Aidan Roberts Makes Another V16 First Ascent in Switzerland
He now has three V16 FAs on the famous Vecchio bloc in Brione
It seems like every time British climber Aidan Roberts visits Ticino, Switzerland, he puts up a V16 first ascent on the famous Vecchio boulder in Brione. During a trip back in 2022, he FA’ed Everything the Light Touches V16, a variation of the popular The Kingdom V14/15. Then, in Fall 2022, he made the first ascent of Vecchio Leone Low V16, a sit start to the V13 classic that he flashed the trip prior. Matt Fultz recently made the second ascent of the sit.
Roberts just announced that while on a trip earlier this year, he made the FA of yet another line on the Vecchio boulder, The Lions Share V16. “The style of [The Lions Share] felt quite varied and complete,” he said, via Instagram. “Slow and tensiony moves on awful crimps lead to slopier features and an unlikely foot walk before a very powerful slap, the one move ‘Vecchio Brione’, to finish.” He believes The Lions Share is the hardest of the three V16’s he’s put up on the boulder.
The 24-year-old has accumulated an impressive list of hard bouldering ticks. He was the first to repeat Shawn Raboutou’s Alphane V17, and he’s put up numerous V16 first ascents, including the U.K.’s first two of the grade: Superpowers and Isles of Wonder Sit.
Send footage of The Lions Share has not yet been released. In the meantime, be sure to watch the documentary Mastery by Wedge Climbing. The 40-minute film showcases many Roberts hardest sends including Alphane 9A, Isles of Wonder Sit V16, and Vecchio Leone Sit V16.
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