Connor Herson Sends Meltdown 5.14c in Yosemite

We talk with Herson to learn more about his fourth repeat of Beth Rodden's iconic thin crack line

Photo by: Nelson Klein

Aaron Pardy November 27, 2023

Connor Herson, 20, recently repeated one of the world’s most difficult trad climbs – Meltdown 5.14c in Yosemite’s Cascade Creek. First established by Beth Rodden on Valentines Day in 2008, Meltdown went unrepeated for over 10 years until Carlo Travesi made the second ascent in 2018. Jacopo Larcher made the third ascent last year, and Babsi Zangerl made the fourth in late October. Herson’s ascent is the fifth.

Over the past five months, Connor Herson has been on a tear through many of North America’s hardest cracks. Over the summer, he had perhaps the most successful trip anyone has ever had to Squamish. Over a period of a few short weeks, he sent the legendary Cobra Crack 5.14b, Didier Berthod’s new Crack of Destiny 5.14b, Jesse Huey’s Stélmexw 5.13+, and Hazel Findlay’s spicy stem-corner testpiece, Tainted Love 5.13+. After leaving Squamish, Herson went on to repeat Ethan Pringle’s Blackbeard’s Tears 5.14 in northern California. He then made the first free ascent of Hairline, a 13-pitch 5.13+ up Mount Whitney.

“This one meant a lot,” said Herson about Meltdown on Instagram. “The most sessions I’ve spent on a gear-protected pitch, the most uncertain I’ve been about whether a route is possible for me, the most I’ve learned on a route—the list goes on. The crux boulder felt harder than any boulder I’ve done on the ground. Finally, on Thanksgiving Day, I was able to just barely string the whole thing together!

“So much respect to Beth Rodden for her vision and determination on this one. Her ascent of Meltdown was so far ahead of its time. [In my opinion] one of the greatest achievements in climbing!”

To learn more about the fifth ascent of Meltdown, I reached out to Herson. You can read our short interview below.

When did you first try Meltdown? I first tried Meltdown over Thanksgiving break last year with Babsi and Jacopo. I only put in a few sessions and wasn’t very close, but I got to watch Jacopo send and got very inspired! This fall I started trying it seriously.

How many sessions did you spend on the route? I think 13ish sessions this year? Plus another 3-4 last year?

How does Meltdown compare to other hard cracks you’ve climbed recently? Meltdown felt much, much harder than any other crack I did this year. The crux is just a level above any other crack I’ve done.

Others have said the crux is around V12. Do you agree with that? It’s hard to grade such a technical boulder, but V12 seems about right! I’ve heard everything from V11-V13, so V12 seems like a fair compromise.

What was the most difficult aspect of projecting Meltdown? Was it mental? Was it physical? Trying it on weekends in between school started to get pretty draining, physically and mentally. The late nights of homework during the week to free up enough time for weekend valley trips, the late drives fighting traffic Friday night, the schoolwork always on my mind, and the rushed return to the bay Sunday night added up. Eventually I was even making reverse progress on the route!

The footholds look wildly terrible. Which shoes did you use on the redpoint? I wore a left [La Sportiva] Katana and a right [La Sportiva] Solution. The Katana was for the crux shallow, flared foot jam, and it felt better than any other shoe I tried. The Solution is my go-to shoe, so it felt most comfortable on the absolutely horrible footholds simply because it’s most familiar.