When Sarah Hueniken stood at the base of The Mustang P-51, a 60-metre mixed rock and ice route rated the testpiece grade of M14, she felt she had the strength and skills to climb it. But, when climbing such a route – which in this case, is essentially two M13 routes, Stratofortress and Lightning combined – the climb isn’t over until the top anchor.
And in reaching the top without falling off, Hueniken became just the fourth person to climb the route, and the first North American woman to climb M14.
“I was happy,” Hueniken said. “It was a personal goal of mine, and its always nice to see those through. I have been climbing a fair amount this fall and felt like I was strong enough to do the route, but you never really know until you get on it.”
In a jam-packed weekend, Hueniken had travelled to Colorado with her partner, Will Gadd, first to Colorado Springs where they each taught clinics, gave presentations and came out on top to win the men’s and women’s competitions at the City Rock Night Ice Comp.
Making the three-hour drive up to Vail while feeling tired and sick with flu and fever, Hueniken opted to take a day off from climbing to belay Gadd on his effort to climb The Mustang P-51. Gadd sent the route on his second try, an impressive accomplishment for the 48-year-old professional adventurer who remains very much at the top of his game.
Having visited Vail last year, when she climbed Stratofortress and separately nearly completed Lightning but was hesitant to climb past the last bolt due to a lack of ice, Hueniken had some familiarity with the route’s characteristics. The day after Gadd’s Dec. 6 ascent, after a 12-hour sleep, she was motivated to seize her chance.
“The route is a challenge for sure,” she said. “It requires endurance and a strong desire to hold on, on some not-so-great holds. It’s a cool line, as it involves a bit of mixed at the start, about 20 metres of ice, then a long 40-metre roof traverse, ending on some more ice.
“In terms of a mixed line, it is quite esthetic. There are no really challenging moves on the route, but the length of it makes it a challenge. I had the advantage of being on Stratofortress and Lightning last year, so this year I took one try to relearn all the moves, and then two redpoint burns to send it.”
The conditions were great, she said, and as an added bonus, in contrast to Gadd’s ascent the previous day – a Sunday – when The Fang Amphitheatre, where the route is located, was busy with other climbers, on the day of her ascent they had the place to themselves. It was after she completed the traverse section that Hueniken felt confident she had the strength to hang on and finish the climb.
While Gadd had chosen to celebrate his success by jumping from the top – on the rope – repeating the leap of the second person to climb the route, Hueniken opted for a more traditional lowering and down-climbing descent.
“I regret (that choice) now a bit, but I’m really not a huge fan of taking whippers,” she said with a laugh.
An ACMG alpine guide, at 41 her accomplishment comes on the heels of being the first North American woman to climb M11, M12 and M13, progressively accomplished over previous seasons. Aiming for the next challenge, she and Gadd are currently building some even more difficult routes in the Rockies, closer to their Canmore home.
But first, Hueniken roped up for the Bozeman, Montana Ice Festival on Dec. 11-12, the first UIAA Ice Climbing World Cup event of the 2015/16 season, where, despite still feeling under the weather, she won the women’s title at the North American Championships. While she didn’t make the finals, watching the Russian climbers win the world cup competition was inspiring.
“I was excited to see old friends and get to play amongst the best of the best,” she said. “It was amazing to watch the finals, and cool to watch the athleticism and dedication of these athletes. I didn’t have great expectations, but I was hopeful to maybe get into the finals and try to get to the top of as many routes as I could.
“It’s a competition, but the only thing you can control is how well you climb, and so my ultimate goal was to just stay focused and try to get to the next hold as many times as I could.”
Now with the City Rock win, the Bozeman competition and the M14 personal goal behind her, Hueniken said she was thankful for Gadd’s keenness to make the trip to Vail, and for the support of her sponsors that enable her to travel.
“I really feel inspired,” she said. “It’s been a great week, I’m very fortunate to have the opportunities I have and get to climb in cool places with like-minded people. I think I’m ready for family time and Christmas cookies now.”
