Seb Bouin completes first ascent Les yeux plus gros que l'antre (F9a+/9b)
- Wednesday 4th April 2018
April 4th; 2018
Seb Bouin has reported the first ascent of Les yeux plus gros que l'antre (F9a+/9b), a line colloquially known as ‘The French Chilam Balam’.
Seb Bouin on Les yeux plus gros que l'antre. Photo Raphaël Fourau
As we reported previously, last year Seb was working towards the second ascent of Adam Ondra’s The Move (F9b/9b+) in the Hallshallen cave at Flatanger. Les yeux plus gros que l'antre, like The Move and Chilam Balam which he has also repeated, involves long hard climbing. Having been ‘rained-off’ in Spain, Seb switched his attention back to Russan, France where he’s successfully redpointed Les yeux plus gros que l'antre yesterday April 3rd.
The final section of Seb’s route – dubbed Les yeux plus gros que le ventre (Eyes bigger than the belly) was first bolted more than 20 years ago. However, Seb was keen to do the route from the very back of the cave to give a monster route.
Seb believes that Les yeux plus gros que l'antre – literally Eyes bigger than the Cave – is one of the best routes in his home country; “This route is one of the best in France for me, it is 70 metres long and there are amazing boulders problems on the top.”
Seb describes the route in detail; “The first roof part is around 20-25 metres. After you reach a good rest and you can change your rope.
Then you have a bouldery crux on one finger pocket to reach another rest. Until here it could be 8c route.
Then there is one resistant 9a to do. This 9a part is starting with big tufas, and after there is 7a boulder + 7a boulder + 7c+/8a boulder + 7b boulder.
All these boulders problems are amazing. Especially the redpoint of the route in the 7c+/8a boulder. There are incredible moves to finish on a tufa dyno. I fell 4 times on this dyno. Luckily, I didn't fell in the last crimpy boulder.”
Like many who climb new routes Seb is a little uncertain about the absolute difficulty - hence the F9a+/9b grade. Seb again; “If I compare this route with other I did or try, I can propose 9a+/b. I think it's harder than Chilam Balam (9a+/9b) and Pachamama (hard 9a+, proposed 9a+/9b by Patxi Usobiaga).”
Given the grade, Seb believes that Les yeux plu gros que l'antre is now France’s 4th hardest route after CRS, Eagle 4, and Akira – all of which are F9b.
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