The World’s First V12 is 50 Years Old
Jim Holloway made the first ascent in 1975, but it went ungraded for 32 years
In 1975, Jim Holloway made the first ascent of Trice in Flagstaff, Colorado, leaving it ungraded. The boulder remained unrepeated and ungraded until 2007, when it was climbed again and assigned V12.
Born in 1954, Holloway began climbing at 16. Prior to Trice, he established Meathook at Horsetooth Reservoir, likely the world’s first V11, after 20 days of effort. Among the earliest climbers to train finger strength on wooden rungs at home, Holloway set a new standard for the sport.
American climber and filmmaker Pat Ament was quoted on 8a.nu as saying: “Calm, clear, caring, and unselfish, the six-foot-six Jim Holloway climbed for personal joy, not to diminish others. Critics once claimed his long reach trivialized difficulties, but his graceful style was unmatched. He climbed for pure reasons: creativity, camaraderie, solitude, and the beauty of the moment.”
Trice saw no second ascent for 32 years until Carlo Traversi’s breakthrough in 2007. Since then, climbers like Nina Williams, Brooke Raboutou, Natalia Grossman, Zach Galla, Colin Duffy, and Paige Claassen have followed. Claassen remarked, “It’s special to complete a boulder that once made headlines and now blends into the Front Range’s tough classics. Historic climbs always spark extra motivation for me.”
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