Gear : Reviews
Reviews by runner3688 (6)
Super Chalk 5 oz. (Manufacturer link)
Average Rating : 3.68/5
In: Gear: Essential Equipment: Chalk Bags: Chalk
Review
Review by: runner3688, 2007-02-11
My hands tend to sweat profusely, and this chalk definitely helps with that. My hands get very dry - which some say is a downside - but that's the point of chalk. I've actually had the chalk on my hands for several hours at a time, even after climbing (what does that say about my hygiene?), but have had no negative skin reactions, such as cracking. I highly recommend it.
Grigri Belay Device (Manufacturer link)
popular
Average Rating : 4.24/5
In: Gear: Essential Equipment: Belay Devices & Descenders
easy, but sometimes inconvenient
Review by: runner3688, 2007-02-11
It's definitely easy to use, but there are a few situations which it doesn't fare too well, such as if you want to downclimb. For toproping and upwards climbing, it's very safe and convenient, but I've also noticed that it can lead to carelessness in belaying, so when people switch to ATC's they aren't belaying safely. Other than its con of not being useful for downclimbing, you can't beat its convenience and safety.
William Triact
Average Rating : 4.38/5
In: Gear: Essential Equipment: Carabiners: Locking Carabiners: Auto-lockers
Review
Review by: runner3688, 2007-02-11
I have the William Tri-locking biner, which is a lift-twist-pull mechanism. With a little practice it can be opened one-handed, and there's no beating an autolocker for security and convenience. Mine has taked a decent amount of abuse and held up very well, and the autolocking mechanism is extremely secure. It's a tad expensive, but well worth it.
Phoenix - discontinued (Manufacturer link)
Average Rating : 3.51/5
In: Gear: Shoes: Climbing Shoes: Lace Up
Review
Review by: runner3688, 2007-02-11
These are super comfortable, have a nice rubber, and a killer heel. The stiffness of the shoe makes them supportive enough to climb in all day without your feet getting tired. The only downside is that the rubber wears out relatively quickly (which can be a pretty big downside). The good thing is that they're also relatively inexpensive, so it won't totally break your budget to get them resoled or get a whole new pair. Overall very nice shoes that make you realize you don't need most of the gimmicks found on more expensive pairs.
Anasazi Mesa
Average Rating : 3.27/5
In: Gear: Shoes: Climbing Shoes: Lace Up
Review
Review by: runner3688, 2007-02-11
These shoes are - as mentioned so many times before - great for edging, and the stiffness of the sole takes the calf-tiring nature of climbing out of the equation. But, the heel is oddly recessed so much that I have a huge amount of dead space that makes them completely useless for heel hooking. Then again, these shoes probably aren't going to be used in situations where you need to do heel hooks, but if you do, you should probably look elsewhere.
