fitness needed for a route like this. There was a complete lack of other routes of this difficulty from where this fitness could be gained. Despite being able to climb every move in my sleep, I could never quite bring it together. I still remember my best effort. I'd been shopping in Horsham for the weekly groceries and my fingers were already strained from carrying the shopping bags, but I thought I'll just pop up and give it a go. It had been drizzling, but because the wall was so steep, the route remained basically dry. First shot, I managed to redpoint straight to the last hold, but promptly slipped off mantling onto the wet slab above. That was it. [1]

The route later featured in a now-famous Patagonia advert when John Sherman shot a carefully staged photo of himself seemingly soloing the route in flip-flops, beer in hand.

The route was named after the ring bolts used to protect it.

References

[1] https://www.ukclimbing.com/articles/features/kim_carrigan_and_andy_pollitt-9629

Adam originally suggested 9b/+ but Sébastien Bouin suggested a rare upgrade after his ascent.

The first 8c+ in Italy.

Initially Ramón Julián Puigblanque climbed the full line, then at a later date an intermediate lower off was added that avoided the upper 8b+ section, as this is frequently wet.

References

[1] https://www.8a.nu/news/ashima-was-misinformed-about-the-9a+-grade

Four new pitches 8b+, 8c, 6c, 6c linking Bellavista (E10) with the Cassin Route (E5)

Alexander Huber:

the 8b+ pitch is 60m long, while the roof is breached with 11 new bolts. But the route is anything but a ladder of bolts. It's fairly demanding both physically and psychologically, you have to know how to climb above quite long run-outs.

References

[1] https://www.planetmountain.com/en/news/climbing/alexander-huber-frees-pan-aroma-8c-on-cima-ovest-di-lavaredo-dolomites.html

[2] https://it.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pan_Aroma

Tried by Sébastien Bouin and Charles Albert before Alex Megos made the first ascent. Named because it's on the Face de Rat.

Named for a dislike of RockFax.