Flatus 

Wow, to think I was climbing DL 11b in '72 when my old Red Guidebook called it 10b !! Still one of the best thin face routes at the Lake !!

dave ,the rating in yer old "red" guide book is F10b. the "F" scale and the 5.11 scale are two completely different systems. having led flatus at least 20 times when i used to live in the midwest and having spent the last23 yrs. living and climbing in eldo ,i can assure you that you were climbing 5.11a way back when. also most dl climbers were quite good on a top-rope. when did pete c. tr bagatelle?1967?

in the old red guide book i beleive Bagatelle was given F10c. most folks would agree that bagatelle is alot harder than flatus then just one "letter" grade.

There was some "Tripple Direct" variation of this thing that was harder. Maybe 5.12a? I don't recall exact details, but I remember that it was super fun and super hard. Can someone post those?

F10b maybe, but 5.10b? Well, if you want to get someone hurt, just keep it up. I have that old guide too, but I know it isn't YDS.
Flatus is not even close enough to that grade to be worth discussing why anyone would call it that.

Flatus Triple Direct is one really nice 5.12a. Start by avoiding the traditional start to Flatus (you know- the funky rightward traverse at the start to be climbed before climbing directly up the bolt line) and climbing up into the meat of Flatus from directly below. Next climb the meat of Flatus route past the bolts. Just above the second bolt do not move left but climb straight up into the overhang and crack above. This is the part that is the best.... one has all ready negotiated all the pumpy devious climbing of the regular Flatus route (and direct start) and now one has to keep it together and keep enough power available to pull through the roof sequence. After that there is still hard and varied climbing to be had all the way to the top (staying out of upper Michael's Project route and to the left). This is a damn good route and I think I explained it here pretty good with out giving it away move by move..... I think this would be a hard route to flash because the moves are not obvious. Alot of fun is to be had here figuring out the sequences of this route in order to be able to have the strength to pull all the way to the top in one push... I guess the same could be said of most harder routes at Devil's Lake but this route just seems like an extra nice gem to me...

Dave Bohn,

I have to back Steve up here. I have absolutely no doubt that Flatus is F10b in your old guidebook, but the F system is no longer in use at Devil's Lake. Today we use the more popular Yosemite Decimal System, under which I assure you Flatus is at least 5.11b. I say at least, because if you are unfamiliar with exactly where Flatus goes you could easily find yourself on Flatus Direct, or Flatus 3D which are both significantly harder.

Rating this route as 5.10b here is quite possibly the worst form of sandbagging.

Cheers,
James

A couple decent rps can also be used, along with the #2 friend (.75 camalot), to back up the bolts. In fact one may just want to skip the bolts as these things are sketchy.

Some off set cams work well by the second bolt as well if one is inclined to lead the route.

Dave Groth

This is one of the best climbs I've done at DL.

Jason, I couldn't fish in anything in the first section, I'll try that Camalot beta, but I did fish in a SWEET #1 ball nut directly before the last crux on the direct. What did you get in around there? I didn't lead it yet but it's next on the list.
Agreed, the bolts are totally worthless these days. I think I could break the first one with my hands.
John, every week you have a new favorite! It just gets better and better doesn't it!

Yo Rhoads, I don't remember this route all that well, but I am thinking I placed an HB offset brassie right by the first bolt and another HB offset brassie next to the second bolt along with the green camalot. The cam I think had to go in one direction and in just the right spot, but looked really good once I figured out the spot. I never led the direct, or triple direct, but I think I looked at it once and there was a good black or blue alien above the final roof (the blind reach around the corner move). Good luck on it, these climbs in here are great!

Got the gear together now but I pumped out at the end of the day. Next time.....
Does anyone know if the hold just around the first roof is chipped? Looks like it has. I've been avoiding it out of principle (Grammar corrected due to Huston's higher education).

Principle Rhoads, principle. Spelling - it's what seperates us from the animals.

I highly doubt there is a chipped hold on Flatus, but then again I don't really know. Best of luck on it, pussy.

I never said I required correct spelling (but this was in fact the correct spelling just the wrong grammar). I DO require capitalization for inclusion in the human race.
Anyway......I remember thinking long ago that the hold looked chipped and then a few weeks ago a guy said it was, so I looked again and it indeed looks chipped. Is there a filthy cheater somewhere?

It is hard to imagine a chipped hold on a 5.11. I don't remember thinking anything about that specific hold. Many DL holds look chipped, actually, but I think that the quartzite just fractures that way.

Plus, Rhodes, an ellipsis is three dots(...), not six.

Triple Direct came in at about 5.11d. I jacked up putting in the crux piece saying "Oh my god!" as I was pumping out trying to get the damn thing in, much to the delight of onlookers. Then, when pulling the second roof I blindly put my left hand too low in the crack, started to pull up and realized I wouldn't be able to pull to the jug from there, so I had to back down under the roof again and reposition the blind left hand. Fun stuff. Three stars for this version of Flatus.

Here is a video of the lead:

sweet vid man. You made it look easy.

Surprised to see no X on this climb's rating. I guess it is obvious at the Lake. Till someone tries to onsight this cookie...

Thanks for the warning Dmitriy. ;)

I wouldn't give this climb an "X". Tricky placements but they are at the right spots and I'm fairly sure they would hold. "R" rated I would say.
An on sight of a DL non-"R" or "X" 5.11 is pretty bold regardless.

R - if the bolts hold, X - otherwise
D - if you fall just before clipping the first bolt.
D = Deck

Note: this spray is under Flatus, not F3D

LOL! Clip the BOLTS?!?!!? Are you stoned? I guess you'd have to be to clip those things. No need for them anyway, plenty of gear on this one.

Gotta agree with Rhoads, bolts or no bolts, this thing doesn't deserve an X.