Seb Bouin Climbing a New 5.15b in France
A new short film featuring the first ascent of Ariégeois Cœur Loyal has been released
Earlier this year, accomplished 5.15 climber Seb Bouin made the first ascent of one of his longest standing projects at Pic Saint Loup, France, naming it Ariégeois Cœur Loyal (ACL for short), coming in at the grade of 5.15b. A new video featuring the climb was just released.
“I am happy to send this mega line in my home crag Pic Saint Loup,” Bouin said. “After falling once in this last hard move, I could finally control it in the send last Friday. The move is not hard, but somehow it was hard to stick the left hand in the send. I bolted this route five years ago when my grandpa passed away. His wood worker name was Ariégeois Cœur Loyal (Loyal ariégeois heart).”
ACL was one of several impressive climbs by Bouin in 2023, with others including Lapsus 5.15b, Bibliographie 5.15c, 5.14c flash FA, and Move Hard 5.15b. In 2022, Bouin climbed Change 5.15c, and made the first ascents of DNA 5.15d, Nordic Marathon 5.15b/c and Suprême Jumbo Love 5.15c. Before 2022, Bouin had made first ascents of several hard routes, many of which are yet to be repeated, including La Rage d’Adam 5.15b/c, Beyond 5.15b/c and La Cote d’Usure 5.15a.
“I was close to send it last Autumn, falling on the penultimate move, just before my Jumbo Love trip,” Bouin said about ACL. “This spring was a great opportunity to finish the job. This route is a huge effort, combining two hard 20-metre sections. About the grade, 9b (5.15b) should be appropriate.”
ACL 5.15b FA
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