The Fly (climb)
The Fly is a 25ft high 5.14d (9a) sport route or V14 (8B+) boulder located in the Rumney Rocks climbing area[1] (commonly known by climbers as "Rumney") Rumney, New Hampshire, USA. It is located at the Waimea Cliff.
| The Fly | |
|---|---|
  | |
| Location | Rumney, New Hampshire, United States |
| Coordinates | 43°48′15″N 71°48′48″W |
| Climbing Area | Rumney Rocks |
| Route Type | Sport/bouldering |
| Vertical Gain | 25 feet (7.6 m) |
| Pitches | 1 |
| Grade | 5.14d (9a) |
| Route setter | Mark Sprague |
| First free ascent | David Graham, 2000 |
The Fly was first envisioned and bolted by Mark Sprague in 1995 as an open project for all to try but did not see a free ascent until David Graham, an 18-year-old American climber from Maine, climbed it in April 2000. It was quickly repeated by his climbing partner, Luke Parady. These ascents were milestones for the young up and coming climbers and the Rumney area, as (at the time) they were at the cutting edge grade of physical difficulty in North America.[2]
Route Description
The Fly ascends a short, steep, lower portion of the Waimea wall, gaining a large ledge (the E-Ticket Ledge) and a bolted anchor about 25 feet up. The climb is very fingery and powerful.
The route is quite short by sport climbing standards, essentially a rope protected boulder problem, with its two protection bolts being placed before the now common use of many stacked 'crash pads' to protect the dangerous landing. Most ascents make use of the protection offered by the bolts, usually preclipping the rope to them both, though after practicing the moves on a rope, the climb has been 'bouldered' (sans rope), first by Jason Kehl, on November 7, 2003.
First Ascent
David Graham made the first ascent (FA) on April 7, 2000.[3] At the time, David Graham and Luke Parady proposed the tentative grade of 5.14d (9a). After further ascents and fine tuning of the beta (choreography) needed to climb it, the consensus has settled to approximately 5.14c/d using the Yosemite decimal system or 8B/+ in the Font bouldering grade.
Repetitions
- Luke Parady (on April 27, 2001)
- Tony Lamiche (on October 10, 2003)
- Chris Sharma (on October 30, 2003) - almost a flash, he fell on the last move.[4]
- Jason Kehl (on November 7, 2003)
- Kevin Jorgeson (in April 2008)
- Paul Robinson (in April 2008) [5]
- Daniel Woods (in October 2008)
- Alexander Megos (in October 2012)
- Mike Foley (on November 13, 2015)[6]
- Andrew Palmer (on April 5, 2018)
Both Lamiche and Sharma pre-clipped the second bolt on their redpoints.
Kehl and Jorgeson, both known for highball bouldering, bouldered the route after practicing the moves on a rope. Although the route is not particularly high, the landing is dangerous with an uneven surface and the potential to fall off a larger ledge.[5]
References
- Matt Samet. "Get Shorty - The 5 best miniature sport routes in America". Climbing.com.
- Roberto Fioravanti. "Dave Graham". Planet Mountain. Retrieved March 15, 2018.
- He apparently made a typo while transferring his notes on his ascent in his 8a.nu scorecard from the route to bouldering category, changing the date from 2000 to 2001. See interviews such as and archived first mention of The Fly from 10 April 2000 Archived 2014-02-23 at the Wayback Machine
- Jeff Achey. "Fly Boys at Rumney". Climbing.com. Retrieved March 15, 2018.
- Dougald MacDonald. "Two quick ascents of The Fly". Climbing.com. Retrieved March 15, 2018.
- "Mike Foley sends The Fly". NEW ENGLAND BOULDERING. Retrieved 2015-11-16.