Bouldering Grades

Bouldering Grades

As I'm sure you all know grading boulder problems is a flippin' nightmare and should be best viewed as a guideline. Differing strengths/weaknesses/body shapes can have a massive affect on how hard or easy you find a problem so don't take them too seriously.

The grades used on javu are Sherman V Grades supplemented with the English technical grade. I have chosen this mix because the V grades fail when it comes to easier problems (below V0) but the english technical still works quite well. The combination of V and english technical can give a good idea of the nature of the problem in a similar fashion to the adjectival / technical grade combination used for routes. For example, a V6 6c would likely be a short and difficult crux whereas V7 6b would suggest a much more sustained problem.

Since adopting the V grades on javu some other regions have moved towards the use of Fontainebleau grades. I won't be following suit because despite dozens of trips to Fontainebleau I still don't understand them, particularly in the sub 7a grades.

The following may be revision for most but for those who don't know:

V GRADES attempt to convey the overall difficulty of a problem rather than just the hardest technical move (which is what the ENGLISH TECHNICAL GRADE does). Obviously this is an improvement on just using English technical grades - imagine you have two problems; both get 6a but one is a 30ft traverse of solid 6a the whole way, whereas the other a one move wonder. The latter will clearly be a tad easier but this would not show up if just an English grade was used! Hence the need for a more descriptive grade - The V Grade.

FONTAINEBLEAU GRADES also attempt to convey the overall difficulty although are pretty confusing in the lower quadrant of the scale! Above about Font 6b (V4) they tend to settle down a little and can easily be translated into V grades... in my experience of climbing at Fontainebleau the grades below 6b seem to be pretty random with many of the 5's feeling about English 6b!! I have also noticed that the height factor can affect the grade.

BOULDERING GRADE COMPARISON TABLE
V Grade	Font Grade	UK Technical Grade
V0-	3+	5a	4c
V0	4		5b
V0+	4+
V1	5 (5- 5)	5c
V2	5 (5 5+) - 6a		6a
V3	6a - 6b
V4	6c	6b
V5	6c+
V6	7a		6c
V7	7a+
V8	7b	7a
V8+	7b+
V9	7c
V10	7c+		7b
V11	8a
V12	8a - 8a+
V13	8a+ - 8b	7c??
V14	8b - 8b+
V15	8b+ - 8c

Please note that while I have attempted to get an accurate comparison of grades in the table above a degree of flexibility should be exercised!

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