La Grande Onda - Big Wave for Rolando Larcher

On September 14, 2002 Rolando Larcher makes the first free ascent of La Grande Onda-Big Wave. Michele Paissan and Maurizio “Manolo” Zanolla have also authored the project, discovered and realized in the summer of that year.

Rolando writes: “The old virus never dies, may be it dozes off and remains latent for years, but then, all of the sudden, it reappears and….”. It isn’t difficult to imagine which kind of virus he is speaking about, particularly if we think about routes like the wonderful Hotel Supramonte, established by Larcher, together with Vigiani, in the Gole di Gorropu in Sardinia. Rolando tells us the story of La Grande Onda - Big Wave, on the Pale di San Martino.

LA GRANDE ONDA - BIG WAVE

It has been since the Eighties that I didn’t experience such an alpine summer. New ascents in traditional style, repeats of more or less classic trad routes, and also a few solo ascents. The old virus never dies, may be it dozes off and remains latent for years, but then, all of the sudden, it reappears and it is hard to restrain it. Vaccines don’t exist, only a big dose of talus, to be climbed with overloaded backpacks, and the addition of a few nice thunderstorms, can mitigate the suffering from this illness for the ones who have got it. But all these efforts haven’t taken away that minimum of lucidity necessary to discover a new route, to equip it in my usual style with the electric drill, on the awesome Torre Sprit, in the Pale di San Martino.

After finding Michele Paissan, an ideal partner, willing to learn and enthusiast to make new experiences, I started the action, the best therapy. I had underestimated a little the Torre Sprit, regarding both the length and the commitment. I had estimated it to be 350 meters high, but the height of the surrounding walls had deceived me, because the length of the route at the end has reached 500 meters. The difficulties were also continuous and sustained all the way up. After four strenuous days we have reached the summit, with the effective help of Michele, who was making his first experience of setting a route, but was all the same very brave and cold in the moments of higher tension. On the last day, when we have reached the top, Manolo, who was curious of discovering the secrets of this style, has come with us, helping us friendly; he was impressed and fascinated by the beauty of the tower and the route.
He was returning to that summit after 24 years, it was in fact 1978, as he established a new route on the right of ours. He will surely go back again soon, enthusiast to have this beautiful modern route in his back yard; for sure he is going to make the first repeat of it.
After having equipped the itinerary, to complete the procedure as usual, we still had to redpoint the route. We tried it once, but we reached fully scared only the fifth pitch: after the nightly thunderstorm, and two others during the climb, the run-outs were totally wet. Unfortunately there weren’t alternatives, we had to rehearse all the moves to remember them and come back another time. Now we had clear intentions. To free the route we needed first of all good weather, then a single rope instead of twin ropes (to reduce rope drag), 15 days of sport climbing to recover some strength and at last, the usual dose of luck. September 14 is the decisive day, surely cool and still a little fog that clears when we reach the 5th pitch, the key one. I felt like a robot. I climbed up without ever having to climb down. Climb-clip-climb! Neither insecurity, nor indecision. Everything seemed easy to me.
I felt like I could hold anything, and I couldn’t get pumped: a state of enlightenment, that I didn’t understand if it came from my training or my mental determination. In this situation I reached also the key length, almost 60 meters of overhanging wall, with a hard and precarious section after 50 meters of 7c. I thought that it would average 8a+ and that I would have to try it a few times, but that day it was another story and I freed it straight away, clipping the quickdraws. I rejoice with Michele: the route is practically done. There are still 5 pitches to the top, but they are only a pleasant formality. We decide to call it La Grande Onda-Big Wave, because the face is split by a big glacial feature that, both from far away and while climbing, reminds of a wave.
Ten pitches with 500 meters effective length, maximum difficulty 8a and a mandatory 7b section. Speaking about the mandatory section, I would define it a “new age” 7b… The difference is not the absolute difficulty, but the fact that, after the hard section, on my previous routes, you could clip and comfortably continue. Here, instead, you must continue, calm and quiet, a few more meters.

It is surely a nasty collateral effect of that damned and incurable virus that haunts me!

Rolando Larcher