Review: Black Diamond Ion LED Headlamp

Review: Black Diamond Ion LED Headlamp (2014)

Today we write you from the bottom of a dark cave, surrounded by bats, wearing Black Diamond's newest iteration of their Ion headlamp. It's cold and weird down here, but visibility is high and spirits are soaring thanks to BD's new microlamp offering. The Ion headlamp was designed to be a "just-in-case" backup headlamp, boasting stripped down size and minimal features with full lumen power.

Black Diamond Ion Headlamp 2014

The Ion underwent a total overhaul from its 2013 model. The 2013 Ion model, all things considered, looks and feels like some corporate-branded swag from an industry conference. It kinda feels cheap. The brand new Black Diamond Ion Headlamp is a whole different beast.

Lightweight, stripped-down, and with brand new touch-sensor controls, the lamp is a pretty bold move on Black Diamond's part. It's the smallest headlamp we've ever seen. People call it a "micro" headlamp, and we think that's accurate. The whole lamp is not significantly bigger than the AAA batteries inside it. It's about the size of a golf ball, if you squeezed the golf ball into a rectangle shape.

The 2014 Black Diamond Ion Headlamp has a unique touch control system that is unlike any other lamp we've seen. It has several light settings on it that are all controlled by touch, instead of traditional buttons. You swipe your finger across the surface of the front of the light, and various different swipe motions have different effects.

The 80-lumen Ion has seven different light modes: white light, white strobe, white adjustable dim, red light, red strobe, red adjustable dim, and lock. All of these modes are accessible with different touch motions on the face of the lamp. The touch motions are described in detail in the Ion's instruction manual, and it will probably take you about 15 minutes to get comfortable with all of them. Without the tactile feedback of a clicky button, you have to just know the commands. Don't expect to be able to operate it with winter gloves on, by the way. 

The battery life on this headlamp is really short. We got about 12 hours of intermittent use out of it; maybe less. It's only got two AAA batteries in it, so we didn't expect it to last forever. After testing all the touch controls at home, it only lasted for one night of camping. I'd keep some spare batteries around if you plan to use it often. 

The Black Diamond Ion 2014 is a lightweight, compact emergency headlamp that will far exceed your expectations. Its performance is great for such a small lamp and its beam looks like one from a much bigger lamp. That said, don't expect to make this your full-time lamp. 

The Bottom Line

Black Diamond Ion Headlamp ($22.95 on Amazon) is a small, lightweight headlamp that functions as a backup to your full-size headlamp. It provides ample light for camp tasks or night climbing, but don't expect it to match your regular headlamp in brightness or battery life. The price is right for this little guy, though. It's small and cheap enough to carry as a spare in your camping kit for emergencies. The touch control system is innovative and intuitive once you're used to it. 

Ariel M. Castro
Rugged Innovations

Review: Mammut Tusk 9.8mm Climbing Rope

Review: Mammut Tusk 9.8mm Climbing Rope

The Mammut Tusk 9.8mm rope is a classic workhorse rope from one of the most trusted names in climbing. Mammut has been around for over 50 years and has been the leader in climbing ropes for as long as we can remember. Their reputation goes a long way, but how good are their ropes?

Mammut Tusk 9.8mm getting ready for some action.

We got our hands on Mammut's Tusk 9.8mm climbing rope and it took it out for an afternoon of abuse. The Tusk is a 70m single pattern dynamic climbing rope. Designed as a sport and gym rope, the rope has a moderate amount of stretch and is rated to withstand significant falls. Unlike standard dry treated ropes that only have a treated sheath, Mammut's SuperDry technology is a coating for both the sheath and the core, keeping your rope cleaner and drier than the average rope. 

The following triptych named "Joe Didn't Die":

The rope performed admirably in our testing. Like most new ropes, it has a slippery, waxy feel to it that makes it feel like you're driving a new car. It doesn't kink or knot out of the bag. In fact, it is an absolute pleasure to flake, maintain, and use. It folds and coils neatly and doesn't knot up when you're belaying. 

The Hot:

The Mammut Tusk Climbing Rope - 9.8mm is a beast. It's burly rope made for taking a bunch of abuse and still keeping you safe. At RI, we love products that are designed to take abuse. The Tusk feels substantial in your hand. It feels like it'll take a few whips. We like that.

The Not:

We don't have much bad to say about this rope. The price is what you would expect from an industry-leading brand, but for almost $250, we really would love a bipattern on the sheath. Rope manufacturers realize this is a "premium" feature and have been using it as an upsell for long enough. 

