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The first grade 36 in Australia 10-Jul-2006 At 4:43:20 PM chalkischeap

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…..…. could be a long time coming.

A lot of old-school macho nonsense regularly appears in the Australian climbing “media” – this forum included. Meanwhile in Europe and the USA people are regularly climbing really hard stuff.

There are no climbs in Victoria harder than 33. This grade was first established way back in the 1980’s.

There are no climbs in Australia harder than 34. The first 34’s (8c+) were climbed 16 years ago.

The top sports climbing grade is now around the 36 or 37 mark (9a+ and possibly 9b). There are similar lines ready-to-go on Australian cliffs. We need a soccer-style shift in perspective in the climbing community. The top standard in a country is a reflection of the standard of the typical climber – come on guys.

So stop whinging that you don’t like bolts, bouldering, sports climbing, chalk, indoor training, and all the other essential requirements for high performance. The whingers are holding back the cause - this is a climbing forum.