Die 26-jährige Katherine Choong kletterte am vergangenen Dienstag den Rawyl-Klassiker Cabane au Canada (9a). Mit ihrer jüngsten Begehung gehört Katherine zum erlauchten Kreis der Frauen, die eine 9a rotpunkt kletterten. Schon eine Woche zuvor gelang ihr mit Tornado Power (8c) in Gimmelwald eine ultraharte Route. Wir haben Katherine zur Begehung ihrer ersten 9a einige Fragen gestellt (Englisch).
When did you first try Cabane au Canada?
I tried Cabane once last year but was not able to do one move on the upper part, which is hard for short people like me that don’t know how to jump. But as the new style of the World Cup routes changed, I did more bouldering this year and I decided to try again Cabane in June 2018 again.
Why this route?
My goal this year was to send a 9a route. In 2017 I was in Rawyl for the first time and climbed routes next to Cabane so I knew that the style of the route could suit me pretty well. In addition, I really love this place, the beauty of the surrounding, the calm and the style of the routes.
How many tries did you invest?
I don’t know exactly. I think that I was something like 10 days, 2-3 tries per day. Already after a few days I was able to climb to the upper part but I was falling again and again on the dyno. It was quite hard to keep the motivation.
Is there other 9a’s you tried?
I have only tried Era Vella (8c+/9a) last spring but I didn’t send it yet.
What went through your mind when you clipped the chain?
I was so happy, but also relieved! Competitions didn’t go so well in July, I also fell two times at the very top of Era Vella and I didn’t send a lot of other route this year. I think that I put a lot of pressure on me and it was hard not to succeed in anything. So it was a huge personal achievement to clip the chains of Cabane. I finally gained the confidence and the good feelings in my climbing came back.
Who was with you when you sent the route?
Jim Zimmermann, my boyfriend. He sent his own project – Paradis naturel (8b+) – just two days before and this helped me a lot. I thought: „Yes, it is possible!“
When exactly did you send your project, Cabane au Canada?
We were supposed to climb just 3 days and stayed the 4th day (Tuesday) for filming with a photographer. But we cancelled the shooting because it was raining during the afternoon. We were there so I decided to work on the moves, even if it was raining a little bit. It was my 4th day in a row of climbing, and I felt really tired on my first try of the day. For my second try, I decided not to do the two first quidraw because it is painful for the finger but then I climbed the route until the end without falling on the dyno!! At this moment something really changed in my mind and I decided to give another try and to give it all! It was 20:30, almost night, so I had to hurry a little bit. It was my last chance to do it before a long break, because of the World Championship in two weeks and my trip to Flatanger. I started climbing and everything went really well, the moves felt easier, I sticked the dyno and clipped the chains.
What’s next?
Now my focus is full on the World Championship in two weeks. Then I will enjoy 2.5 weeks in Flatanger and then find another project. I’m really motivated to do more multipitch routes, I have not much experience in multipitch climbing and want to improve it.
Katheerine Choong im Schweizer Fernsehen
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Credits: Bilder zVg – Katherine Choong