Denver High Schooler Becomes Youngest to Send Bouldering’s Hardest Confirmed Grade

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Yesterday 20:00

Beckett Hsin is ahead of schedule. Last week, on February 24, the 16-year-old became the youngest person in the world to send the hardest confirmed grade in bouldering when he topped out on No One Mourns the Wicked (V17) in Thunder Ridge, Colorado.

But the story of a 16-year-old punching above his age on the V scale doesn’t begin last October, when he first had a chance to behold the moves. It starts four years earlier, when Hsin (pronounced: Sheen) began designing a challenge for himself at 12 years old. Before he turned 13 on September 19, 2022, he set a goal to boulder a problem graded V12. After he climbed his first V14 at 14 years old, the idea of bouldering his age stuck.

Last fall, Hsin ticked a problem that had long been high on his list: Defying Gravity at Thunder Ridge southwest of Denver, Colorado. First climbed by legendary boulderer Daniel Woods in 2013, the problem up a 60-degree overhang goes at V15. After sending, Hsin ran his hands over the moves that lurk below Defying Gravity. If you start seated, Defying Gravity becomes No One Mourns the Wicked, a V17 that only two climbers—both tall Olympians—have successfully tackled.

“I got really psyched on it,” Hsin, who stands five feet, two inches tall, recalls.

Considering the hundreds of attempts some invest in their projects, the dozen days Hsin put into No One Mourns the Wicked seems like a casual deposit. While No One Mourns took first ascensionist Nathaniel Coleman 22 days to send, it took Hamish McArthur a mere three hours. Hsin says he spread out his 12 trips to the 20-foot-tall granite bloc over four or five months.

“There’s a bunch of different beta these days, but it revolves around this one really difficult jump from two crimp ledges,” Hsin describes the moves on No One Mourns the Wicked. (Photo: Bryce Bozovich)

Though this homeschooled high school junior hasn’t yet gotten his driver’s license, his climbing history already runs a decade deep. His dad, John, climbed in college, and also competed as a gymnast. He calls his son the hardest working athlete he’s ever known. Both of Beckett’s brothers climb, and his two sisters climb recreationally. His mom ropes up in the gym, too. And the family has taken climbing trips to Rocklands, South Africa, and Southeast Asia.

As a kid, Hsin remembers that he would just “show up at the gym and goof off,” even while casually competing on a youth team. His stoke ignited once he started winning, but outdoor bouldering made him even more motivated, inspiring him to “boulder his age.”

While Hsin still enjoys goofing off from time to time, according to his friend and videographer Bryce Bozovich, he also shows sophistication beyond his years. “When I look at most 16 year olds, I think they’re a bit more reserved, but Beckett just feels like an adult in a way,” Bozovich explains. He says it seems easy for this 16-year-old to “flip the switch” between joking around and trying hard.

Now that he’s sent V17, Hsin has more or less maxed out on the challenge he set for himself several years ago. We asked him to look back on each new grade that he ticked year after year, culminating with his reflection on No One Mourns.

Below are Hsin’s “boulder my age” memories, in his own words (edited lightly for concision and clarity). All of the problems he sent are in Colorado.

V12: Spatial Awareness, Lincoln Lake

Note: When Hsin first sent Spatial Awareness in July 2022, the stand start was graded V13, while the sit start went at V14, which means Hsin had effectively bouldered his age, plus two. But now, the problem is considered more of a V12.

I did the low start and I called that V14, but looking back, it’s probably more like the stand is V12 and then the sit is V13. So it’s kind of a gray area. But then I didn’t do an actual real V12 that I would call V12 until after I turned 13. So, I’d call Spatial Awareness my first V12, even though it was maybe 13. It was weird.

After I did the stand, I did the sit start a couple of weeks later. I called them V13 and V14 at the time, but looking back, they were probably closer to V12 and V13. But I was just breaking into outdoor bouldering. So I kind of had no clue what to call anything.

V13: Spatial Awareness (sit start) Wheel of Fortune, Clear Creek

My first V13 was Spatial Awareness low, but I don’t think I did another V13 until sometime later that year, which would have been Wheel of Fortune in Clear Creek Canyon. And I do remember I was sick the entire time I was trying that boulder.

That one is also something that’s on the nose of V12 or V13. But then I did a couple more [V13s] the next summer—the summer of 2023.

V14: Midnight Express, Boulder Canyon

I did Midnight Express like two days after I turned 14. I had tried it all through the spring of 2023 and was getting really close. It’s pretty much a two-move boulder. It was the first time I experienced really going in deep with a long-term project.

Then I took the summer off of trying that boulder and I came back in the fall. I went back a few days before my fourteenth birthday and got super close. Then I went back on my fourteenth birthday and got rained out. I went back a couple of days later and finished it.

V15: The Game, Boulder Canyon

V15 was The Game, which I did just a few months after I sent Midnight Express. And that one was pretty big for me. That was the boulder that I had been inspired by the most growing up. I had been really psyched about trying, and then one day, doing it. It took me about eight days. I tried it three days back in the winter of 2022. Then I went back in the winter of 2023 and finished it.

