The Cutting Edge

In August, Rachel Pearce braved the famed Indian Face on the north side of Wales’ highest peak, completing the first female ascent of this masterpiece of runout traditional climbing. First climbed by Johnny Dawes in 1986, the U.K.’s first E9 (E9 6c or 5.12+ X) has held its reputation as a fearsome benchmark for the past four decades. With sparse protection and continuously thin, off-vertical climbing along its 150-foot length, the storied route has only seen 10 ascents, the latest being Pearce’s. Cutting Edge host Jim Aikman sits down with Pearce to get into her climbing history and love affair with the route—and why she thinks no women had led this "no falls climb" until now. He also talks to Johnny Dawes about the influence of Indian Face on hard, heady British climbing and the shift—beginning in the 1980s—to the “headpoint” style of rehearsing dangerous routes prior to a lead attempt. Also joining Aikman is American Climbing Journal Editor Matt Samet, a sometime headpointer who's dabbled with the style himself in Colorado and has tracked its evolution from E9 up to the current standard of E12 (very serious 5.14+). It’s a style of climbing that’s definitely not for everyone, which might just be what makes it so fascinating. This episode of the Cutting Edge is sponsored by Feathered Friends, makers of exceptionally lightweight, warm, and packable down gear for more than 50 years. Photo of Rachel Pearce by Alex Riley.

The south face of Kichatna Spire in Alaska was one of the great unclimbed walls of North America. Until July. On their second attempt in two years, young American alpinists Eli Spitulnik and Michael Telstad climbed the 1,000-meter face with a blend of difficult aid and tricky mixed, placing no bolts. In a tight weather window, they blazed up and down the face in a little over three days, with only a four-hour bivy and some catnaps along the way, leading to a level of exhaustion that pushed them to the brink of delirium. In this episode, host Jim Aikman interviews Eli and Michael about their adventure, explores the rich, colorful history of the Kichatna Mountains with legendary alpinist Conrad Anker and American Alpine Journal Editor Dougald MacDonald, and shares recorded tales from Al DeMaria and Peter Geiser, two members of the very first climbers to enter the Kichatnas, way back in 1965. This episode of the Cutting Edge is sponsored by Feathered Friends, makers of exceptionally lightweight, warm, and packable down gear for more than 50 years.

On February 11, Erwan Legrand—only 17 at the time, and barefoot!—took down one of the longest-standing open projects in the world: Le Bombé Bleu at Buoux, France. Bolted on the La Plage sector in 1991 by Marc Le Menestrel, the 100-foot route features a notoriously difficult precision dyno on its blue-streaked bulge, followed by ferocious tugging on tiny pockets, all clocking in at a lofty 5.15b. Famously, Le Menestrel had opened the route to the community as long as it was left in its natural state, a vision of what climbing might someday become and a challenge for future generations. Thirty-five years later, Legrand—the son of legendary French climber François Legrand—met that challenge with style. Join host Jim Aikman as he talks with Erwan Legrand about his remarkable barefoot redpoint, as well as U.K. icon Ben Moon—one of the route’s early suitors—and American Climbing Journal Editor Matt Samet, who interviewed Legrand about Le Bombé Bleu for the 2027 ACJ. Photo by Fred Ripert.

Preview the Cutting Edge's eighth season, featuring interviews with climbing legends like Colin Haley, Sasha DiGiulian, Tommy Caldwell, Benjamin Védrines, and many more. Tune in for monthly episodes to hear the stories behind first ascents, first-person accounts of recent expeditions, and climbing history that puts each climb in context.

The east face of the Central Tower in Chile's Torres del Paine is one of the great walls of the world. The first route up the face, climbed in 1973 and 1974 by a South African team, had only been freed twice. In February, Belgian Siebe Vanhee (a veteran of two other free ascents on the Central Tower) and American Tommy Caldwell (a newcomer to Torres del Paine but not to Patagonia) completed the third free ascent in remarkable style. On their third attempt, the two climbers raced up the 1,200-meter 5.12 route in exactly 24 hours—in an area where most big-wall ascents take weeks. Host Jim Aikman interviewed both climbers, as well as American Ben Ditto, who was on the first free ascent of the South African Route back in 2009. It's an episode about risk, the ups and downs of multiple efforts on a serious objective, and a partnership that perfectly balances the strengths of two amazing climbers.