Today's bouldering world seems to be pushing a new limit where bouldering is getting to a foggy place that is drifting from highballs into mini freesolos. Where do we draw the line, is a 45 foot boulder problem really a boulder problem or a freesolo? what do you think?

are they using pads? haha

Pads are the line.

That and the 'livable fall" factor. If you fall and live, it is probably bouldering. If you fall and die, you were freesoloing. Both of those assume no pads.

although for the most part I can agree with that but a livable fall can be fairly subjective.

I stopped in J Tree once for a short overnight stay with my wife and told her I was going bouldering and then I ended up soloing a bunch of easy routes. So my wife yells up to me saying I thought you were going bouldering I yelled back saying I am, it's just a really big boulder. She wasn't too happy, looking back I can understand since she was pregnant with our first.

I think it all depends on what you are comfortable with. I prefer the boulder problems that get easier the higher you go up.

I believe that if you are using a pad and spotters it is still highball bouldering. Just put an "X" after the rating (ie v11X) and you're set.

at some height doesn't the pad become kinda silly?

Call the USGS and ask them what the definition of a boulder is.

Is this in question to Kevin Jorgeson's FA of Ambrosia? 20ft V12 start to a 13a 25ft finish, put it all together and he called a 14a. In this case, given the rating, I'd say free solo. A boulder rating doesn't do it justice, even if it is V12.

that was part of the reason i proposed this question also i was thinking about ethan pringle's send of the beautiful and the damned a few years back which pushed thirty five feet.

this is a real grey area i was just wondering what others thought

my personal opinion is if someone works the route on TR then it is questionable if it is a boulder problem, but that just my opinion

I've alway thought that for me the cut off was 30'. When I go over 30' I'm free soloing.

If one works the bottom of a project with a pad and the top with a top rope then sends with a bunch of spotters and a hundred pads its bouldering.

If one works out a fifty five foot proj. and falls into a huge set-o-pads aka: poor mans foam pit its bouldering. If one repeats without pads and spotters its still bouldering because a fall is less likely to kill than say 100'. Its highball.

I have done problems with 1 pad that others used (no joke) 15 pads to try. Brings new meaning to padding the grade. With enough pads I have fallen 50' repeatedly and been totally fine.

If one works a 80' route overhanging a nasty boulder field with death falls all over on top rope then sends sans rope, spot and pad I'd call that free solo. If one did the same but instead down climbed as to never toprope it I'd say that's flash free solo because the last top moves have never been done by said climber even though he has seen them and visualized them.

I miss Reardon!


I'm going with 2x body height, can be less w/ bad landing area.

Hank, those are 50 ft falls based on "man" inches, you know, 5 inches equals 9 inches :)

you mean it doesn't?

Height has nothing to do with it. If random people are yelling for you to "go-big" you're bouldering, if they stop and it's quiet, you're free soloing.

Three feet of open celled foam over four inches of closed. Helps to learn on smaller falls to avoid bad landings; eg: feet first. Some stunt friends do bigger but into boxes. In the EU they have done nets rigged to cliff's. I have a good Q? What's it called if you work something with a base rig. and mondo pad.

No boulders for me, all routes. And yes it takes a. Trailer to move. Thanks Hank that's what I figured