This felt harder than 5.11a to me. I found it harder than ABM(5.11a/b), Thouroughfare (5.11a) and Beginner's Demise (5.11a).
By Tony B From: Boulder, CO Oct 18, 2006 rating: 5.11a
The comments above are funny because when I saw the 11a designation I chucked about how my partner, a local, sandbagged me into this and Flatus few other climbs "they are only 10a!" he insisted... I bought it for a while that I was just not dialed in to the local rock and was spooked by the lack of friction. But after he got me to do Flatus 3D (Flatus Triple Direct) saying it was only 10b then finally Cesarean Direct at "10c", (I finished only after a hang with bloody fingers) I seized the book and noted that the scale ended at "F10c." So much for that. I understand that those are 12's now? Regardless of the read grade, Black Rib is of the nicest thin climbs at Devil's Lake and one of the few I remember by name a decade and a half later. Take your edging shoes and get ready to crimp!
By Jay Knower Administrator From: Plymouth, NH Mar 2, 2007 rating: 5.11b
Yeah Tony, Bagatelle, formerly F10c is now 5.12c/d. Talk about grade inflation...
As for Black Rib, it's a 5.11 with a 12a move on it, in classic Devil's Lake tradition.
Quote: Jay Knower, "As for Black Rib, it's a 5.11 with a 12a move on it, in classic Devil's Lake tradition. "
So now I was climbing 5.12 in '71 ??
My first 5.10, and one of my favorite 5.10's, next to Flatus that is.
My question, were we actually climbing that hard, back in '69-'73 during my stint at "The Lake", were I ticked essentially every F10 in the old "Red Book of Westmarch", in my way too big RD's, plus freeing a bunch of aid routes, and a few of our own ?
Unless you consider some of the ratings going from insane to marginally rediculous as slipping. Many of the 5.11's I've managed to flail my way up seem nearly impossible the first time I TR them, often there are hard to find holds or improbable sequences needed. It usually isn't untill I have the route wired that it feels appropriate for the grade. Flatus is a prime example of this.
As I've said before - this is not 5.10, it is F10, and there is a world of difference. As for it being 5.12 I think Jay's point is that typically Devils Lake routes are graded not by their hardest move (which in this case is almost certainly harder than 5.11a for anyone under 6 foot), but by the rough average of the difficulty of the climbing.
I'm also curious to know what you would rate Thouroughfare and ABM?
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