Jon Cardwell Sends Joe Mama 5.15a in Oliana

Joe Cardwell has sent his fourth 5.15a with a tick of the classic Joe Mama in Oliana, Spain. Cardwell is currently touring around Europe with a strong group of climbers.

On Instagram, Cardwell posted, “So good to be back here again with a great group of friends. Arrived a couple weeks ago and decided I would try something different by climbing at many different crags instead of fixating on one zone. So far it has paid off a bit and I was able to finish a route I tried a bit last year a few days ago, Joe Mama 5.15a (9a+) in Oliana. A little bit of redemption, as it felt totally desperate last year in the wet spring. Having a great time and super excited to dive into more climbs before heading home soon.”

Joe Kinder bolted Joe Mama a few years ago and left it open after describing is as “pure power endurance with no clipping anything for the last third of the route.” In March 2016, Slovenian climber Klemen Bečan got the first ascent after three months of work and suggested 5.14d for the grade. Bečan projected it with Sharma and Kinder. Sharma got the second ascent a few months later and said, “Last week I managed to send Joe Mama at Oliana, a route that had challenged me a lot last season.” He upgraded the route to 5.15a.

So good to be back here again with a great group of friends. Arrived a couple weeks ago and decided I would try something different by climbing at many different crags instead of fixating on one zone. So far it has paid off a bit and I was able to finish a route I tried a bit last year a few days ago, ‘Joe Mama’ 5.15a (9a+) in Oliana. A little bit of redemption, as it felt totally desperate last year in the wet spring. Having a great time and super excited to dive into more climbs before heading home soon! Thanks to @williclimb for snapping this photo on the send, and the encouragement from everyone ?? @petzl_official @fiveten_official @frictionlabs @tensionclimbing @adidasterrex

A post shared by Jon Cardwell (@jon_cardwell) on Feb 26, 2019 at 3:34pm PST

First Ascent

Second Ascent