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vegastradguy
Apr 1, 2004, 9:09 PM
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one word: Schoeller.
thats why i spend extra dough on my climbing clothes. so i only need one set. no matter what conditions, no matter what i'm climbing, i'm good to go.
climbing companies arent trying to rip anyone off. they're charging what the customer will pay. people are buying their product and they're making money...that's all that Prana cares about. (btw- Prana clothing sucks, both pants i owned from them blew out in the first week.....i'll never buy anything from them again)....it is business folks, they have to make money somehow.
you dont need the special clothing for cragging/bouldering/sport climbin...but get into longer trad routes/bigwalls/alpine routes and you're going to have to start accounting for weather/different conditions that might require specialized gear and/or clothing.
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madmax
Apr 1, 2004, 9:17 PM
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In reply to: you dont need the special clothing for cragging/bouldering/sport climbin...but get into longer trad routes/bigwalls/alpine routes and you're going to have to start accounting for weather/different conditions that might require specialized gear and/or clothing.
Needing specialized clothing is a state of mind. We are bombarded with advertisements of top climbers wearing the newest hi-tech gear and we think we NEED it to climb better. There are countless long trad routes that were put up with the climbers wearing jeans and cotton shirts. They got rained on, snowed on, pissed on, etc., and they didn't die, get hypothermia, or complain about their clothes, because they were/are hard men and women.
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boulderman
Apr 1, 2004, 9:33 PM
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I've been bouldering 3-4 days a week, 4 hours a day in the same Old Navy painters pants for 2 years now and there still isn't a hole anywhere. I also got them on clearance for $11.99.
On the other hand..... I go through shoes like they're goin' out of style!
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hulgan
Apr 1, 2004, 9:34 PM
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While we're in the neighborhood of fashion over function let me pose one more question.
Why would someone climb shirtless indoors? Outside I can see tanning/heat as legitimate reasons but inside an air conditioned gym it just seems... what's the word? Vain?
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boulderman
Apr 1, 2004, 9:43 PM
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I send 1-2 grades harder if I take my shirt off......
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vegastradguy
Apr 1, 2004, 9:46 PM
Post #31 of 47
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madmax- nowhere in my statement did i say that you need better clothing to climb better. that's foolish. i said the longer, more committing the route the more you need to take into account those things that might affect your clothing choice.
btw- i've done long trad routes wearing jeans and a t-shirt, got rained on, and frankly, it sucked. yeah, i did it and i could do it again, but why?
as far as no shirt in the gym- mostly because of two reasons. one it gets in my way...and two its friggin muggy and hot as hell in our gym, and i usually wear cotton t-shirts, so rather than turn them into wet rags, i take 'em off. and i got nuthin to be vain about for sure....
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litleclimberchick
Apr 1, 2004, 10:03 PM
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In reply to: I send 1-2 grades harder if I take my shirt off......
and this thread has been hijacked...
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soccer_fan
Apr 1, 2004, 10:15 PM
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In reply to: I just checked out some climbing specific clothing companies. Needless to say I experienced some sticker shock. What the hell is up with $50 shorts? $70 pants? What are some features that set climbing specific clothes apart from say Old Navy? Is the added cost justified due to the durability of the product or is it just marketing? *edit typo*
Yeah, well Everest was first climbed in wool and leather hob boots I think, the trade routes in the Tetons were put by guys using hemp ropes (one of the routes being done in football cleats as well) - so no clothes don't matter at all. In the summer does a quick dry shirt make me feel better climbing in Arkansas, yeppers... I think the prana/patagonia/stretch clothing/etc falls under the same catagory as gear. Of course you can climb most routes with a passive rack or an all cams rack in some cases -its a matter of taste. so why the debate??
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daggerx
Apr 2, 2004, 6:12 PM
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I dont suspose you ever go to the mall and buy new name brand clothes? The cost about as much as climbing clothing if not more.
