Dan Mirsky Says Flex Luthor is 5.14d/15a

The route wasn't graded, then graded 5.15b, then 5.15a and now 5.14d/15a thanks to new beta and kneebars

Gripped November 23, 2023

Dan Mirsky has just repeated Flex Luthor at the Fortress of Solitude in Colorado at the age of 41, giving the iconic route a personal grade of 5.14d/15a. It was the hardest route in America when Caldwell climbed it in 2003, but it wasn’t graded or repeated for nearly 20 years.

Dan Mirsky started getting serious about climbing back in 2001 in Colorado and went on to climb several test-piece routes in the 2000s. He’s climbed most of the route in Rifle and has redpointed 50 5.14s, including Fat Camp 5.14d, Diarrhea Mouth 5.14d, Phat Club 5.14d and Planet Garbage 5.14d.

About the grade, Mirsky said on 8a.nu, “I figured out and used a different method in the crux from the other recent ascents. I think it was likely a hybrid of Tommy’s OG beta and Matty’s new school beta. I am pretty ok at kneebarring on Western Slope Limestone and I definitely made use of that skill (the left calf pump was real). Is my way easier? Does it change the grade to 9A or 9A/+? I honestly don’t know and you can’t take a slash grade on 8a.n. I’ll take the low the grade to keep the conversation going but I want a “/” because I’m over 40 and walking up that hill isn’t easy either.”

In 2021, Matty Hong made the second ascent, giving it a grade of 5.15b. Also that year, Carlo Traversi climbed it, saying, “No real opinion on grade, so going with Matty’s suggestion for now. Definitely not easy.” Then in 2022, Jonathan Siegrist climbed Flex Luthor and gave it a grade of soft 5.15a. Nicholas Milburn recently made the fifth ascent.