Will Bosi Sends Sleepwalker, Calls it V15
Originally graded V16, the problem has seen a surprising number of ascents in recent months
Yesterday, Will Bosi repeated Sleepwalker in Red Rock, Nevada. Established by Jimmy Webb in December 2018, Sleepwalker has since become one of the most repeated V16s in the world, seeing ascents from Daniel Woods, Nalle Hukkataival, Drew Ruana, Matt Fultz, Ryuichi Murai, and many others. Bosi sent the problem on only his third day of effort and is now going to begin working on the sit start version of the problem, Return of the Sleepwalker V17.
Sleepwalker has seen a surprising number of sends over the past few months. Zander Waller ticked the line in October, 17-year-old Kai Whaley topped it in November, and Zach Galla sent in December. Both Andy Lamb and Noah Wheeler completed the problem earlier this month.
There is some debate about Sleepwalker’s grade. While most climbers have suggested V16 for the climb, Zander Waller – who has quite a large wingspan – said V15 is a more appropriate grade with his beta. “The beta I used is much easier than previous betas, and I don’t think that it can possibly warrant a V16 grade,” said Waller via Instagram after his October 2023 ascent. “Admittedly, I have almost no experience on difficult boulders, but for me to skip V14 and V15 and then do a V16 in less than four sessions seems outlandish. I’d love for other people my size to try my beta and see what they think; for now, I am confident that the boulder is V15, potentially even low-end. Regardless, Sleepwalker is an amazing climb and I’m grateful for the opportunity to try it.”
Unlike Waller, Bosi used the standard beta for the crux. And with this standard beta, he still thought the problem felt more V15 than V16. After his early January ascent, Noah Wheeler called the problem a soft V16 or a V15/16.
Bosi is one of the best boulderers in the world. He has two V17s to his name, Shawn Raboutou’s Alphane and Nalle Hukkataival’s Burden of Dreams. He’s also sent two V16s: a first ascent of Honey Badger in the Peak District and a repeat of Ephyra in Chironico. He’s climbed many V15s, including four last year – Nova, Ultra Instinct, Isles of Wonder Sit, and Wild South.
Jimmy Webb’s FA of Sleepwalker
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