“Probably the most seen video of me climbing is of me falling,” Will Moss tells me. “I used to be in Indian Creek after making an attempt Kokanee Nook late that night time, and I acquired on the Carbondale Brief Bus the subsequent morning. However I suppose they acquired a superb video out of it.”
“It was not that massive, only a small fall, however it acquired some views for some purpose.” He means the video from 2023 racked up 2 million views, says the 19-year-old sponsored climber out of New York Metropolis.
When he was 18 and nonetheless in highschool, he ticked off the FA of the 5.14d R Greatest Issues in Life are Free within the Gunks. “It’s unrepeated,” he says. “I needed to climb the wrong way up out a roof and risked a gnarly fall,” he says, including he was 25 toes out above a quantity 6 stopper. That created the hazard, because the additional you might be out the overhang, the extra you threat falling into the much less overhung wall beneath.”
This season in Yosemite, he ticked off an enormous record of 5.13 massive wall-free climbs.
Throughout his first 12 months at CU Boulder, Colorado, he tried to do as many 5.14 trad routes as potential in Colorado. This included sending Dishonest Actuality, 5.14a R, Vice Roy, 5.14b R/X (“I acquired the second ascent of that. That was my proudest one final 12 months”). Vice Roy at Fort Rock in Boulder Canyon is the place Brad Gobright and Molly Mitchell broke their backs on it, he says. “Brad was making an attempt the entire thing, Molly the primary pitch, however they each broke their again on the primary pitch. It’s bolted, however it’s doable on trad gear, as Matt Wilder established in on trad gear.” To ship it, Will bouldered out the V9 begin as a highball – 25 toes till his first piece — skipping the doubtful gear placements that he noticed in Security Third and didn’t need to whip the gear out.
After Vice Roy, he ticked China Doll 5.14 R, saying he thinks he was the primary particular person to do it with out clipping the fastened pin. “On single-pitch trad climbs like that, I solely prefer to clip the gear I place. It seems like a purer ship.”
He additionally did Kill Change, 5.14a, at Gross Reservoir, outdoors the Flatirons. Then he despatched Kokanee Nook, which Hayden Kennedy put up; Kennedy additionally did the FA of Carbondale Brief Bus.
Moss arrived in Yosemite proper after his finals ended, exhibiting up on Might 9. Thus far he’s ticked Moist Lycra Nightmare in two days, after getting thunderstormed off it the primary day. “It was inside 12 hours of the second day.” The 5.13d massive wall on Leaning Tower is understood for its enormous roof and 5 5.13 pitches, one 5.13d and one 5.12c. He led the climb, falling twice on the primary day, splitting his finger open. On day two, he fell as soon as on the slab, as soon as on the boulder drawback (5.13d roof), and as soon as on the 5.13a stemming layback pitch. The final pitch, a hen wing chimney took him 5 goes. As Will climbed inverted, his knees spit out blood, and he floor his bones into the wall to battle his method by means of. Ultimately, on his final go, he taped his knees so he wouldn’t slide out of the crack as a result of his blood.
Again at my workplace. Taking a break for a second, I look over at Will. His knees are scraped, and it appears like scabs have lately come off his knee caps. His palms are lined in gobies, and his toes are lined in thick callus.
This season in Yosemite, he additionally did the 5.13b, 9 pitch Remaining Frontier on Fifi Buttress. He fell as soon as on the 5.12d stemming pitch however fired the remaining on sight. He then flashed Romulan Warbird, 5.12c, additionally 9 pitches and on Fifi. Up subsequent was Nexus, 5.13a/b, a stacked 10-pitch route which he did with one fall as a result of a damaged maintain.
Then got here Mahtah on Liberty Cap, a hardly ever climbed fifteen pitch 5.12d that was overgrown and was within the solar all day, so he and Stu Grossman climbed it at night time. Pitches have been oozing with slime and dust, plus water, crops, bats, frogs, and spiders. “I onsighted it,” he says.
“It was sick, a complete journey,” Stu says from my front room. “It was unbelievable that Will despatched.”
“I additionally did the Phoenix,” Will provides, hardly mentioning sending the primary 5.13 on the planet. “Then I onsighted Dream Staff, 5.13a, ten pitches in Fifi. That’s what these knee scrapes are from, the 5.12 chimney. I’m not the perfect chimney climber on the planet.”
That is Will’s second season in Yosemite. Final 12 months, over every week, he onsighted the Westie Face of Leaning Tower, 5.13a A0, 9 pitches, along with his dad belaying and cleansing pitches. Earlier than that, he onsighted Astroman, which is ten pitches and 5.11c.
“What’s subsequent,” I ask.
“I need to do two 5.14 trad climbs over the summer time in Colorado. One is Orangutang Overhang, 5.14a at Independence Move, and the opposite is the Full Dunn-Westbay Direct, which is near 10 pitches, together with an 80-metre 5.14a at 13,500 toes.”