The Bottom Line:

The Mammut Tusk Climbing Rope - 9.8mm ($239.95 for the 70 meter version on Amazon) is a workhorse rope. It's not light, but neither is a Ford F-150. The Tusk is strong, high-performance, and durable. There are ropes from lesser manufacturers with similar stats and a lower price, but Mammut is one of the most trusted names in rock climbing and alpinism. They've been the leading name in ropes for decades with good reason. The price is on the higher side, but if you can afford it, we highly suggest you pony up. Mammut makes superior ropes, and the Tusk is a sturdy, well-built rope that will last you for years and keep you safe through many a whipper.

Be safe,

Ariel M. Castro

Rugged Innovations

Review: Black Diamond Spot Headlamp

Review: Black Diamond Spot Headlamp

Black Diamond Spot Headlamp

A headlamp is an absolute necessity in a climber's kit. It's one of those gadgets that you don't need at all... until you do. And when you do it's usually a sketchball situation where you're glad you have the headlamp. Our team had just such an experience lately and were fortunate enough to have a Black Diamond Spot Headlamp ($29.95 on Amazon) for the job.

Team RI was doing a leisurely 7 pitch trad route at First Creek Slabs with a team of four just outside of Red Rocks Canyon in Las Vegas -- It was supposed to be a quick day trip. A three hour touuur.... Lady Luck (5.7) is a great moderate slab haul with a huge variety of climbing: big hollow huecos, forgiving slab with balancey moves, some exposed arete areas, a couple of juicy fist crack sections, and basically everything you'd want out of an afternoon of moderate multipitch climbing. The descent, on the other hand, was a total bear. We ended up getting lost and rapping in the dark. You probably saw that coming.

Enter the hero of our story, Black Diamond's Spot Headlamp. Two of us on the team had this headlamp and the other two of us had some generic crappy ones from Wal-Mart. We going to credit the Black Diamond Spot Headlamp with keeping us from ending up as hamburger meat at the bottom of a sparsely-traveled sandstone cliff. We'd like to thank all the appropriate deities and BD for keeping us safe for the umpteenth time.

Black Diamond Spot Headlamp in action.

The lamp itself is BD's entry level device and the cheapest one they make. The 2013 model is for sale at $29.97, and it's one of the best value headlamps you'll find. Even though it's Black Diamond's lowest model, the headlamp performs better than either of the department store headlamps our team had. It's bright. We used it on our abseil fiasco and it allowed us to spot features and anchors in the pitch black of Nevada night from around 50 feet.

Since it's the entry level model, it doesn't have much in the way of features, but we're okay with that. At the end of the day, your headlamp has one job and must do it well. The Black Diamond Spot cranks out 90 lumens, which isn't as much as more expensive models, but it was plenty for pitch black rapping misadventures. Maybe if you're a kayaker or mountain biker, you might want a brighter lamp. For a climber, BD's 90 lumen light is plenty. The headlamp has several different LEDs on it, including a red one that is designed to preserve your night vision. The main light set has a fader which allows you to turn down the brightness. We could see that being useful in dusky situations or when you're trying to infiltrate an enemy compound or something. 

We totally didn't die. Thanks BD!

The hot

The BD Spot Headlamp is an affordable multi-lumen fiend from one of the most trusted names in alpine sports. It's $29 bucks. That's cheaper than a sandwich and a beer at a ski lodge. It's an incredibly high-value head lamp with great performance and a long battery life. 

The not

It's hard to find any gripes about it. It's a stripped down lamp without many features. It doesn't have rechargeable batteries, it doesn't have an over-the-head strap, and it won't call you back after a first date. It's 90 lumens. If you can find a better lamp for the price, let us know! 

The bottom line

The Black Diamond Spot Headlamp ($29.97 on Amazon) is a little powerhouse of a lamp at a great price point. We credit it on saving our hides on multiple occasions. If you want a durable, powerful lamp for a low price, look no further. The Black Diamond Spot Headlamp is a great value and doesn't skimp on performance.

