Ouellet, McCormick and Goodman Win AAC Grant

French Canadian climber Jean-Pierre Ouellet, with Americans Matt McCormick and Pat Goodman, have won an AAC grant for their proposal to climb Uli Biaho Tower. They are one of four teams to win the Lyman Spitzer Cutting Edge Climbing Award this year.

The trio plans to climb a new line on the tower’s east face. Paul Gagner, chair of the Lyman Spitzer Award committee, noted that “this year’s team will approach the wall via a different route that avoids the ‘death gully’ used on previous expeditions.”

The 6109m wall is in Pakistan, located in the region near Trango Towers. The first ascent of Uli Biaho Tower was made in 1973 by an American team climbing the east face.

The Lyman Spitzer Award aims to promote cutting-edge climbing, and is awarded to a small team intending to make a lightweight ascent of a difficult route.