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Readers, please send your Weekend Whipper videos, information, and any lessons learned to Anthony Walsh, awalsh@outsideinc.com.
Wind of the Valley (5.10c) is a striking sandstone splitter in Liming, China. It’s also deceptively pumpy—giving it the cheeky nickname of “Winded in the Valley.”
Nick Bernhardt realized as much during his onsight attempt: “I made it through the stunning hand crack to the tree (the crux), so thought I was golden on the final layback,” he wrote to Climbing. “But it was surprisingly slopey and became steeper at the top. I made a run for the chains and was trying to find a way to clip roughly three meters above my last piece, a No. 0.75 cam, when a foot popped, sending me upside-down on a 10-meter whipper into the tree below.”
Bernhardt was uninjured in the fall (which is foreshortened in this video) and sent the route the following day. “Winded in the valley, whippers in the valley—or whatever—it’s one of the best routes in Liming!” he said.
Happy Friday, and be safe out there this weekend.