DMM Alpha Sport Quickdraw Review

There is little to be critical of, as the Alpha Sport is a near perfect quickdraw for sport climbers. At 113g it’s heavier than its two main rivals, the 104g Petzl Spirit and the Black Diamond Livewire at 106g, but for the redpointers the Alpha Sport is aimed at this is unlikely to be a problem. The grey colour scheme is professional and sleek but, as this features on so much of their kit, a more distinctive colourway might have been a good idea. Top Lakes dark-horse Jon Freeman told me they “look boring”, though he did concede that they were nice to clip! [NB: You might be in luck Dave (and Jon), new colours may appear in the future, as per the red image at the top of the page. R+R]

My only substantial criticism would be that the loop at the bolt end of the sling is a little too wide, meaning that the pro clip can be a bit loose for stick clipping. Those who use proper clip sticks won’t find this a problem, but when we were using the dirt bag (tree branch and stone) method this got quite irritating!

All things considered, I would recommend the DMM Alpha Sport highly. Above all their other great features, the smooth and reliable clipping they facilitate puts them at the top of the tree for me.