Two climbers from england, pete whittaker and tom randall, set out to explore this world and climb the worlds hardest offwidths. Take a peek at the latest issue of climbing magazine. 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. It was the crack that put those twothe wide boyz on the map. The wide boyz became famous when in 2012 they made the first ascent of utahs century crack 5. The monster roof crack was first climbed by wide boyz tom randall and pete whittaker in 2011 with the gear in place. We do our best to process and ship orders within 12 business days mondayfriday, excluding holidays. From acclaimed directors paul diffley and chris alstrin comes a wild journey through the strange subculture of off width crack climbing. 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. 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. The journeys, the training, the routes and the failures no holds barred.
Ever scientific in their methods, the pair had some criteria to ensure that their expectations were fully met. The world of offwidth crack climbing is a strange subculture rumoured to be dominated by knuckledragging, barbrawling, dirtbags. 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. Establishing the worlds hardest offwidth century crack followed, and the name of the wide boyz stuck. Since march 2011, they have been blogging and climbing under the name of wide boyz. 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.
He aided across this monumental roof crack solo, employing a back rope only for the final barrel and lip turn. Wideboyz return to century crack supertopo rock climbing. With jay anderson, tom randall, bob scarpelli, pete whittaker. With this objective completed, we quickly set sail for the land of indian creek home of 2 very big lines for us. Has anyone been keeping up with the crucifix project. I talked with pete whittaker of wide boyz fame about how he trains for hard offwidth. 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. Wide boyz tom randall and pete whittaker, of the u. Posts about wideboyz 2 written by tomrandallclimbing. Wideboyz climb century crack placing gear ukc news. 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. Wide boyz crack school returned crack is back reading. Climbing zine readers can receive a 10% discount for wide boyz from hot aches productions, by entering promo code. 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.
There have been stories of superlative climbing events over the years that have been surrounded by grading controversies, climbing style arguments and. 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. Probably also the hardest offwidth crack ever climbed weighing in at around lowend 5. 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. Wide boyz tom randall and pete whittaker slay the cobra. Century crack is the hardest offwidth in the world. We offer climbing training programs, a blog, interviews on the. 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. Just a few days ago was the premiere of wideboyz ii at the sheffield adventure film festival. In comparing the two lines, the pair said on their blog. The world of offwidth crack climbing is a strange subculture rumored to be dominated by knuckledragging, barbrawling dirtbags. 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 enough to fit your whole body into, as then it gets classed as a squeeze chimney. During a video chat on september 25, randall described their stillunsent undertaking dubbed the crucifix, in the white rim area of canyonlands, utah.
Century crack is widely considered to be the hardest offwidth on the planet. Oct 02, 2017 the pair is renowned for their brutal training and success on the hardest cracks in the world. The wide boyz climbing duo were searching for something that made century crack look like a warmup. Feb 19, 2012 wideboyz century crack wideboyz climb century crack from chris alstrin on vimeo. Join tradprincess and wide boyz, tom randall and pete whittaker for a 3day crack camp spring 2020.
Pete whittaker training in the cellar of tom randalls sheffield home for their 2012 wide crack tour of the u. A sensational roof crack which breaks out the echoing shadows into the searing light of the red desert. May 25, 20 a short edit of a crack training circuit from my cellar in sheffield. We kindly ask that you choose standard shipping where possible to reduce our environmental impact. This in itself was a considerable achievement considering the committing nature of the area and the horrendous exposure on the final section. 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. 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. Century crack was first located and climbed by desert rat crusher bartlett in 2001 when on the way to climb a new desert tower. 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. 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.
Century crack is no harder placing gear on lead, than it was having it preplaced. According to, whittaker was successful in making the crack s eighth ascent a. Seven years after its first ascent, the notorious offwidth roof crack century crack 5. Two climbers from england, pete whittaker and tom randall, set out to explore this world and climb the worlds hardest offwidth. Hi tom, i built a kind of a crack machine for 3 normal sizes 24 inch about 20 overhang the wood is 4x30cm. 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. Century crack is possibly the worlds hardest offwidth crack climb, and was a well known project before tom and pete climbed it last month. Tom and petes us tour has turned out to be an historic event, hasnt it. 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. Wide boyz establish worlds longest roof crack crown of thorns. Century crack is certainly a step above cobra in terms of difficulty. A conversation with the wide boyz about their latest utah trip.
They returned later and sent it placing gear on lead. 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. Tom is a keen trad climber and has established many first ascents all over the world, mostly involving some kind of crack climbing. 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. Ok, so i suppose its finally time to lay our nuts on the table and come up with a grade for century crack. Around a month ago, both pete and i made the first free ascent of century crack, at a vaguely guessed grade of 5.
The wide boyz back in 2009, tom randall and pete whittaker made it their mission to climb the worlds hardest offwidth cracks. Tom randall and pete whittaker have returned to century crack the monster offwidth roof they climbed recently and reclimbed the route. Climbing the worlds hardest offwidth outside online. Wide boyz download from acclaimed directors paul diffley and chris alstrin comes a wild journey through the strange subculture of offwidth crack climbing. 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. 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. 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. The pair received some criticism for preplacing the cams for their first ascent. He is known for establishing the diabolical century crack 5. I suspect wide boyz might lure one or two climbers to enter the wide, world of offwidths. Ukc news wideboyz climb century crack placing gear. Tom described it to me as a crack which is too wide to hand or fist jam, yet not wide. Tom randall is one of the founding members of the infamous wide boyz, as well as cofounder of lattice training and sublime climbing. 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.
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. Brian had already been projecting, so conveniently the gear and beta was well established for pete and me. Century crack is a 120 feet long, off width, through a super steep roof, that supposedly goes at 5. 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. Hailing from salt lake city, parker may not have been on. This encompasses much of what i built to train on for century crack, but with some variations. Tom randall working the immense century crack, beneath the white rim in utahs canyonlands.
The wide boyz are known for completing the first free ascent of century crack 5. Bundle deal which includes both wide boyz films, century crack and cobra crack. Its not about the grade, its about the experience and when it comes to the wide the experience is the same for everyone. The film is an account of their attempt to free climb century crack in utah. Mix play all mix outside tv youtube wide boyz crack climbing nemesis. 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. Danny parker has made the third ascent of the offwidth called century crack 5. Tom randall and pete whittaker were in the us for 8 weeks in search of the most difficult offwidths they could find. The issue as i see it is that century crack is a plumb line and hence deserves a proper ascent. The 120foot line was first freed by the wide boyz the uk climbers tom randall and pete whittaker who in 2011, after. 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. 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.
At the time, we were both pretty psyched to do the ffa seeing as wed spent 2 years training specifically for this project. Tbp 144 pete whittaker of wide boyz fame on crack climbing. These crack climbing clinics are going to be filled with crack addicts. Heres an excerpt from the wide boyz blog, discussing how the two came up with the landmark grade. Two climbers from england, pete whittaker and tom randall, set out to explore this. To erase that last issue of preplacement on the first ascent, clear that last 5% of imperfection and undergo the formations terrifically crue. Uk wide boyz climb century crack placing gear on lead. Crack climbing by pete whittaker provides a single point of reference for all crack climbing techniques, regardless of the grade you climb. The wide boyz epic quest to send one of the worlds toughest cracks. 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.
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