Be safe, 

Ariel Castro

Rugged Innovations

Review: Belay Shades Belaying Glasses

Review: Belay Shades Belaying Glasses

Today we set our steely, Eastwood-esque gazes on a really interesting product that I don't think many people have been exposed to: belay glasses. Belay glasses are pretty ingenious. They are regular glasses with the lenses replaced with upward-pointing prisms. The prisms bounce light from above you into your eyes. Your optic nerves sends the light into your brain, which interprets the light into an image of your sweaty climbing partner spending 45 minutes projecting the crux moves of a "totally sandbagged" 5.11a. C'mon dude, the sun is setting. Belay Shades are designed to protect the belayer's neck by preventing them from having to keep their head pointed up while they watch their climbing partner. It's a low-tech gadget with big benefits.

Belay Shades getting their moment in the sun. Owens River Gorge, CA.

We've been wanting to try these for the longest time and finally got our chance. Belay glasses have been around for a while in various forms. We've heard of old school climbers making homebrew pairs out of busted sunglasses and mirrors from their girlfriends' makeup kits. Belay Shades are a streamlined, evolved version of this. It's a high quality product and despite the fancy optics, pretty rugged! As you all know, we here at Rugged Innovations are decidedly unkind to gear. Why? Because we take big falls all the time, and expect our gear to be able to keep up with us. It's a reasonable expectation for high-performance gear and we push it to the limit.

Belay Shades are tough little suckers. We wore them off and on for about 5 hours in Owens River Gorge while belaying some friends. We also dropped them several times and were generally pretty irreverent with them -- it's not our job to babysit gear. They didn't scratch, scuff, bend, or break. We all gave them a whirl and loved the ability to keep our necks attached to our body during a long belay session. These guys save your neck, I'm telling you. Anyone who's belayed for an hour or more at a stretch can tell you it's brutal; by the end of it you are moving your head into all kinds of weird positions to try to use different muscles. Belay Shades 100% alleviate this issue for sport cragging. 

Objects in Belay Shades are stronger than they appear.

Belay Shades are unique for a couple of reasons. One thing we like about them is that they use prisms and not mirrors. The prisms can't bend, move, or get out of alignment with respect to your object of focus. The optics have no moving or folding parts to calibrate. Another thing we liked about Belay Shades is that they are built out of real glasses. If you look at the belay glasses made by other companies, they are constructed out of cut aluminum pieces and end up looking like Robocop's snorkeling equipment. Belay Shades are made out of glasses -- actual human glasses. Belay Shades are, in my opinion, the least dorky belay glasses on the market. No one is going to win fashion awards when they're wearing any belay glasses, but Belay Shades are the least obtrusive.

These Belay Shades are incredible for sport projecting. They completely eliminate the sore neck issue because you don't have to look up at all. You can have a clear view of your climbing partner the whole time while having a clear view of your immediate surroundings.

Having said that, there are a few considerations when wearing Belay Shades. The most obvious is that when you are wearing them, you can't see what is directly in front of you without moving your head around a bit. This makes them not necessarily appropriate for multipitch climbing where you have to keep an eye on your anchor and make small adjustments often. They also are not great to wear for really long periods of time. I got a bit dizzy after wearing them for about an hour straight on a really, really long pitch we were working. Then again, if your climbing partner is spending 60 minutes on the wall, you should probably consider getting them a sponsorship or introduce them to endurance sports.

We have to say, we love the Belay Shades ($44.98 at their site). They are exactly what you want from a pair of belay glasses and then some. They come with a cloth carrying bag, a beefy padded hard shell protective case, a cord to hang them around your neck when you're not using them, and a little microfiber cloth to wipe them down when you inevitably kick some dust up onto them. It's quite a package, but the product itself is what sells it for me. They protect your neck during long belay sessions and are, in my opinion, the best option on the market. We dropped them a few times on rock surfaces from about waist height and the lenses had nary a scuff. Verdict: rugged as heck. For serious sport climbers and single-pitch tradders, these are pretty game-changing. Once you try them, you will not want to go sport climbing without Belay Shades!

Have fun!

Ariel
Rugged Innovations

The Best Beginner Climbing Shoes: Low Price and High Quality

The Best Beginner Climbing Shoes: High Quality, Low Price

There are lots of different types and styles of climbing, but climbing shoes are a universal fact of life. Unless all you do is ice climb, you're going to need some rock shoes. We've reviewed a lot of shoes here and there are many great options, but as a beginner climber there are a few facts of life that should guide your decision. 

Price

The cost of gear is a concern to all of us. Climbing ain't cheap. As a new climber, you're going to destroy your gear until you learn proper climbing technique and develop good habits for taking care of your stuff. Even if you can afford to drop some serious cash on climbing shoes, I really don't recommend it for your first pair. 