DX
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hulgan
Apr 2, 2004, 7:02 PM
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In reply to: I dont suspose you ever go to the mall and buy new name brand clothes? The cost about as much as climbing clothing if not more.
$70 pants for graphic arts last 8+ years. $70 pants to drag up rock last 2 years?
I just got some ugly cargo-trec pants from old navey for $17. I'm sure they aren't as durable as Prana but hopefully they'll last a few months.
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aklimerguy
Apr 2, 2004, 7:32 PM
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That's something I noticed in europe : climbers wear climber clothes.
Just find clothes you're comfortable climbing in and that's that.
I suppose companies which sell climbing clothes know that we have money since we spend all that cash on gear...
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petsfed
Apr 2, 2004, 7:46 PM
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All of my "climber rags" I won or were given to me as gifts. I suppose Prana, Gramicci, and Patagonia make some pretty good gear, but I'll take a pair of carharts and a flannel shirt anyday. Its just cheaper.
And incidentally, Gramicci simply doesn't stand up to hard wear. I've seen two pairs of pants from them get destroyed (large holes, torn seams, etc) from a hard day of climbing. When I wear my prana, gramicci, patagonia stuff, I wear it cuz its comfortable for not climbing in.
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jkarns
Apr 2, 2004, 8:42 PM
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Geeze! I guess maybe you folks need to modify your technique a little!! I tend to wear "name brand" climbing clothes when I climb, and I bet I get ~100 field days out of a pair of pants before I have to retire them!! Generally, I try NOT to scrape my body across the rock as some posters have suggested occurs.
Furthermore, I don't see a problem with wearing what I wear. I've got to wear something right?? So if I find a pair of prana pants to be functional, comfortable, AND stylish, and I can afford them, where's the issue? I'm lost on all the haters out there...
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climbsomething
Apr 2, 2004, 8:54 PM
Post #39 of 47
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In reply to: While we're in the neighborhood of fashion over function let me pose one more question. Why would someone climb shirtless indoors? Outside I can see tanning/heat as legitimate reasons but inside an air conditioned gym it just seems... what's the word? Vain?
Techy wear has its place. But I don't do that kind of climbing. Cute sporty-wear? Eh, it's not NECESSARY, and it's prohibitively expensive (no, I will not pay $40 for a tank top, sorry), but it is cute.
I have a mix of both- cords from the Wal-Mart kiddy dept and Stonewear etc. sporty tops from the sale rack. I am not a slave to fashion, nor am I too kool for skool with very pointed and loud avoidance of brand names.
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fender13
Mar 15, 2005, 1:16 PM
Post #40 of 47
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They need a prAna in canada.
I was looking for a cool beanie for ages.
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anykineclimb
Mar 15, 2005, 2:56 PM
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Prana pants are fairly comfortable, but their durability sucks ASS!
Now I do have a couple of their synthetic tops that I find are really comfortable. I actually will just about always climb in a synthetic top. Do I need to? no but we do this for fun right?
IMHO if you buy "climbing" clothes for function, you can't go wrong. Technical gear is worth the money. Schoeller, cordura, Supplex, primaloft, goretex, powerdry, et al. its worth the money. When you start getting stuff because it looks cool and XXXXX just sent some sick new 5.14X was sporting them, then you're screwed.
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lucas_timmer
Mar 15, 2005, 5:03 PM
Post #42 of 47
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In reply to: it's totally got to be the name. that's how prana can get away with chargig so much for their clothes--they have those fun little labels on the shoulders and seams of their pants. They do have great durability and move well for climbing moves, but how much profit are they really making, raking climbers over the coals? I still wear it, but really hate paying for it. |
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sspssp
Mar 15, 2005, 5:17 PM
Post #43 of 47
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In reply to: Good question. After ripping up YET ANOTHER pair of pants last week (I've lost count of how many) I've started thinking about buying something that's supposed to hold up better. I don't know if the climbing specific stuff is any sturdier, but if it is I probably would have been better off investing in it. Or maybe I just fall too much.