V16: Creature From the Black Lagoon, Chaos Canyon

V16 was Creature from the Black Lagoon in Rocky Mountain National Park, Chaos Canyon. I sent that last September. I think it took me five days of work. That one was really cool. It was a really fun experience to be going up to the park every day. It’s one of my favorite areas. So it was just kind of fun to learn the moves and go up there with a psyched crew. That process was really fun for me.

V17: No One Mourns the Wicked, Thunder Ridge

One challenge Hsin faces in his climbing is Lyme Disease, which he was diagnosed with in 2021. While he says the long-term illness doesn’t impact his day to day, he experiences “weird” neurological symptoms, mostly with his legs. On No One Mourns, for example, all of the sudden, he says his legs would just tap out. (Photo: Bryce Bozovich)

On how he “submit” himself to the boulder

With this boulder in particular, there are a lot of factors that contribute to success, like conditions, how I was feeling that day, etc. A lot of the time, if nothing was lined up well, then it was going to be really hard for me to send or do anything. When I know I’m not going to be able to send, I’m like, “Well, what can I do today that will still be productive? And still be learning or trying to improve?”

But with No One Mourns, a lot of the time, the best thing for me to do was just to step back, even if I didn’t want to, and just accept that today was not my day and I have to come back. So that was definitely different than a lot of other experiences I’ve had.

Especially with the moves, you’re either going to do them or you’re going to show up and it’s going to feel bad and the moves are going to feel near impossible, especially the one crux move. It’s so hard and so involved that you have to be feeling perfect to be able to do it.

On the crux and his beta

The crux is pretty much like a one-move V13 or V14. There’s a bunch of different beta these days, but it revolves around this one really difficult jump from two crimp ledges. The rock is super glassy, so there’s not a lot of friction. That’s the main crux—being able to stick to those holds.

There’s a far heel hook that was what I thought would work best for me. But I showed up and the heel was a little bit too far out of my reach. So I had to use a closer heel that ended up working really well. It probably adds an extra two or three moves of V10 or V11ish.

On whether he thinks No One Mourns the Wicked is soft for the grade

I honestly have no clue. The line between a hard V16 and an easy V17 is kind of blurred. At this point, I just don’t have enough experience with either of those grades to feel like I am qualified to give an honest opinion. I know only time will tell as I get more experienced.

The future of Beckett Hsin

“It’s a lot of fun to see him succeed,” John Hsin says of his so Beckett. He adds that the exposure his son has received for his bouldering is “a new world” that the family is trying to navigate while trying to stay true to who they are and “maintain humility.” (Photo: Bryze Bozovich )

When you’ve bouldered the hardest official grade in the world, where do you go from here? In various threads and commentary regarding his recent send, some have thrown out the suggestion that someone should buy this kid a flight to Italy.

“That’s hilarious,” Hsin said when Climbing informed him of this during our interview. “At this point, that seems so daunting to me. But yeah, if people want to fly me to Europe, that’d be sick. If someone wants to pay for me to go try Exodia, I’d do it.”

But for now, Hsin doesn’t seem too concerned about having “peaked” or what he’ll do next. He’s just excited to “keep climbing.” But does he have any other hobbies? He mentions he used to skateboard “a bunch,” but then his mom ran over his skateboard with her car—plus he was getting injured frequently.

Wholeheartedly, Hsin embraces climbing as “pretty much” what defines his life. When he isn’t sending hard outside, he’s training hard inside—which his dad John has said is key to his success. His father describes how he creates simulators on the family’s home wall just to work on one single move within a problem. For hours, he’ll go to the gym, then top it off with a micro-session at home. And to get stronger for a single move or sequence on his project, he’ll develop entire strength training techniques using their limited home equipment: a few dumbbells and resistance bands.

Whether Hsin’s future holds V18, a return to competition climbing, a V17 first ascent, or some other achievement befitting a prodigy of his caliber, something much more concrete and relatable awaits in the timeline of his life. In May, he’s getting his driver’s license. “Right on time for Rifle season,” Hsin says. “Rifle’s one of my favorite sport crags in Colorado, but it’s around a three-hour drive, so definitely a bit of a mission.” No longer will he require a ride from his dad, his older brother Sam, or anyone else.

“There are also a ton of boulders around Colorado that I haven’t gotten around to trying,” he explains. “I’m psyched to hop on those once I have the freedom to drive myself.”

A film about Beckett Hsin’s ascent of No One Mourns the Wicked will release this spring.

About the photographer/videographer: Bryce Bozovich is a photographer and filmmaker specializing in climbing and outdoor culture. His work blends documentary realism with cinematic storytelling, focusing on raw moments, real people, and the beauty of doing hard things. You can usually find him chasing light, long approaches, and stories worth the effort. Follow along @bozovicy

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