Filip Schenk clears up routes in Arco: »Beginning« (9a+) & »Tre Mou Polacche« (9a)

Shortly after repeating Stefano Ghisolfi's endurance test piece "Erebor" (9b), Filip Schenk has now completed his remaining projects at Eremo di San Paolo near Arco. Time for new challenges.

Many climbers are familiar with this: there are areas where the climbing style just doesn't suit you as well. That's exactly what happened to the South Tyrolean professional climber. Filip Schenk with Eremo di San Paolo, a climbing hotspot slightly north of bowHowever, that didn't stop the 25-year-old from participating there with »erebor“(9b) his hardest route to date. Now Schenk has also tackled the last remaining difficult lines in the sector: “Beginning” (9a+) and “Tre Mou Polacche” (9a). They represent his conclusion to a very special place.”

Eremo di San Paolo had pushed Schenk to his limits long before "Erebor," when he gained his first outdoor experiences as a young man. He wasn't initially convinced by his home crag: "I never really loved the style there: very physical, steep, and with tiny holds." Precisely because he found the climbing there difficult, the South Tyrolean was always drawn back to the place that challenged him the most.

Schenk is ticking off an old Nemesis project

Filip Schenk's enormous progress in his antistyle climbing was definitively proven with his repeat of "Erebor"—the 25-move line is the hardest route at Eremo di San Paolo. This year, "Erebor" was essentially also part of his preparation for an old project: "Beginning" (9a+). Schenk had already attempted both routes last year. This year, however, he initially opted for the harder of the two because he didn't yet feel ready for "Beginning."

The old Nemesis line, like "Erebor," was also established by Stefano Ghisolfi – albeit a season earlier, in 2020. He had originally proposed a grade of 9a/+ and revised his suggestion to 9a+ in 2021 after a key hold broke off. "Beginning" was established this year by Alex Megos and repeated by the Spaniard Alex Ventajas.

For Filip Schenk, the success in "Erebor" seems to have flipped a switch: Just five days later he not only succeeded at his old final boss "Beginning", but also "Tre Mou Polacche" (9a), according to the South Tyrolean "the best 9a in Arco".

First 9a+ and 9b for Filip Schenk

It's a fitting end, then, that Filip Schenk has now achieved two new difficulty grades in a very short time at his home climbing spot. "Beginning" is his first 9a+, having skipped that grade shortly before with "Erebor" (9b).

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Credits cover photo: Crimp films