Noah Wheeler Flashes His First V14
The 23-year-old American sent Zach Galla's Brass Knuckles V14 in a single attempt
On the final day of 2025, Noah Wheeler flashed Brass Knuckles V14 (8B+) in Dayton Pocket, Tennessee. Found on the picturesque Riverdance Boulder, the line was opened by Zach Galla in 2019. It’s since seen a few repeats, including from Nathan Williams, Ben Burkhalter, and Paul Robinson, among others.
Wheeler has flashed five V13s in the past, but this was his first V14 flash. In March 2022, he flashed the popular Slasher V13 in Joe’s Valley, Utah. In July 2023, he flashed two V13s while on a bouldering trip to Rocklands: Sky and The Guest List. At the beginning of 2025, he flashed two more of the grade in Hueco Tanks on back-to-back days: Crown of Aragon and Slashface.
“Psyched to have done this board-style [Zach Galla] rig first try!” said Wheeler on Instagram after his flash. “Based on what I had heard and seen about the boulder (its basically a steep Tensionboard climb), I suspected I had a good chance at flashing this one. Despite only being in Tennessee for one real climbing day, I was lucky to get great weather. Combined with some more intentional preparation, the climb ended up feeling as though I had a lot of margin.”
Wheeler is one of the top climbers in the United States. He has sent two V17s, one V16, and one V15/16. His first V17 came at the very end of 2024, with the third ascent of Daniel Woods’ Return of the Sleepwalker in Red Rock. A little over two months later, in early March 2025, he made the second ascent of Sean Bailey’s Shaolin V17, also in Red Rock. Over a period of three days in July in Cascade, Idaho, Wheeler topped three V15s that were originally established last summer by Matt Fultz: The Final Empire, The Hero of Ages, and Death’s End.
