Giuliano Cameroni spent several months in Rocklands, South Africa this summer. At the end of his stay, he got two hard boulders. On the one hand, he climbed The smile (8c first ascent), as well as the historic Boulder Black Eagle (8c, third ascent).
In the first ascent of The smile the Swiss invested a lot of time by his standards. "I found this amazing wall two years ago together with Samuel Ometz and tried it for the first time this season. The first session went super bad and I couldn't do any of the hard moves, ”Giuliano explains to us in an interview. He let the project rest and concentrated on the numerous other blocks in the Rocklands. After a few weeks he returned in better conditions, which paid off: “The crux moves felt way better than before! I needed two more days to do the hardest move (a dynamic lock off from the crimp to the right eye) and four more to send the whole boulder. In the last week it became a real mental battle because I kept falling off the last move, which revolves around a delicate friction depending sloper, ”he says happily.
The mental fight comes to an end
As a review for the new creation there The smile says Giuliano Cameroni 8c, but adds that it is probably his toughest ascent. Accordingly, he describes the feeling after the successful climb: “When I finally held the lip an immense joy surrounded me: the battle was over and the boulder was done! I feel that I improved a lot from this experience, and the boulder itself taught me a lot about climbing in general. Few months later I'm still psyched to have done a contender for the best problem in the world! Now it's time to move on, projects await! "
Almost two 8c boulders in one day
Just over a week after the first ascent of The smile he succeeded in the third ascent of Black Eagle, The 8c boulder was made by Dave Graham first time and from Daniel Woods first repeated. On the day of the commission of Black Eagle Giuliano continued to pull Monkey Wedding and wanted to give this 8c classic a visit. Just before the exit but then it was over and he fell out of the Boulder.
Giuliano Cameroni on the Black Eagle (8c)
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Credits: Pictures Oliver Krueger