Niccolò Ceria frees Ziqqurat 8C at Gaby in Valle d'Aosta

Niccolò talk us quickly through this problem
The boulder is beautiful, apart from a little flaw: the rock isn’t totally compact on the first part, but where the holds are located it’s solid. The shape is really impressive, it is a large boulder and perfectly flat. It seems cut shear, with only the small crimps and the arête at the end which allows for it to be climbed.

What are the moves like?
There are twenty in total. It starts off with a first section, not too difficult, of 10 moves that then lead to two crux moves at the end of the roof. My successe rate was really low on these and I only managed to stick them twice, once in April and the second time two days ago. After this there’s the technical sequence which I was sure I’d reach exhausted and with cold hands.

That "spicy" arête?
Yes, after the two crux moves the next moves aren’t too difficult but they’re certainly intricate I’d say, with some heelhooks that lead to the problem’s standstart, a 7B aerie that requires careful footwork and balance. My hands were cold but luckily not frozen and I managed to launch my way up the last hard move.

You’ve put forward the grade 8C. Your second, right?
If we consider The Big Island at Fontainebleau V15, then yes, this is my second.

You sent the problem on Monday
Yes. Conditions were good and the days beforehand I tried to get good skin and become a bit more flexible seeing that I hadn’t done any stretching for over a month. Then the perfect day finally came and I made the send. For months I’d been thinking about the problem every day, now I’m overjoyed.