New climbers who are still learning footwork are going to heavily favor certain stances. Because of this, they tend to quickly wear out and rip through the rubber in specific areas of their shoe, like the toe. I've seen this happen to a lot of people and unless you're gifted or great on your feet, you should probably consider your first pair of shoes to be essentially disposable. I do not recommend you go out and spend $150+ on a pair of 5.10 Blackwings or La Sportiva Miuras. You are going to destroy them and waste your money. I really recommend your first pair of shoes be a very modest pair of shoes. If you can find a pair of hand-me-downs from a climbing friend, give 'em a shot if they fit you. You can ask around at your local gym or put up a flier, check Craigslist, or go to the annual REI yard sale.

If you want to pick up a new pair, there are plenty of affordable options. Technology has advanced so quickly that you can get an incredible pair of shoes for less than $100. In my opinion, one of the best options is the Five Ten Coyote VCS ($68.98 on Amazon) -- the gym nearest to me uses these as their rental shoes and I've worn them many times. These are the best value climbing shoes I've tried, hands down. The quality on these shoes is incredible for being ~$70. Even on the worn-out rental models that have been used and abused by hundreds of people, they perform well. They hold an edge and have a great stiffness support in the arch. Most importantly, they're comfortable! You really can't go wrong getting a pair of the new 5.10 Coyote VCS.

Fit

One of the most important element of climbing shoes is fit. Because of this, I definitely recommend you try before you buy. There is no industry standard for climbing shoe sizes between manufacturers, meaning that a size 7 from one company can feel like a size 10 of another. The only way to know is to try them on. If there's an REI or EMS in your area, go into the store and try on a few different pairs. Many climbers choose shoes that are a few sizes down from their street shoes, but this is not something you should worry about as a newbie. Get a pair that fits you perfectly. Keep in mind that climbing shoes are supposed to be tight, but if they're really tight, you're going to be in so much pain that you won't be able to learn fundamental footing technique.

The shoe should feel snug everywhere, but not constrict your toes or pinch when tightened. Certain shoes have a heel cup that balloons out and leaves a little air pocket, creating a gap between your heel and the inside of the shoe. This drives me crazy, but a bunch of people don't seem to mind because it's a characteristic of one of the most popular rock shoes ever. This may not be a concern to you, but it's worth examining to determine your preferences.

You may have noticed that some rock shoes have a steep downturn starting at the heel, driving through the arch, and continuing to the toe. These shoes are meant for precise, strong footwork on hard, overhanging routes and boulder problems. The amount of downturn on a shoe is referred to by many climbers as its "aggressiveness". As a new climber, you probably won't need an aggressively downturned shoe. In fact, you probably don't need any downturn at all.

As you advance and get better at climbing, you may find yourself gravitating towards tighter shoes to improve the mechanical advantage (wiki) of your feet relative to surface area of the foothold. In the past, climbers would downsize heavily to compensate for the amount that rock shoes would stretch over time. With current advances in material sciences, heavy downsizing is not necessary to ensure a good fit. Let me be clear: only downsize heavily if you know exactly what you are doing. Let me be more clear: new climbers do not need to downsize their shoes. Get a shoe that fits. 

Durability

You might as well accept that you are going to absolutely mangle your first pair of shoes. The toe is going to blow out way before you are ready to spend another ~$100 bucks. That said, not all shoes are created equal, and some shoe rubber is way tougher. 

In my experience, the best shoe rubber is used by La Sportiva. I've had two pairs of La Sportivas and the rubber is crazy good. It's just unbelievably long-lasting. I've had the same pair of La Sportiva TC Pro shoes for almost 3 years without blowing a toe. I've taken it up (and back down) thousands of vertical feet without even a slight cut in the rubber. I really can't say enough about it. I am constantly impressed by it. 

Five Ten is also known for its really grippy and long-lasting Stealth C4 rubber. I have worn a few pairs of 5.10s and I appreciate their longevity. Evolv, on the other hand, has horrible rubber in my experience. I had the toes on a pair of Evolvs blow in the first week of owning a pair. On a separate pair, the edges wore out within 3-4 months and are now totally rounded. 

How to Choose Your First Climbing Shoe

First things first! Determine your budget. If you're broke, ask other climbers for their hand-me-downs. Most people who have been climbing for a long time have a trashy pair of old shoes in the garage. You can probably get an old pair for free or very cheap. Keep in mind that there's a reason why those shoes are under a pile of shovels and rakes in the garage -- they either suck or are totally destroyed. Beggars can't be choosers, though! Rock climbing gyms often have a corkboard where people put up classified ads. You might be able to find a great deal for under $50 there!

