BURSTSimon Lorenzi recently flashed The Swarm V13/14 (8B/+) in the Buttermilks, California. The line is an all-time Buttermilks classic. A flash of the problem has remained a unclaimed prize in bouldering until Lorenzi’s recent first-go ascent. In September last year, Lorenzi flashed his first V14, Compass North in Val de Bagnes, Switzerland
The Swarm was first established in 2004 by Matt Birch. The bloc was originally considered V14 but many subsequent ascensionists have instead suggested hard V13. The problem has been sent by a who’s who of top climbers, including Dave Graham, Fred Nicole, Daniel Woods, Kevin Jorgeson, Paul Robinson, Ashima Shiraishi, Alex Puccio, and Katie Lamb, among many others.
“What a perfect boulder in such a beautiful place,” said Lorenzi on Instagram about his The Swarm flash. “Great day outside with [Jules Marchaland] and [Arnould t’Kint], perfect crew to find the good flo. Sadly, just a few more days left here. I can’t wait to come back already!”
Lorenzi is one of the best boulderers in the world. He has sent five V17 problems. He’s currently tied with Will Bosi for the most V17 ascents. In February 2021, he made the first ascent of Soudain Seul V17, his first of the grade, spending over 25 sessions projecting the bloc. Nico Pelorson claimed the second ascent, instead suggested a grade of V16. The problem was then repeated again by Camille Coudert, who felt soft V17 was correct, as did Adam Ondra after his recent ascent of the Fontainebleau bloc.
Lorenzi’s second V17 was Shawn Raboutou’s Alphane, which he topped in December 2022. A little over a year later, he completed Burden of Dreams V17. In March 2025, he sent Woods’ Return of the Sleepwalker V17 and just last month, he topped Shaolin V17. He has sent many other hard boulder problems including the legendary Off the Wagon Low V16 in Switzerland and Big Conviction V16 and La Révolutionnaire Assis V16 in Fontainebleau. On top of all of his outdoor bouldering sends, Lorenzi is an accomplished comp climber, winning gold at the Boulder World Cup in Brixen in 2022.
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