Pete Whittaker gets third ascent of Stranger than Friction (5.14b), Utah
- Saturday 25th November 2023
WideBoyz Pete Whittaker, has nabbed the third ascent of Stranger than Friction (5.14b) in Utah.
Said to one of the most difficult pure crack climbing in the US, Mason Earle famously climbed the crucial ‘thin crack’ section of Stranger than Friction without a right foot climbing shoe opting instead to tape his toes so that would better fit the thin crack. Having projected the route for four year Sabourin adopted Earle’s right foot antics for his second ascent which he made earlier this month.
Reporting his ascent on Instagram, Whittaker overviews his interest and approach to Stranger than Friction saying it had always been on his and Tom Randall’s radar. Pete was worried however he wouldn’t be able to fit his fingers/hands in the cracks, ‘[I] worried I wouldn't be able to fit my meat mitts in the jams. Turns out I can (but only just in some cases as going crack and tape gloveless was the only option at the beginning) 👐😅’
Sporting what he admitted was a ‘terrible Movember tache’, Pete’s first redpoint attempt on Day 6 saw him get to the last crux before falling. However, having ripped a big flapper on one of the lower moves when his feet slipped off Pete was forced to temporarily suspend his redpoint attempts until his skin had healed. Once he had recovered however, Pete returned and making no mistakes this time he made the third ascent.
Located in Bartlett Wash, Utah Stranger than Friction is a 110-foot long crack-line. It includes a range of crack sizes which in turn necessitates a full quiver of crack climbing – something which Pete has in spades. As well as boulder sections the route also requires top-drawer endurance capability.
Unlike both Earle and Sabourin, Pete kept both his climbing shoes firmly on. Recognising the limited number of ascents the route has had, Pete added his thoughts on the climbing and the grade of Stranger than Friction to his Instagram page.
‘As it’s not had many ascents I’ll give my thoughts on the grade to add to the general consensus over time. For me it felt tough F8c (5.14b), harder than Cobra [Crack], easier than Recovery [Drink]. With pure cracks like this hand and finger size does always play a part though. This crack does take in a range of bad sizes so the cruxes are likely to be slightly different for everyone.’
Pete’s ascent of Stranger than Friction comes in a storming year of crack climbing in which he has made the first ascents of Eigerdosis (F8c/5.14b) and Crown Royale (F9a/5.14d) at the Profile Wall in Jøssingfjord, Norway after which he repeated Tom Randall’s Pura Pura (F8c/5.14b) in Orco, Italy.
Watch Pete on his first redpoint attempt on Stranger than Friction in the WideBoyz video below…