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Iron Resolution
  EnlargeChris Sharma making his iron resolution (ungraded) on January 1st, 2006. Photo: Boone Speed
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Words by Damon Corso / Photos by Boone Speed and Damon Corso
In Early February of 2003, a huge rainstorm ripped through Joshua Tree and dislodged a huge block between two classic crack climbs, "Enter the Dragon" and "Fists of Fury". Tony Yaniro first lead the two stellar moderates in 1978 and now, after 25 years, another line was waiting to be sent on this "new classic" boulder. On January 1st 2006, after nearly three years of failed attempts, a climber stepped up to lead the charge, Chris Sharma. J-Tree now has its hardest problem established, Iron Resolution.
"Iron Resolution"
Iron-because it's coated in the iron rock that rested beneath the grainy Quartz Monzonite.
Resolution-because it was done on new years day
On January 6th, just a few short days after Sharma's FA, Ethan Pringle claimed the 2nd ascent.
 EnlargeEthan Pringle. Iron Solid. On the 2nd ascent. Photo: Damon Corso
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UC: What drew you to the climb?
EP: Well, I had been climbing in j-tree on and off for about a week and was having a blast. On the night of Jan. 1st I saw Chris at Crossroads, where I was eating for the second night in a row. He told me he had just gotten the first ascent of the steep face of the broken block next to Streetcar. I remembered looking and fantasizing about it the year before with my friends on my first trip to J-tree. I remembered how bad the landing was. Chris said it was flat now. He rapped off the top to make sure the holds were solid anyway, which they were. He was pretty psyched, saying "It's a five star line, its hard, tall, and really unique, dude..." That was all I needed to hear. After a rest day I was dead set.