I wouldn't necessarily count on it holding up better. The latest rage is Schoeller (and it gets mentioned several times in this thread).
I haven't found the light weight variety very durable (the heavy ski pant version might be better). I buy the expensive pants (~$100) because I want synthetic pants with zippered pockets, but I haven't found it near as durable as some of the cheaper synthetics (~$50) pants that were on the market ten years ago.
The light weight Schoeller is definitely better when it comes to being wind/water resistant and also breathable. But you can rip through it pretty fast, espeically if you get pants that are lackin in either reinforced knees or a reinforced seat.
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noell
Mar 15, 2005, 5:51 PM
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Don't know about guys' clothes, but I have had two pair of paints from Target that I've worn out climbing just about every weekend for the past 1-2 years, one pair for warmer weather, one for cooler weather. Hurray for Target! Both pairs have held up amazingly! And I do tend to be a bit rough on things... but I always end up way more scraped up than my pants end up torn up.
On the other hand, I did spend a pretty penny for my down coat. I like to be warm and comfy and the extra $ for that was worth every single penny.
Do what feels good on your skin, while climbing, and on your wallet. I don't care what you wear, and you probably don't really care what I wear. To each his own!
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dingus
Mar 15, 2005, 6:06 PM
Post #45 of 47
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In reply to: no, of course its unreasonable to buy some $70 pair of pants just because they have a silly little design on them.
There is quite a difference between an off the rack Men's Warehouse suit and a tailored Brooks Brothers get up.
There is almost always a 'good, better, best' selection of clothing for a particular job.
Recognizing that there is value to a 70 dollar polypro shirt and knowing when its good to have one is part of the learning process, just as it is knowing you don't wear an off the rack suit to the bell ringing on Wall Street when your startup goes public.
That said, I always try to buy on sale, 2nds, off colors, anything to save a buck.
But synthetic climbing clothing does wear better generally speaking. And of course it performs better. Sometimes thats important, sometimes irrelevant.
But I fucking refuse to buy $70 shorts, even of there is a Brooks Brothers logo on the side.
Cheers
DMT
ps I'm a slob and have NEVER owned a tailored ANYTHING. Hehe. And none of my clothing is coordinated, sept by accident.
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kimmyt
Mar 15, 2005, 6:22 PM
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I bought my first pair of 'climbing' pants the other day. All told, it cost me -$8. Yup, REI actually paid me to buy a pair of highlighter-yellow tech pants.
For the past year I've been wearing cheap, 'non-climibng' clothes. i.e. a pair of $7 aeropostale pants whose legs are so long I have to roll them up and that still don't have holes in them, despite my almost daily use of them when climbing; a pair of expensive capri khakis that i started to wear climbing when they got just a bit too dingy to wear to the office anymore.
These clothes work fine, but I found myself with little gripes about them that led me to finally buying a pair of pants geared towards the particular sport I participated in. Articulated knees and pockets that didn't stick up straight, wicking fabric and a length that was just above my ankle (rather hard when you're a 5'3" girl with the hips and thighs of someone who is 5'7") so as not to interfere with foot placement.
Finally found them, after trying on several pairs of more expensive pants. The highlighter-yellow ones had me at hello.
I've found myself oohing and ahhing the namebrand stuff before. prAna has some cute stuff, and I wish I could wear it sometimes, but the pricetag (and the fact that none of it seems to fit the body of a rather curvaceous little climber woman) always keeps me away.
So, in short, if the pants fit, I wear them, and forget about the name on the back pocket.
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skateman
Mar 15, 2005, 6:49 PM
Post #47 of 47
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So my question is this: When is prana going to come out with big wall pants with a trap door in the rear? (So that guy in the other thread can launch a missile from the top of Mescalito without having to drop trow)
S-man
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