Chris Sharma: Return to Balance
Chris Sharma: Return to Balance follows the climbing icon back to the sea cliffs of Mont-Rebei, Spain, where summer heat turns into an invitation for psicobloc—deep-water soloing above blue water with nothing but movement, momentum, and trust. In the midst of a disrupted year, Sharma squeezes in day missions that begin with a long kayak approach and end beneath steep caves, chasing the feeling that first made him fall in love with climbing. What makes this short film pop is the mix of serenity and intensity: calm paddling and quiet limestone suddenly give way to continuous, pumpy climbing 15 meters above the water, fingertips on the lip of a cave, a breath, then the crux. It’s a reminder that “balance” isn’t about taking it easy—it’s about finding freedom in commitment, where the consequences look dramatic, but the experience feels playful, controlled, and pure.
Tenaya · 3:39
Chris Sharma finds new psicobloc lines to fuel his soul in Mont-Rebei, Spain. Summer in Spain is the time for psicobloc. The heat and humidity drive climbers like Chris Sharma to the sea in search of cooler temps, clean rock, and the next king line. Despite the challenges of the pandemic, he managed to make a few day missions out to Mont-Rebei, complete with a five- to six-kilometer kayak approach, and established a new 15-meter high deep-water-soloing line, which he named Trick or Tree. "The route is really continuous, steep, and pumpy. The feeling to be 60 feet up at the lip of a cave, and just dangling by your fingertips, chalking up, and getting ready to go for a crux move. It’s so extreme and wild and spectacular, and yet controlled and safe, too. The beauty of deep water soloing is that it’s such a free form of climbing. It’s very playful, spontaneous, and creative. It allows you to interact with the wall and with nature. You’re not thinking about the grade. Psicobloc is climbing in its purest form. Read the full article at: https://blog.tenaya.net/en/2020/07/29/chris-sharma-psicobloc-deep-water-solo-mont-rebei/