If you're willing to pony up a little more, you can find all kinds of great shoes. My favorite beginner shoe by far is the Five Ten Coyote VCS ($68.98 on Amazon). It's a durable workhorse shoe with serious edge potential. These shoes will grow with your climbing skill.

For a little more money, you can pick up La Sportiva Tarantula (price varies on Amazon). La Sportiva's rubber is known for being long-lasting and durable. This is a slightly longer-lasting shoe that will also keep up with you as you advance your climbing.

Hopefully you have the resources now to make an educated decision about your first pair of climbing shoes. Shoes are an important and highly personal element of climbing. Experiment a lot and see what works for you!

Ariel Castro
Rugged Innovations

Review: Osprey Manta 20 Hydration Pack

Review: Osprey Manta 20 Hydration Pack

Whether you live and breathe all-day multipitch trad epics or prefer to spend those hot, sunny afternoons projecting huge boulders, one thing is clear: you better bring some water. Hydration is critical to your performance as an athlete. 

We picked up the Osprey Manta 20 Hydration Pack recently and have taken it on three big trips so far -- a multipitch adventure in Red Rock Canyon, a sport climbing day in Owens River Gorge, and an afternoon of bouldering in the Buttermilks. We put some serious miles on this backpack, both vertical and horizontal. Here's what we found.

Osprey Manta 20 Hydration Pack camping in Owens River Gorge

One of the first things you notice about the bag is the quality of workmanship. From the seams on the zippers to the rough ripstop material; Osprey has put a lot of thought into making this backpack. It feels like you could drop it off a cliff and it would be waiting for you at the bottom without a scratch. It's just solid. 

Dog for scale.

The bag is covered in features. The front of the bag has loop zippers instead of pull tabs, which make opening easier. The zippers have exterior plastic seams, which protect them from warping and increase water resistance. The top front has small loop for mounting your helmet, a mesh pocket with snap closure for quick access goods, and a cinch for holding ski poles if that's your thing (I use it to strap down a light sweater for when the winds pick up). The hip belt has pockets on either side for snacks, cell phones, etc. The very front pocket has a key clip and separate mesh compartments for small goodies. The chest strap has a magnetic clasp for attaching to the hydration hose that is great for keeping the hose free of your hands but accessible when you need it. The only problem with the magnet here is that when you put the backpack on the ground, it picks up small iron and metal flakes from the dirt. After a day of bopping around in the desert your magnet is covered in metal flakes. 

Osprey Hydraulics reservoir

The 3-liter "Hydraulics" water reservoir is unique and of much higher quality than any Camelbak or other brand I've ever seen. The back-facing side has a stiff internal frame that matches the inside of the backpack like a puzzle piece. The internal frame of the water reservoir keeps it snug and distributes the weight more evenly along your back than a Camelbak hydration sleeve, which just reverts to a long cylinder and slides around inside your backpack. My one complaint about the water reservoir is that it can be a MONSTER to get open. Maybe some sand got into the thread of the cap of it? It's hard to open, even for a climber... and hand strength is kind of our thing. It will test your pinch strength, that's for sure. Another small nitpick is that if you forget to move the mouthpiece into the "locked" position, it can drip a little. Just don't forget.

One Manta 20 please, on the rocks

The back panel is brilliantly designed. There's a curved internal frame with ridges that allow airflow and then an inch-deep space followed by a tight mesh that touches your back. The result is a small meshed window between your back and the bag that allows air to flow freely and keep your back cool. Bicyclists take note!

There are several straps that are used to cinch the bag down closer to your body. This is designed to lower the surface area of the bag to reduce wind resistance and to keep the weight of the bag closer to your center of mass which increases your stability. I've noticed that you can also use the straps to clip other items to your bag. I like to cinch my helmet down close to the bag so it doesn't bounce around. 

There is a rain cover hidden in a secret compartment in the bottom. It takes about ten seconds to deploy and has the added advantage of being bright red -- great for visibility on the cloudy, dark days when you'd be most likely to need a rain cover. It's removable, which is great because we live in Nevada where yearly rainfall is usually around ten inches and the days when it does rain are usually just a light sprinkling. Nevadans just don't really need rain covers. Still, the rain cover is a nice detail and I can see it being quite handy in weathery areas. 

