The wide boyz became famous when in 2012 they made the first ascent of utahs century crack 5. The world of offwidth crack climbing is a strange subculture rumored to be dominated by knuckledragging, barbrawling dirtbags. The 120foot line was first freed by the wide boyz the uk climbers tom randall and pete whittaker who in 2011, after. Discovered by us offwidth specialist, phil crusher bartlettwho despite his moniker looks more like a geography teacher who is into real ale and bell ringing than brutal climbing problems. Since march 2011, they have been blogging and climbing under the name of wide boyz. The rest is history every climber knows that climbing cracks is a class of its own and that pain is just part of the game. The film is an account of their attempt to free climb century crack in utah. Tom randall and pete whittaker were in the us for 8 weeks in search of the most difficult offwidths they could find. Climbing the worlds hardest offwidth outside online. One month ago at the end of november a couple of us were fortunate enough to get tickets to a special screening of tom randall and pete whittakers film wide boyz. Oct 02, 2017 the pair is renowned for their brutal training and success on the hardest cracks in the world. As part of the rei coop family, were dedicated to making websites and mobile apps that help outdoor enthusiasts connect, share information and get out into the places they love to play.
With this objective completed, we quickly set sail for the land of indian creek home of 2 very big lines for us. Wide boyz crack school returned crack is back reading. Bundle deal which includes both wide boyz films, century crack and cobra crack. Tom and petes us tour has turned out to be an historic event, hasnt it. Two climbers from england, pete whittaker and tom randall, set out to explore this. I have machined the wood surface in advance it was not smooth at all and now i find the crack really slippery the wood flex is minimal. Pete is widely regarded as one of the best crack climbers in the world, having made dozens of cuttingedge first ascents and hard repeats, including the first ascent of century crack 5. Tom randall working the immense century crack, beneath the white rim in utahs canyonlands. Seven years after its first ascent, the notorious offwidth roof crack century crack 5. The issue as i see it is that century crack is a plumb line and hence deserves a proper ascent. If you recall the wide boyz film heres a good trailer, pete and his friend tom randall, who now runs lattice training, trained for 2 years in toms cellar on homemade crack systems. Tom randall is one of the founding members of the infamous wide boyz, as well as cofounder of lattice training and sublime climbing.
According to, whittaker was successful in making the crack s eighth ascent a. The wide boyz climbing duo were searching for something that made century crack look like a warmup. To erase that last issue of preplacement on the first ascent, clear that last 5% of imperfection and undergo the formations terrifically crue. Posts about wideboyz 2 written by tomrandallclimbing. Establishing the worlds hardest offwidth century crack followed, and the name of the wide boyz stuck. Its not about the grade, its about the experience and when it comes to the wide the experience is the same for everyone. Wide boyz download from acclaimed directors paul diffley and chris alstrin comes a wild journey through the strange subculture of offwidth crack climbing. Crack climbing by pete whittaker provides a single point of reference for all crack climbing techniques, regardless of the grade you climb. May 25, 20 a short edit of a crack training circuit from my cellar in sheffield. Tom described it to me as a crack which is too wide to hand or fist jam, yet not wide. A week of wide madness man, the last week has gone by so quickly so much has happened in such a short space of time, that i hardly feel like ive had time to think. Tbp 144 pete whittaker of wide boyz fame on crack climbing. This in itself was a considerable achievement considering the committing nature of the area and the horrendous exposure on the final section. At the time, we were both pretty psyched to do the ffa seeing as wed spent 2 years training specifically for this project.
Wide boyz establish worlds longest roof crack crown of thorns. Probably also the hardest offwidth crack ever climbed weighing in at around lowend 5. Brian had already been projecting, so conveniently the gear and beta was well established for pete and me. The pair received some criticism for preplacing the cams for their first ascent. It was the crack that put those twothe wide boyz on the map. The world of offwidth crack climbing is a strange subculture rumoured to be dominated by knuckledragging, barbrawling, dirtbags. In fact, im not sure i understood exactly what the definition of an offwidth was until working with the wide boys, or wide boyz according to their blog. Oct 08, 20 british climbers, tom randall and pete whittaker the offwidth specialists, who star in the hot aches production, wide boyz, have recently climbed the single pitch crack, the cobra.
A sensational roof crack which breaks out the echoing shadows into the searing light of the red desert. These crack climbing clinics are going to be filled with crack addicts. Danny parker, 27, made waves at the end of last week announcing that he had repeated century crack, the interminable offwidth roof crack in canyonlands, utah, first reappointed by tom randall and pete whittaker in 2011. Century crack was first located and climbed by desert rat crusher bartlett in 2001 when on the way to climb a new desert tower.
Century crack part deux around a month ago, both pete and i made the first free ascent of century crack, at a vaguely guessed grade of 5. Jul 26, 2018 clearly though, as im an old codger well, relative to ondra there needs to be a new entrant into the wide crack scene. The world of offwidth crack climbing is a strange subculture rumoured to be dominated by knuckledragging, barbrawling dirtbags. Danny parker has made the third ascent of the offwidth called century crack 5. Has anyone been keeping up with the crucifix project. Century crack is certainly a step above cobra in terms of difficulty. The wide boyz epic quest to send one of the worlds toughest cracks. That is why fingers and hands are taped to protect the skin from abrasions. There have been stories of superlative climbing events over the years that have been surrounded by grading controversies, climbing style arguments and. A conversation with the wide boyz about their latest utah trip.
