BURSTOn June 13, Ethan Salvo made the second ascent of Event Horizon V16 (8C+) in Squamish. With the ascent, he became the first Canadian climber in history to climb the grade of V16. Making this send even more impressive is the fact that, three days earlier, Salvo redpointed the iconic Dreamcatcher 5.14d, his hardest sport line to date.
Salvo has spent countless days in The Room over the past few years, projecting (and completing) Room Service Low V14, The Singularity V15, Dreamcatcher 5.14d, and Event Horizon V16. Topping Event Horizon was a bittersweet and complex experience for Salvo. He completed his mega-project, but also closed his chapter of climbing in The Room, a place that became like a second home to him in Squamish since moving to the town in 2022.
“When [I topped Event Horizon], I was like, ‘Damn, it’s over'”, said Salvo in an interview with Gripped last month. “Over the past few weeks I’ve spent a lot of time walking [into The Room] alone and just staring at the boulder. I’ve gone back trying to find the feeling of excitement you get when you do your project. It’s a feeling I see from friends that probably have a slightly different relationship to climbing than me – where the end result is everything.
“Event Horizon really closed a chapter in The Room for me, and I think it was especially hard for me to process after doing Dreamcatcher three days earlier. I just went from having two really big projects in here to now having nothing. My dream lines are now just memories of the past. They’re really good ones. I’ve tried to find the emotions that other people have for me when I talk about the ascents. I’m excited, but I’m excited because now I’ve proved to myself that I’ve become the climber that I’ve always wanted to become. I’ve gotten to the step that I set for myself that was supposed to be a really big step and now three years later here I am.”
Located in The Room in the Grand Wall boulders, Event Horizon was opened by Andy Lamb in winter 2024. At V16, the line is the first of the grade in Canada and currently the hardest bloc in the country. The problem is a lower start to Room Service Low V14. Beginning in a squatted position at the very bottom of the feature, Event Horizon adds around eight hand moves into the stand-start of Room Service Low, which then connects into Room Service V12. Sean McColl made the first ascent of Room Service V12 in 2011, a problem which begins high up on the prow using stacked pads. Nalle Hukkataival opened the Low in 2018, using a more logical stand-start position midway up the feature.
Dreamcatcher doesn’t need much introduction. Also located the The Room, the famous line towers above Event Horizon and The Singularity V15 down below. The route was freed by Chris Sharma back in 2007. Canadian Sean McColl made the second ascent, Squamish local Ben Harnden made the third, and Alex Megos the fourth on only his third attempt. Since then it has seen repeats by several top climbers including Jimmy Webb, Paige Claassen, Michaela Kiersch, Lucas Uchida, and Mejdi Schalck, among others.
Salvo, 22, is one of Canada’s top climbers. He’s repeated many of Squamish’s hardest problems including The Singularity V15, Seven V14/15, North Ridge V14, Room Service Low V14, and Fool Me Once V14, just to name a few. He’s also put up some of the town’s hardest lines like IMAX V15, The Youngster’s Roof V15, Zazen V14/15, Sword in the Stone V14, and 1-Up V14. Previously known only for his bouldering, last summer Salvo broke into the world of hard trad, sending the iconic Cobra Crack 5.14b.
To learn more about Salvo’s ascents of Event Horizon and Dreamcatcher check up his write-up about his experience here. Also stay tuned for a full-length interview with Salvo about this historic moment in Canadian climbing in the upcoming print issue of Gripped Magazine.
Andy Lamb’s FA of Event Horizon V16
Michaela Kiersch sends Dreamcatcher 5.14d
The post Ethan Salvo Is the First Canadian to Climb V16 appeared first on Gripped Magazine.