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Yesterday, May 4, Hamish McArthur made history with his one-day ascent of No One Mourns the Wicked (V17/9A) in Thunder Ridge, Colorado. McArthur spent roughly one hour working the problem’s stand start—Daniel Woods’s famous Defying Gravity (V15), which includes one of the single hardest moves in bouldering—before sending Nathaniel Coleman’s V17 low start.
Climbing readers will note that this is McArthur’s second V17 in as many weeks; he made the coveted first repeat of Megatron, in Colorado’s Eldorado Canyon, on April 20. McArthur’s Olympic-level of fitness was on full display during the send day—he fell off the top of Megatron, well after the crux, eight times in a row before sending. He’s now sent an equal number of V17s as he has V15s and 16s combined: two.
McArthur dropped a video of No One Mourns the Wicked today, then sped back to the boulders—but not before answering a few of our questions.
Climbing: What were your expectations going into that session? How did they match up to reality?
McArthur: My whole thing recently has been trying to let go of expectation, so that’s a hard question to answer. I feel like relaxing your grip on expectation leaves space for the wild and unpredictable to unfold. That said, the dream of executing on this boulder has lived in the background of my mind since I first saw Nathaniel put it up [in 2024]. When we arrived at the boulder and I first started touching holds I was quite surprised at how bad they were. They are all flat, slopey and slick, therefore requiring perfect equilibrium spread across the body to hold and move through each position.
Climbing: How much of a margin did you have during the crux move? Your power scream on film was awesome and filled with emotion—it sounded like you were equal parts surprised and worried to drop the hold.
McArthur: I don’t think a move has ever been better suited to me. I figured out the minutiae of the crux relatively quickly—to a point where I could repeat it every go from the stand. From the low start it’s a different animal. Not only are you fatigued from a V13 intro, but it requires immense accuracy to take the start holds of the stand exactly how you need them when climbing into the position. On the go I sent, I hit the right hand in a worse position than I had previously, so the scream was mainly a distraction from the doubt that creeps in under that kind of intensity.
Climbing: How has your climbing performance in the last two weeks influenced your outlook on outdoor bouldering? Since V17s, in a certain style, don’t require weeks of projecting for you, are you looking for problems at the V18 level?
McArthur: I want to redefine what we think of as possible. I am essentially learning and advocating for a life of hope. I think this is pretty damn essential for positive change. If I do my job right then I’ll portray this transcendence from a stagnant world on a stage much bigger than climbing. My performance is the character, but it’s the message that I care about. So, sure, V18 is possible for anyone who dares to think it is.