In comparing the two lines, the pair said on their blog. The monster roof crack was first climbed by wide boyz tom randall and pete whittaker in 2011 with the gear in place. Sep 11, 2011 in fact, im not sure i understood exactly what the definition of an offwidth was until working with the wide boys, or wide boyz according to their blog. Most of us offwidth aficionados are over 30 pete makes a significant break from the trend on this, male and think knee patches are the practical option and not a fashion statement. Going back and doing century crack again now with gear in tow something that hard, repeating it had to be really really difficult to force oneself to undergo again. Century crack is a 120 feet long, off width, through a super steep roof, that supposedly goes at 5.
Mix play all mix outside tv youtube wide boyz crack climbing nemesis. British climbers, tom randall and pete whittaker the offwidth specialists, who star in the hot aches production, wide boyz, have recently climbed the single pitch crack, the cobra. With jay anderson, tom randall, bob scarpelli, pete whittaker. Weve been climbing together for the last 6 years or so and became a little better known when we developed a major obsession for offwidth climbing and made the first ascent of century crack in the usa. Wide boyz this blog is about two climbers who are searching out the widest, dirtiest and hardest offwidths that this planet has to offer. Join two brave british lads, pete whittaker and tom randall, as they take on the decidedly american sport of climbing bloody, painful and often dangerous cracks that require wedging body. Im thinking of alex honnold, chris sharma and ueli steckpeople who inspire us because in climbing they have found their own personal style and expression. Wideboyz return to century crack supertopo rock climbing. Pete whittaker training in the cellar of tom randalls sheffield home for their 2012 wide crack tour of the u. He is known for establishing the diabolical century crack 5. Ok, so i suppose its finally time to lay our nuts on the table and come up with a grade for century crack.
Wide boyz tom randall and pete whittaker, of the u. We do our best to process and ship orders within 12 business days mondayfriday, excluding holidays. Join two brave british lads, pete whittaker and tom randall, as they take on the decidedly american sport of climbing bloody, painful and often dangerous. Uk wide boyz climb century crack placing gear on lead. I suspect wide boyz might lure one or two climbers to enter the wide, world of offwidths. Century crack is widely considered to be the hardest offwidth on the planet. We kindly ask that you choose standard shipping where possible to reduce our environmental impact. Take a peek at the latest issue of climbing magazine. Weve travelled down to moab ticking trench warfare on the way to try century crack and then moved straight on to zion to try and repeat the usas hardest offwidth, gabriel. A short edit of a crack training circuit from my cellar in sheffield. The century crack is the most beautiful offwidth crack i know, tom says, and if you want to be successful as a climber and reach your limits, you really do need creativity. Tom described it to me as a crack which is too wide to hand or fist jam, yet not wide enough to fit your whole body into, as then it gets classed as a squeeze chimney. Century crack is the hardest offwidth in the world. In 2011 he teamed up with pete whittaker to take on the worlds hardest offwidth crack century crack, which is documented in the film wide boyz from hotaches.
From acclaimed directors paul diffley and chris alstrin comes a wild journey through the strange subculture of off width crack climbing. Century crack is no harder placing gear on lead, than it was having it preplaced. Being greedy and claiming a first ascent when one hasnt done a true ascent for trad climbing that usually means placing the gear on lead basically isnt on. Wideboyz climb century crack placing gear ukc news. This encompasses much of what i built to train on for century crack, but with some variations. Ukc news wideboyz climb century crack placing gear. Century crack by steve crusher bartlett pete whittaker and tom randall both climbers led century crack, one right after the other have pulled off a free lead of what is quite likely the longest roof crack in the world 120 feet long. Around a month ago, both pete and i made the first free ascent of century crack, at a vaguely guessed grade of 5.
Oct 19, 2011 wide boyz this blog is about two climbers who are searching out the widest, dirtiest and hardest offwidths that this planet has to offer. The wide boyz back in 2009, tom randall and pete whittaker made it their mission to climb the worlds hardest offwidth cracks. On their blog, randall and whittaker note that the main crucifix project is. We offer climbing training programs, a blog, interviews on the. Tom randall and pete whittaker have returned to century crack the monster offwidth roof they climbed recently and reclimbed the route. They returned later and sent it placing gear on lead. Just a few days ago was the premiere of wideboyz ii at the sheffield adventure film festival.
Century crack grade ok, so i suppose its finally time to lay our nuts on the table and come up with a grade for century crack. Climbing zine readers can receive a 10% discount for wide boyz from hot aches productions, by entering promo code. Heres an excerpt from the wide boyz blog, discussing how the two came up with the landmark grade. Nov 06, 2011 century crack part deux around a month ago, both pete and i made the first free ascent of century crack, at a vaguely guessed grade of 5. Hi tom, i built a kind of a crack machine for 3 normal sizes 24 inch about 20 overhang the wood is 4x30cm. I talked with pete whittaker of wide boyz fame about how he trains for hard offwidth. Feb 19, 2012 wideboyz century crack wideboyz climb century crack from chris alstrin on vimeo. The journeys, the training, the routes and the failures no holds barred. The pair is renowned for their brutal training and success on the hardest cracks in the world. Unlike the viewing of the first film of century crack, i got to have a sneak peak of the unfinished product and i have to say it made the night feel quite a bit calmer. He aided across this monumental roof crack solo, employing a back rope only for the final barrel and lip turn.