Chris Sharma

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Chris Omprakash Sharma (born April 23, 1981 in Santa Cruz - California) is an elite American professional rock climber, with many difficult and famous first ascents. He is one of the most recognizable faces in rock climbing popular culture.

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[edit] Climbing history

Raised in Santa Cruz, California, Chris Sharma started climbing at the age of 12, and it soon became apparent that he possessed an exceptional natural talent. At 14 he won the Sport Climbing Nationals and in the following year he climbed his first route of the grade 5.14c (Necessary Evil). By the age of 15 he had climbed most of the hardest routes in America and placed second in the World Cup.

In July 2001, Sharma completed his long-term project Realization, in Ceüse, France. It is considered by some to be the first consensus 5.15a/9a+ (although other climbs had claimed this level of difficulty). The route is also known as Biographie, the name given by Jean-Christophe Lafaille, who first bolted the route in 1989. Later on, considering the route too difficult to be climbed as one pitch, Arnaud Petit bolted an intermediate belay station approximately half way from the top. In the United States, the use of "Realization" usually refers to the full route and extension of the shorter (and easier) "Biographie." There is also some controversy as to whether or not it was actually the first 5.15a to be climbed, as two other routes already held higher grades at the time of Realization's first ascent. These routes were somewhat controversial, however, and were graded by their first ascensionists, and are still awaiting repeats (Chris Sharma prefers not to grade routes and did not grade Realization).

Sharma won the Bouldering World-Cup in Munich in 2001 but it was recalled after he tested positive for THC.

In September, 2006, Sharma completed his most difficult project since Realization, a deep-water solo beneath a 65-foot arch-shaped rock islet called Es Pontas, off the coast of Mallorca, Spain. The crux of the route features a difficult dynamic move, leaping from one set of holds to the next while 35 feet above the water, which apparently took Sharma 100 or more attempts to successfully complete. The route tentatively holds the same name as the islet. It is not yet graded, though the popular climbing website www.8a.nu has suggested 9b. This estimate is based on the amount of time taken by Sharma on previous projects.

Other famous ascents include The Mandala, a boulder problem in Bishop, California, Witness the Fitness in Northwestern Arkansas, and the third ascent of a sport route in Spain called La Rambla (Original).

In January 2008, at the age of 26, he won the US Sport Climbing Nationals again, but then, somewhat surprisingly to some, lost the 2008 ABS national bouldering competition to fellow American Paul Robinson.

[edit] Climbing style

Sharma is known for his spiritual nature and climbing philosophy as expounded in a journal commissioned by Climbing Magazine in 2003. He often uses visualization and meditation techniques before attempting especially difficult routes or boulder problems, and becomes very personally invested in projects, sometimes attempting them for weeks or months before attaining the ascent (see Realization and Es Pontas).

Sharma prefers dynamic, "acrobatic" climbing with spread-out, well defined holds rather than delicate crimpers or cracks. He has a unique talent for using his momentum and grip strength to power through challenging moves, such as dynos and campus-like sloper sections, sometimes even skipping over difficult holds in the process. He excels at routes that require a combination of high strength, creative technique, and precise movement.

Aside from his world famous sport route Realization, Sharma is best known for his bouldering. He has more recently taken up deep-water soloing, which combines elements of both styles: the greater height of sport routes but without ropes or harnesses, using only the water below for protection. As he describes, "All the elements are there. The stone, the air when you're free-falling, the water and the fire inside." (Rock and Ice. 12/2006)