Deploying the rain cover on the Osprey Manta 20 Hydration Pack

Bottom line: 

The Osprey Men's Manta 20 Hydration Pack ($139 on Amazon) is about as advanced a backpack as I have ever seen. It packs so many useful features into 1220 cubic inches that it will take you a few days just to figure out how to use it to its potential. As a climber, the pack's main pocket is just big enough to hold a pair of climbing shoes, a harness, and chalk. If you're planning on using it for more than a basic climbing day, you may want to upgrade to the Osprey Men's Manta 28 Hydration Pack ($149 on Amazon) or the Osprey Men's Manta 36 Hydration Pack ($159 on Amazon), which are only slightly more expensive but hold much more. The pack's water reservoir holds three liters, which is enough to keep one person hydrated for a full day of hard athletic activity. I highly recommend this bag for trad climbers that need a lightweight day bag, boulderers who are looking for a all-in-one session pack, and bicyclists who want a low profile hydration bag for long rides.

Review: Sterling Evolution Velocity BiColor 9.8mm 70m Climbing Rope

Review: Sterling Evolution Velocity BiColor 9.8mm 70m Climbing Rope

Sterling Ropes Evolution
Velocity BiColor 9.8mm 70m

Today we review the Sterling Evolution Velocity BiColor 9.8mm 70m rope. This is one of the best ropes we've ever laid our dusty mitts on. I'm excited to write about our experiences with it because it has been a delight so far.

Caustic Cock 5.11b
Red Rock Canyon

We've had this green monster since Christmas and it's already visited Donner, Red Rock Canyon, Owens River Gorge, the Buttermilks, and more. One of the first things you notice is that it's incredibly easy to flake. It's really wonderful if you're cragging around at a place like ORG with a bunch of different areas and you end up having to flake and coil your rope every 25 minutes. Some days I feel like flaking the rope gets my arms more tired than climbing itself. The Sterling Rope Evolution Velocity 9.8mm Rope is about as easy a flake as you are realistically going to get with any rope. We've probably put a vertical mile or two on it already and it's still the easiest cleanup of any rope we've used. 

To say this rope is loud is the understatement of the century. It's bright neon lime green and visually pops! I love how loud it is. It's not just an aesthetic improvement -- it also has a great deal of contrast with natural rock and dirt colors. This is great when you're trying to find your ends, pull your rope out of a crack as you rappel, and keep track of where your rope is relative to the wall. The bright color is a nice convenience. And as a child of the 80s, the rope's jazzy neon flavor speaks to me on a mitochondrial level. We're connected, man. 

Getting started at Cannibal Crag

Another detail I love: the bicolor. Lordy lordy, the bicolor. Mark my words -- I am never getting a single color rope again. The middle marker on all our single color ropes wears out in the first 3 months, in my experience. Rappelling with a bicolor rope is so nice. Bicolor is such a small detail but a big quality of life improvement. 

A couple of downsides, though.. All that glitters. First of all, at upwards of $300, the Sterling Evolution Velocity is a heck of an investment. You could load the van and drive to WV for a week at the New for that much. If you want quality, you better start saving. The loud color isn't for everyone. Fortunately, the Sterling Rope Evolution Velocity 9.8mm Rope ($304.38 with Free Shipping on Amazon) comes in 11 different flavors and either 60m or 70m. The 60m version is around $40 cheaper if you're hard up for scratch.

Bottom Line: 

The Sterling Evolution Velocity BiColor 9.8mm 70m Dry Climbing Rope, in addition to having the longest product name ever, is one of the best ropes I've ever used. It flakes like a dream. It's about as light as you can expect seventy meters of anything to be. It feels smooth and solid. It plays nice with both tube and mechanical belay devices. The bicolor pattern makes rapping as easy as a dream. At 300 bucks, it's pricey, though. This is the Lamborghini of climbing ropes. Fast, light, sexy, and high performance. We love it.

Go hard,
Ariel Castro
Rugged Innovations

GoPro Video of Trad Climbing Lady Luck (4th pitch) in Red Rock Canyon, Las Vegas Nevada

Check out this video of Team RI climbing some multipitch trad outside of Vegas! It's a GoPro video of leading the fourth pitch of the 1,000-foot, 7-pitch 5.7 multipitch trad route called Lady Luck in First Creek Slabs, Red Rock Canyon, Las Vegas, Nevada.

Hope you like it!

Ariel

Rugged Innovations