Lara Neumeier shows nerves of steel | First female ascent of Trad-Route Psychogram

German climber Lara Neumeier became the first woman to repeat the notoriously risky trad route Psychogramm (8b+) in Bürs. The technically highly demanding route has few protection options.

Lara Neumeier was recently on the really big walls. In Yosemite She recently freed the 800-meter route with Nemuel Feurle El Niño (8a+), previously she repeated the difficult multi-pitch route in the Rätikon Headless Children (8b) at the Schijenfluh.

Minimal protection, high risk of falling

Her recent experiences have benefited the climber from Allgäu in her latest project: psychogram (8b+) at the Brush plate is a true technical and mental test piece by Alex Luger from 2014. The route in Vorarlberg is extremely difficult to secure, and in some parts of the route there is a risk of injury in the event of a fall.

This is probably why repeats of Psychogramm have been extremely rare since 2014. Only Jacopo Larcher, Fabian Buhl and  Michi Wohlleben have been able to make ascents so far – and now Lara Neumeier too, who is also the first woman to complete the ascent.

Two is better than one: Neumeier climbs with two ropes

Like its predecessors, psychogram Lara Neumeier also had to put in a lot of effort – above all, her confidence in the self-placed safety devices while leading. The 26-year-old had made her first attempts at the route in January and took advantage of the warmer weather from February onwards to climb out and place the safety devices while top-roping.

At the beginning of March, everything was just right: the conditions, the beta, and the Allgäu native's mental state. Secured by two ropes, Lara Neumeier confidently climbed the demanding first part of the route and the crux. After a brief shaky moment at the top, Neumeier clipped the anchor of one of her hardest trad routes to date.

Michi Wohlleben inspecting a psychogram (8b +)

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Credits cover photo: Jacopo Larcher