Climb X Super Crack Gloves
Climb
X has introduced a new crack glove this last year and it has made a big
difference in my climbing. Tape has been
my go to since I started climbing 7 years ago, but if you climb cracks more
than a couple times a week you are probably spending quite a bit of money on
tape. The Super Cracks provide you with
exceptional protection and unlike previous gloves released by other companies
the Super Cracks are pliable and conform to your hand. One worry that people expressed was that they
felt the gloves would slip and that the finger rings would break. Now when I first got the gloves that was one
of my main concerns as well, but after climbing in them extensively and they
have held up to the abuse.
Climb X Chalk Bot
I
have owned a lot of chalk bags in my time and this chalk buckets is awesome! This bag is amazing for bouldering. The way it collapses down in makes it nice
and easy to fit into your pack or stuff into a pad. The real beauty of this bag is that it stands
up right and open making it easily accessible in between burns. I have also on a number of occasions taken
this bag to the bottom of sport and trad lines.
I like to do this mostly out of nostalgia for when I started climbing my
parent and I thought it was a revolutionary idea to do that. Although we later found out that many other
climbers do the same thing.
This
draw is one of my favorites that I have ever owned. I have owned Omega Pacific Five-O’s, Black
Diamond HotWire’s, and Petzl Spirits.
Now for those who know me the Spirits have been my go to draw for the
past two years, but now the majority of my sport rack is made up of
D-Lite’s. These draws have smooth action
even though I have climbed with them outside on countless occasions and have
dropped them in the dirt. They have the
sharp snap that can be heard easily from the ground by your belayer, which is a
nicety that some of my other draws have lacked in the past. The D-Lite’s are also incredibly light
weighing in at 72 grams. That is 19
grams lighter than BD HotWire. The
D-Lite Carabiners are also keylock which has become an industry standard, but
still is something to be mentioned.
This
last year Climb X introduced their X-Dream.
It comes in two colors orange and maroon, which are both pretty
sweet! I have had my X-Dream since
August and that has given me ample time to put it through a few different
scenarios. I have used for top roping in
the gym, lead belaying outside, and as a top belay on multi-pitch; all of which
have worked exceedingly well. The only
snag that I have run into is that in the gym with some of the beefier more worn
out ropes, 10.8+, are a little harder to pull in slack and when lowering it
lowers a bit slower than one with a smaller diameter. The handle on the X-Dream is also supposed to
be more comfortable and easier to handle with cut out for your fingers.
The
Climb X Pilot is the first harness that I have owned that is not a Black
Diamond. I enjoy this harness for sport
climbing, top rope gym sessions, single pitch trad lines, and if I am going to
set only a couple of routes. I don’t
feel that this particular harness has the comfort design for long multi-pitch
routes, especially if there are a lot of hanging belays. Likewise if you are planning on hanging in
your harness for a couple of hours while setting you’d probably want a
different harness. With all that said I
still enjoyed climbing in it. One of the
first things that you might notice about the Pilot is that the gear loops look
to be made of fabric, and you would be correct.
My past experiences with fabric gear loops have not been very positive
due to the fact that they eventually become limp and don’t hang gear in a
satisfactory way, but the way the loops are designed on the Pilot allows the
gear to be racked efficiently. The loops
are also sewn into the harness in such a way that even if they get worn out
they’ll still hang in an upright position.
Climb X Rock-It
The
Rock-It has been stated as the flagship of Climb X and for all the right
reasons. The shoe fits like a glove
straight out of the box. The Power Upper
allows for your knuckles to expand just enough that there is little to no
discomfort when sizing small and wearing for long routes, or tries between
problems. The rubber across the toes
works wonders for toe hooking and is made of actual climbing rubber, X-Factor
Rubber. The sling shot rand pulls the
back of the shoe inward creating a tight fit that will help keep your shoe on
during desperate heel hooking. This
particular model also has trade mark 3-D heel that truly does help grab on to
those little pebbles while heel hooking.
I have worn this shoe on many routes and problems and it hasn’t failed
me yet! When I need a great all-around
shoe that doesn’t sacrifice anything I always turn to the Rock-It.
Climb X Zion
The
Zion, Rad Moc, or whatever you want to call it is one kick ass shoe! It is by far the most sensitive shoe in the
Climb X fleet and that makes it a huge asset for training. This is my go to shoes when at the gym and on
the warm up at most bouldering areas.
The single Velcro gives you enough security that you can do the majority
of your heel hooks without worry. Now
with that said the tighter you size this shoe the better your heel hooks and
your precision will increase greatly, especially if you want to use it for
harder end climbing. When setting for
the local comps this is the shoe that I wear.
I have sized it big enough to be comfortable for extended periods of
time without sacrificing it performance.
Climb X E-Motion
Every
company has their one shoe that gets everything that they excel at thrown into
it and that would be the E-Motion for Climb X.
This their most expensive shoe, which isn’t really that expensive, at
$109.95. The E-Motion is a downturned,
semi-stiff, triple Velcro closure that is perfect for overhung terrain. The downturn in the toe box allows you to
pull on small foot chips as if they were jugs.
I personally use this shoe in our local cave due to the fact that it is
perfect for pulling in pockets. On the
Climb X website it is said that they are perfect for competitions and I would
have to agree. The E-Motion is a high
climbing shoe for an amazing price, thus allowing you to be able to spend less
money on more gear.
Climb X Rocker
I
am an absolute lover of slippers! When I
heard that the Rocker was going to make an appearance again for a short time I
was all over it. I sized the Rocker the
same as the Rock-It at a size 7. The
first time I tried getting this shoe on it was horrible, but after a few
sessions they loosened up to where they would go on and off with ease. So let’s break it down. The toe box is roughly the same as the
Rock-It, but with the older design. That
makes it a little less conforming to your toes, but still allows for a tight
fit. The heel hooking is always a
concern with slippers, but I haven’t had too much of an issue with that. Like I said with the Zion if you size it just
right you won’t have that problem.
