The news

At Stanage John Welford makes a rare fifth ascent of Careless Torque Fb 8a+ while Tyler Landman repeats The Ace Fb 8b. Ryan Pasquill makes an impressive flash of Curbar's End of the Affair E8 6c.

Rich Simpson makes 6th ascent of Careless Torque Fb8a+, while Tyler Landman makes first repeat of Ben Moon's Voyager Fb 8b at Burbage North.

At 11.00 am an avalanche swept onto the Ski Mountaineering World Championship race course at Artesina, Cuneo, N. Italy.

Linea di Eleganza, the route first climbed by Elio Orlandi, Horacio Codò and Luca Fava in February 2004 on Fitz Roy, has been repeated for the first time and freed in one single push at 5.12+ by the Americans Tommy Caldwell, Topher Donahue and Erik Roed.

In February 2006 Robert Jasper and Markus Stofer made the first ascent of the Staubbachwasserfall in Switzerland’s Lauterbrunnental.

Scott Muir from Scotland has just made the second ascent of one of America’s hardest mixed routes, Jedi Mind Tricks M13, Colorado, USA

The Red Bull Snowthrill Monterosa is fast approaching, the most important freeride event which will vibrate Monte Rosa's slopes from 10 - 16 March

At the end of January Mauro "Bubu" Bole repeated Game over, Albert Leichtfried's M13 at Drylands, Innsbruck, Austria.

A strong young Belgian team comprised of Nicolas Favresse, Olivier Favresse, Seán Villanueva, Mike Lecomte and Philippe Ceulemans has made a rare repeat of Riders on the Storm, situated in the Torres del Paine and undoubtedly one of the crown jewels in Patagonia's repertoire of classic climbs.

All participants of the Red Bull Snowthrill Monterosa, the most important freeride skiing competition which will vibrate the slopes of Monterosa from 26 February to 4 March.

At the start of January two Swiss climbers, 19-year old Gabriel Grünenwald and 23-year old Simon Oswald, made the first and second full repeat of The Flying Circus, Robert Jasper’s multi-pitch M10 at the Breitwangfluh, Kandersteg

Ines Papert from Germany and Markus Bendler from Austria have won the third stage of the Ice Climbing World Cup 2006, held in Saas Fee, Switzerland, last weekend. Jenny Lavarda and Petra Muller, Simon Wandler and Jack Müller placed second and third.

On 24 January Albert Leichtfried made the first ascent of "Illuminati", a 5 pitch mixed outing located in Val Lunga, close to Selva Gardena (South Tyrol) N. Italy . The 30 year old Austrian has put forward the impressive grade M11+/WI 6+.

Ueli Steck: first solo, repeat and winter ascent of The Young Spider on the North Face of the Eiger

On 28/01 at Spicak (Czech Republic) the second stage of the UIIA Ice Climbing World Cup was won by Simon Wandeler and Ines Papertahead of Markus Bendler (2), Harald Berger (3) and Ksenia Sdobnikova (2), Anna Torretta (3).

For 6 days no one has heard anything from Jean-Christophe Lafaille, currently engaged in the difficult first winter ascent (and, above all, solo) of Makalu, the fifth highest mountain in the world.