[edit] Notable ascents

  • Necessary Evil (5.14c, FA in 1997)
  • Dreamtime (8B+/V14). According to Dave Graham, only five climbers made natural ascents before it was chipped: Bernd Zangerl, Fred Nicole, Chris Sharma, Christian Core, and himself. Bernd Zangerl went back to the boulder after it was presumed chipped and he said himself that he didn't think that it was.[1]
  • Unendliche Geschichte (8B+, FA in 2003) aka The never ending story on the Bach bloc in Averstal, Switzerland. As of May 2007, this problem has been repeated by Julius Westphal (2003), Kilian Fischhuber (Aug 12, 2006), and Chris Webb Parsons (May 17, 2007).
  • Witness the Fitness (FA in March 2005) in The Ozarks, Arkansas. It is a roof boulder problem, like Esperanza (V14, Hueco Tanks, TX, FA by Fred Nicole). Sharma has repeated Esperanza and considers Witness to be a harder problem.
  • Dreamcatcher (FA on 23 September 2005). This sport route is on Cacodemon Rock near The Chief in Squamish, British Columbia. It was bolted by Sharma and Sonnie Trotter in the summer of 2005, just prior to the Petzl/Arc'Teryx RocTrip in Squamish. Sharma said the route is "probably 14c or 14d." [2] Ethan Pringle on his Climbing Pro Blog has also stated that the route "checks in around 5.14c/d."
  • Es Pontas (FA on 28 September 2006). A deep-water solo "Arch project" in Mallorca, Spain. The crux includes a seven-foot dyno about 35 feet above the water. There is a deep water solo route (Loskot & Two Smoking Barrels) in the film Dosage 2, which is being attempted by Klem Loskot and Tim Emmett. Sharma flashed that dyno, whereas this took him up to 100 attempts. This route could quite possibly be 5.15b/9b considering the amount of time it took Sharma to repeat La Rambla which is considered a benchmark 5.15a/9a+. In an interview where the website 8a.nu inquired whether this Mallorcan arch project might be 9b, Sharma stated that "it felt (physically) like 9a but you might be right with your suggestion...the anxiety before the dyno... we will see."
  • La Rambla (9a+/5.15a) Third ascent, December 1, 2006. Located in Siurana, Spain. The route was first climbed by Ramón Julián Puigblanque in 2003. The second ascent was by Edu Marin, one day before Sharma's ascent. Some controversy exists regarding the difficulty of this route as Ramón has stated that the repeaters actually used a sequence that was "off route". According to him, this variation would weigh in around 8c+/9a.
  • Three Degrees of Separation (9a/5.14d) First ascent, July 20, 2007. Located in Ceuse, France. The line lies a couple hundred feet to the right of Realization. The route has three dynos and the first one is the crux. Sharma has also bolted a new project to the left of Realization that he calls "futuristic but possible."

Movieclip of the route[3]

[edit] Filmography

Chris Sharma has also been featured in many rock climbing magazines and films, especially bigUP Production videos. The following films document the history and development of his climbing.

  • Masters of Stone IV; Pure Force (1998) - Sharma on Surf Safari and Übermensch
  • Free Hueco (1998, Big Up Productions) - bouldering in Hueco Tanks, Sharma on Slashface
  • Rampage (1999, Big Up Productions) - bouldering
  • Fast Twitch - Sharma on Necessary Evil and Just Do It
  • Inertia (2000)
  • Dosage Vol. 1 (2001, Big Up Productions) - Sharma on The Mandala and Realization
  • The Road (2003, MC Productions)
  • Pilgrimage (2003, Big Up Productions) - bouldering in Hampi, India
  • Dosage Vol. 2 (2004, Big Up Productions) - Sharma deep-water-soloing in Mallorca, Spain
  • Best of the West (2005, MC Productions) - bouldering in Hueco Tanks, Sharma on Esperanza
  • Dosage Vol. 3 (2005, Big Up Productions) - bouldering in The Ozarks, Arkansas, Sharma on Witness the Fitness
  • Big Game (2005, MC Productions) - sequel to Best of the West; bouldering in Castle Hill, New Zealand
  • Depth Charge (2006) - deep-water-soloing in Croatia
  • Dosage Vol. 4 (2006, Big Up Productions) - Sharma on Dreamcatcher, bouldering in Switzerland and at Hueco
  • King Lines (2007, Big Up Productions/Sender Films) - bouldering, deep-water-soloing, sport routes, and even a trad climb throughout the world. Sharma on Es Pontas, Three Degrees of Separation, and the Mount Clark project.
  • The Fanatic Search (March 2008)

[edit] External links


Known Sponsors: Petzl, Prana, Black Diamond, Evolv