Joe Kinder Adds A New 5.14c To The Red River Gorge
25. Nov, 2008 
11 Comments
Photo:
Joe Kinder/Spencer Victory
It’s only fair that after giving him a hard time this summer after the FA of Girl Talk (5.14c) in Rifle, CO that I give Joe Kinder some props. You’ll remember that there was some controversy over how he and Dave Graham went about climbing what may or may not have been a closed Andy Raether poject.
Leaving no room for debate this time, Kinder bolted himself a new project in the Red River Gorge and yesterday he did the FA of Southern Smoke. For this new link-up, Kinder has proposed a grade of 5.14c. If you’re keeping track at home, Southern Smoke is the RRG’s 3rd 5.14c after Mike Doyle’s Lucifer and Michael Fuselier’s Fifty Words For Pump.
Southern Smoke adds a direct start into the crux of Ultra-perm, a classic 5.13d at Bob Marley. Kinder had this to say about the route shortly after he bolted it:
The nature of the route is SIMPLE and PURELY stamina/resistance. There is one shake spot on some getto holds after you have climbed something in the 13d/14a range. After this the real crux comes that surely checks in around 13c/d to the top.
Southern Smoke follows the line denoted with the tag “New Joint”
After 6 days of working the route with the relatively unknown (but very strong) Brad Weaver, Kinder pulled out the send:
Next try, I killed to the top, everything felt a little harder, but just went with it. I lined up for the last holds and was 1% less pumped…no joke. I shot my hand up with ALL the strength I had left and stuck…Grabbed the jug and SCREAMED!!!! SOOOOOO PSYCHED!!!!!
Joe Kinder on Southern Smoke (5.14c)
Photo: Joe Kinder / Spencer Victory
Photo: Joe Kinder / Spencer Victory
It looks like Kinder has been bolting other routes as well so it should be interesting to see what he is able to get done before he leaves the Red.
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Climbers: Joe Kinder
Areas: Red River Gorge
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looks like a pretty dope link into what is supposed to be an ultra classic anyway so= ultra ultra classikk?
I prefer super-mega-ultra-hyperclassic
I don’t really have any opinion on this one way or another but perhaps JK can comment on this if he would like.
It is my understanding that the local bolting ethic at the Red is that link-ups are generally not bolted. However visiting climbers have added a select number of direct start type link-ups in recent years that seem to be of very high quality with which I find it hard for anyone to argue with.
I was hoping this would be no link up at all, but when I started bolting the holds went one direction….into the crux of Ultra Perm. It’s hard to call it a direct start as the “direct-ness” is 60 feet. It’s the proper hard way to climb the wall…I urge anyone interested in trying to go for it…it’s very high quality and challenging.
Thanks for the write up Narc.
Makes sense. Very cool to see more hard routes getting done at the Red!
I linked ya.
Thanks Joe
Also, does this mean we can be friends on The Facebook again or are we still on a break??
Looks sick, always wondered why Ultra Perm started on that side wall. Now I know! Too hard!