Raise your hand if you’re tired of either a) Clipping sketchy, grooved “fixed” draws or B) having to retire a beloved draw because of rope-side-biner grooving. Edelrid has come up with an ingenious solution with their new Bulletproof Quickdraw: The top biner is a nice, smooth-clipping Bullet biner, but it’s the bottom biner that counts—the keylock closure Bulletproof clipper with a steel insert where the rope runs. Having the one bit of steel keeps the 12 cm draw light (4.1 oz) while..." go to full review
A new offering in the Evolv ultra performance series, the Oracle is a high-performance downturned lace-up built for steep sport routes, bouldering, and gym climbing. Our tester wore his street-shoe size; while he was concerned that his foot might not fit the agressive last, the shoe expanded nicely when he put them on, and he was able to climb hard right away, on both steeps and vert. “Because of their downturned shape, I was concerned I wouldn’t be able to edge on vertical face,” he says. “..." go to full review
As the two testers who shared a pair of the lace-up, regular fit (orange), flat-lasted Mantras said, “These were a great trad shoe for long pitches or vertical to under-vertical terrain.” (The shoes also come in a green, wide-fit version, shown here.) The Mantras fit comfortably but were initially quite stiff (they have a full-length injection midsole) and took concerted break-in—10-plus pitches. Testers rocked them on trad and all-around terrain on granite and sandstone, and said the Neo..." go to full review
I spent most of late summer hiking long days in the mountains to access seldom-visited peaks in the Sierra. With climbing gear and a weeks' worth of food, the last thing I needed was a bulky rope adding extra weight on my back. Enter the Sterling Fusion Nano IX. This is a game-changer for those looking for a high-performance and reliable rope for climbing in the alpine or sending their latest proj. At a diameter of 9mm, it can be used as a large-diameter half-rope or as a skinny..." go to full review