BURSTIt was announced on Instagram that on Nov. 9, Mary Eden repeated the famous desert roof line Century Crack 5.14b. Her ascent is the fifth of the 120-foot (40 m) horizontal crack carved into the White Rim Sandstone of Canyonlands National Park. The route demands exceptional offwidth technique and endurance.
Since its discovery and first aid ascent by Steve Bartlett in 2001, when he dubbed it “Chocolate Starfish,” Century Crack has represented one of the ultimate limits of offwidth climbing. In 2011, Pete Whittaker and Tom Randall, the “Wide Boyz,” completed the first free ascent. In preparation, Randall built a full-scale replica of the crack in his cellar, allowing the pair to rehearse its contortions and endurance demands through thousands of hours of specialised practice. Their eventual success, first with pre-placed gear and later while placing protection on lead, set a benchmark that only a few climbers have matched. Free ascents remain rare, with Danny Parker joining the list in 2018 and Fumiya Nakamura in 2023.
Century Crack is notorious for its sequence of technical challenges. It begins with an 85-foot horizontal roof crack, forcing climbers to hang upside-down while employing every form of jam, from simple hand jams in the opening section to painful hand-fist stacks and full-body offwidth techniques as the crack widens. The crux comes where the crack pivots, requiring a precise, powerful flip from inverted to upright. The final stretch is a psychological battle after an already draining effort.
Eden’s success on this iconic line places her firmly within a legacy defined by grit and devotion to offwidth climbing. Her ascent reaffirms Century Crack’s status as a route that continues to inspire. Follow her on Instagram for more updates, and check out footage of the first ascent below.
Century Crack FA
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