Sean Bailey has made the first ascent of Devilution (f8C+), on the Grandpa Peabody Boulder, at the Buttermilks, USA.

The boulder, which was a longstanding project prior to Sean's ascent, is the low start to Jason Kehl's highball boulder Evilution (V12). Whilst Kehl was the first person to top out Evilution, the overhanging face was first climbed by Chris Sharma, who then dropped off the lip, for a boulder now known as Evilution to the Lip (V10).

The stand start begins on two polished edges higher than head height, with climbers having to stack pads to reach them, and follows a series of sidepulls and crimps up a 45-degree overhanging wall to the lip of the boulder.

Whilst Kehl's first ascent went slightly left prior to the lip, Sean followed the same line as Evilution Direct (V11), which is a more direct line, going straight up at the lip. Whilst the direct line takes in slightly easier slab climbing for the top out, the move over the lip is higher up, and on less reliable rock.   

Speaking on the Testpiece Climbing podcast, Sean shared that the low start adds two moves prior to the starting hand holds of Evilution. The first is a 'hard cross, [where] your foot rips way out, so it's a lot about maintaining tension, it's got like a really barndoor kind of feel to it'. The second, which brings the climber into the starting position of Evilution, 'is huge... I think if you pull on to the second hold on the boulder and do that move in isolation it's not so hard, but from the bottom, doing the first move well enough, getting that second crimp, that gaston crimp, good enough to do that next move is the crux, and that kind of makes the second jump the crux of the whole thing'.

'Everyone that comes out of the Milks normally walks through that boulder, we were trying it late in the day, we brought like twenty pads out there to do it so I'm already like a little stressed... I really don't want to have to get all these pads out here again, and I turn around and I'm like 'oh my goodness', there's like thirty, forty people out here... I want to get this thing done, it's getting dark...'

'It was a special moment... that line is beautiful, it moves really well, and it's right there, it's like the first thing in Bishop, so the fact it's been a project for so long, I felt privileged to do it for sure...'

'I'm thinking it's probably V16'. 

Sean's ascent comes after disappointment at the Pan American games in October, where he missed out on an Olympic ticket despite winning the Boulder and coming second in Lead. Since refocusing his efforts outdoors, he has flashed 8B, repeated Lucid Dreaming (V15), and made first ascents at 8C - The Doors of Perception - and now 8C+.

Sean's 8C First Ascent, The Doors of Perception