Johannes Hofherr fires 'Sprengstoff' (9a) at Lorüns in Austria

On Sunday I completed my longest and most meaningful climbing journey by clipping the chains of Sprengstoff (9a) at Lorüns in Austria’s Vorarlberg region. This pretty vertical, technical testpiece has a rich history—bolted by Beat Kammerlander before 2000, it remained an open project for over 20 years until Jacopo Larcher’s first ascent in 2020. Since then, only a handful of world-class climbers - Barbara Zangerl, Jakob Schubert, and Adam Ondra, have repeated it.

My own journey with Sprengstoff began in 2020 when it was still a project, but I only got serious about it three years ago. Balancing competition climbing and working on a route that is only climbable in winter made progress slow. I came close 1.5 years ago but had to put it on hold for an end of comp season training camp with Austria Climbing. The following season was pretty rainy, and I wasn’t in top shape—until this March, when I finally regained confidence and motivation.

Despite feeling ready, sending the route proved to be as much a mental battle as a physical one. The pressure of knowing I could do it made every attempt more intense. On Sunday I finally broke through—on a far-from-perfect attempt, fittingly mirroring the ups and downs of the entire process. More than just a send, this climb represents lots of persistence, patience, and especially personal growth.

by Johannes Hofherr