Ryan Sklenica Sends Cobra Crack 5.14- in Squamish
It adds to his growing list of impressive ticks, from hard boulders to powerful routes
Tasmanian rock climber Ryan Sklenica has been sending hard Squamish routes, from V12 to 5.14, on a consistent basis over the past year. His most recent redpoint was of the famous Cobra Crack 5.14. He’s the second Australian to send the steep finger crack, after Logan Barber in 2017.
After his send, he reported, “The best piece of stone in Squamish. Had the full whip experience after my foot picked on the last move two sessions before sending. I have no idea how hard It is since I can’t crack climb very well, but 5.14a/14b seems about right.” His other two 5.14b sends were at Horne Lake: Lady Chainsaw FA and A Stressful Day at the Office.
We touched base with Sklenica this winter, and he told us, “I didn’t really have any plans to start bouldering. I love bouldering, and I had plans to do some, but I didn’t realize how much I would ultimately do. In Squamish, it was just so easy to go out and boulder, everyone was so psyched. The bouldering community is super stoked in Squamish and I ended up bouldering way more than route climbing just because it was so accessible.” Read the full article here.
Sonnie Trotter made the first ascent of Cobra Crack in 2006 after around 40 goes over a number of years. The 30-metre splitter crack had been aided by Peter Croft in the 1980s and had been attempted by top climbers such as Didier Berthod.
In an interview with Gripped in 2006, Trotter said: “Cobra is 30 meters long, with the crux pulling over the lip around the two-thirds mark. It involves huge dynamic throws between one- and two-finger locks; pain is ever-present, and the mental crux is overlooking the pain move after move. The redpoint crux comes over the lip on a slippery side pull; the feet are next to nothing, and it takes momentum and a huge throw to latch the final edge, at which point you’re about 15 to 20 feet about your last piece of gear—it’s really exciting.”
Known Cobra Crack Sends
2006 – Sonnie Trotter (Canada)
2008 – Nicolas Favresse (Belgium)
2008 – Ethan Pringle (USA)
2008 – Matt Segal (USA)
2009 – Will Stanhope (Canada)
2009 – Yuji Hirayama (Japan)
2011 – Alex Honnold (USA)
2013 – Pete Whittaker (UK)
2013 – Tom Randall (UK)
2016 – Ben Harnden (Canada)
2017 – Mason Earle (USA)
2017 – Logan Barber (Australia)
2017 – Said Belhaj (Sweden)
2021 – Ryan Sklenica (Australia)
Cobra Crack FA
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