Mejdi Schalck Climbs Sleepwalker, Calls It V15
The young French comp climbing star added the famous Red Rock problem to his ticklist in December
In December, Mejdi Schalck topped Sleepwalker in Red Rock, Nevada, calling it V15. He just released a video about his send, which you can view below. Sleepwalker was established by Jimmy Webb in December 2018. Webb made the first ascent after 11 sessions of effort, suggesting V16 for the grade.
“I had a plan to try a very rad and HARD project in Black Velvet Canyon that was originally tried by [Nalle Hukkataival],” said Webb at the time via Instagram. “Initially, I could not do a single move. But over the course of 11 days, with many moments of frustration, I found myself on top of what could be the hardest boulder in the country.”
Daniel Woods made the second ascent roughly one month after Webb’s FA. Hukataival made the third ascent a month after Woods. It’s gone on to see repeats by many of bouldering’s best, including Drew Ruana, Matt Fultz, Ryuichi Murai, Zach Galla, Noah Wheeler, and Will Bosi, among many others. In 2021, Woods opened the sit start version of the line, Return of the Sleepwalker V17.
The original grade of Sleepwalker was V16. While some repeaters have agreed with this assessment, several have suggested V15, including Schalck. In 2023, Zander Waller repeated the climb and suggested V15. Waller is quite tall and fond alternate beta, making the crux considerably easier. Other climbers who suggested V15 for the problem include Bosi, Adam Shahar, and Eli Perry. Luke Gerhardt and Toru Nakajima called it V15/16.
“After a few weeks in the desert, finding my rhythm and my flow on some rocks in the middle of a cold canyon, I managed to find myself on top of a pretty nice piece of rock,” said Schalck after his Sleepwalker ascent on Instagram. “A piece of rock I’ve always wanted to climb. I definitely learned new things about my climbing, and how my strategy and my mindset can literally change everything about the outcome of a project. Psyched to see where all of this is going to bring me, and how far I can get.”
Sleepwalker was Schalck’s fourth V15. In November, he ticked Defying Gravity, a Woods line in Colorado. In August, he ticked La Force Tranquille in Magic Wood, and back in November 2024, he topped The Big Island in Fontainebleau. He has sent many V14s and has even flashed the grade once, with his first-go ascent of Casavino in Brione. The flash came in late October 2025.
Other V14s that Schalck has ascended include Mystic Stylez and Practice of the Wild in Magic Wood, both climbed in July of this year. Schalck also repeated the world’s first deep water solo graded 5.15a, Chris Sharma’s Es Pontas in Mallorca. But the 21-year-old, from Chambery, France, is perhaps best known for his comp climbing. He won one gold and two silvers in the 2025 Boulder World Cup.
