Climbing

When you’re pumping out 10 feet above your last fiddled-in nut, the last thing you want to sweat about is how much it might hurt to take a fall in your older-than-dirt harness. Don the completely redesigned Sonic and you’ll be as relaxed as Willie Nelson getting recreational in Colorado. Testers loved it for long routes like Yellow Spur (5.10a) and The Naked Edge (5.11a) in Eldorado Canyon, Colorado, where tight belays forced semi-hanging stances. “I could sit in this harness for long..." go to full review

Touted as the lightest single rope in the world, the Opera 8.5 weighs in at a mind-bending 48 g/m—that’s 7.4 lbs. for the 70-meter version. Rated as a single, half, and twin, its uses are endless, and our testers “took this rope for multi-pitch alpine to ice toproping to redpoints of mixed routes.” We don’t recommend making this your workhorse cord, but it stands out for alpine with its airy weight and incredible UIAA-certified Golden Dry treatment. “After full days in Ouray’s Box Canyon..." go to full review

There are a few imperatives for all alpine gear; pack small, be light, and work so well you forget it’s there. Edelrid’s new Wing harness nails all three without sacrificing comfort. “It folds as flat as a shirt and dissappears in your pack,” said one tester after a week in Wyoming’s Wind River Range and a summit of Switzerland’s Matterhorn. “And it’s comfortable to wear while scrambling, hiking on approaches, or in between pitches.” Credit a laminated, 3-D design that wraps your waist and..." go to full review

Taking another step in bouldering protection, Metolius has developed a miniature handheld crashpad called the Bouldering Shield. With two handles in the back, you hold it up (which is easy at just over 3 lbs.) and angle it toward a boulderer while spotting. It’s designed to help a spotter redirect a falling climber with its larger-than-twohands surface area (36” by 23”), and it protects the spotter with two inches of foam cushioning. The Bouldering Shield can also double as a sit-start pad..." go to full review

“The one thing I hate about bouldering is constantly opening and closing your pad to move from one spot to another, but the Iceman was way faster and easier to use than every other pad in my quiver,” one diehard boulderer said after taking it to pebble-wrestling hotspots in Colorado, Utah, and California. Other pads with strap systems force you to hook the buckle, and then tighten, which is sometimes difficult with a too-small and slippery webbing strap that gets stiff when dirty. The Iceman..." go to full review

When testing this tool side by side with other high-end ice models at the 2014 Bozeman Ice Festival, one tester noticed the brilliant design immediately when the Tech Machine stuck faster and removed easier than any other tool. “I could always rely on this for a sturdy placement, and I never had to struggle to remove it, even with wonderfully deep sticks,” she said. That’s thanks to a thoughtful structure that combines a flatter (read: less curved) pick head with a curved shaft and the real..." go to full review

“You get what you pay for” didn’t become an overused consumer cliché for nothing, but the Raptor will have you backtracking. “This tool competes with my go-to tools that cost almost twice as much as these,” one tester said after two weeks of ice and mixed climbing in the Northeast. “Now I feel silly for shelling out so much dough!” Testers loved the simple, streamlined design with a small curve in the shaft and an offset handle (meaning it’s angled slightly backward), which offered a solid..." go to full review

Designed by Greg Lowe in the 1970s, Tricams first appeared on racks in the early 1980s. While the original unit had two placements (one passive, one active), the newest generation (CAMP Tricam EVO) has three: a cam, a nut, and a nut in broadside-out mode. The biggest benefit? The Tricam often fits where nothing else will, such as horizontal cracks, solution holes, pockets, pods, and flares large enough to require a cam-sized piece, but too narrow for a typical SLCD. See all the placement..." go to full review

The Diabolos feel precise but versatile with just enough comfort to keep sport and trad climbers happy all day on long granite routes or pumpy, overhanging limestone. “On Hot Dog (5.11b) in Clear Creek Canyon, I needed to pinpoint tiny nubs, heel-hook, and edge multiple times on each burn, and these were the perfect shoe,” one female tester said. “I got plenty of precision and sensitivity without dreading the pain of putting my shoes on.” That’s thanks to the extra rubber that runs over the..." go to full review

“Even after a few hours in a muggy gym, my feet weren’t sweating nearly as much as in my other shoes, and they’re so comfy, I didn’t take them off at all, even between climbs,” says one avid gym rat. Five millimeters (many other shoes have 4mm) of sticky rubber means these shoes will last season after season. And did we mention the sweet price? $99go to full review