UKC

I've had quite a lazy day today so have written an article about some thoughts of mine on gear.

http://chriscowdreyclimbing.blogspot.co.uk/2015/01/it-wont-make-you-climb-h...

Now, the title and last sentence is not mine, i read it some where and quite liked it, so who ever said it, give them the credit Let me know what you think, both good and bad points.

Cheers,

Chris

In reply to Mr-Cowdrey:

People have different approaches to gear. Some will strive for 'perfection', some will like to experiment, some will stick with what they know, and some will just get on with it. And some are combinations of all those... I think you've described one subset of people, which is those who want 'the best', for one or more reasons...

I don't read the comics any more, and don't trawl gear shops much, either, so I'm not influenced by adverts, and certainly not influenced by what 'role models' might use (I've never been that much of a 'fan' of anyone). My fetish is for trying different things out, and looking for value for money, functional gear, wherever it comes from. Which means that I won't buy stuff from Arc'teryx or Jottnar, and only buy Patagonia stuff when it's heavily discounted (although I could easily afford it). I'm perfectly happy with buying and using stuff from Lidl, Aldi and Decathlon, provided I've assessed it and decided it's fit for purpose; most of the stuff I've bought in the last couple of years has come from Decathlon.

Only a certain select few items ever get worn out, as most get replaced with the next thing I've found cheap and want to try. The things that get worn out have to really good (for me, at least). If I look back through my wardrobe, I'd say the one thing that has generally improved over the years is design; jackets are better tailored, with carefully cut panels, pockets in the tight place, well-designed, helmet-compatible hoods with wired peaks, etc. Or maybe that's just how my collection has grown, as I've come to appreciate these nuances... Even Paramo have slimmed the fit on some of their jackets... It has to be said that many of these improvements have come from the top-end guys like Arc'teryx and Patagonia, and have filtered down.

I do like things that fit nicely, and I know that, aside from the purely functional aspect, there's also an image thing going on, however much I like to think I'm completely rational in my choice of gear. I like to think that image is an internally-generated one, but I suspect it is acquired by osmosis. So I probably am influenced by adverts and shop displays after all...

In the past, I've opted for muted 'natural' colours like greys, as I don't want to be visual pollution in the hills. But I found a cheap ReadyMix in 'Mango' a while back, so this has been my skiing shell of choice. Coincidentally, it colour-coordinates with a Berghaus Scorch PTP pullover (TKMaxx) and a Quechua winter base layer (in sale). Judging by outfits around me over New Year, it seems that orange is one of the new blacks, at least in the skiing world... I still can't see me wearing the mango ReadyMix when hillwalking; too much pollution... The 'Alpine Ninja' is black isn't great for photos (see threads passim), so adverts tend to use bright colours that are more photogenic. And most companies succumb to the 'colour trend predictions', hence the profusion of acid-coloured contrasting zips a couple of years ago.

The 'classic three-layer' setup of base layer, fleece & waterproof is only really 'classic' during the lifespan of breathable shell materials, and the 'soft shell revolution' can be considered a return to layering systems used prior to the development of breathable shell fabrics. Yes, we're spoilt for choice these days, partly due to the increasingly niche-oriented soft shells (no-one's found the 'classic' setup yet), and partly due to good old consumerism.

Does my choice of gear make me perform better? No. Does it make the experience more comfortable? Sometimes, if I've chosen wisely from the vast collection of gear...

In reply to captain paranoia:

I agree with you, I was going to write a bit more about others approach to gear, but this was writing from previous personal experiences.


This is my approach to buying gear now and justifying whether i actually 'need' it or not.



This is what i was trying to get at

In reply to captain paranoia:

I'm with you on the decathalon kit, I have some great stuff from there. I also have a fair number of trousers and fleeces from tresspass and mountain warehouse, I've never seen the need to spend 50 quid on a fleece! I usually wear hand knitted hats, and my best mittens for the hill have been from TK Maxx.

However, I do spend money on ice breaker kit. I am one of life's cold bunnies, and a couple of icebreaker base layers are so worth the money!

In reply to Mr-Cowdrey:

A well written blog, Chris, with some interesting questions raised.

I confess to sharing the same gear fetish as you. As for posters complaining about the prices of top end gear and how they soloed the 1938 route in a free council bin bag, they are just missing the point. We like researching gear, we love everything about technical fibres, and whatever the conditions of the (usually wet and wintry) climb, we've had the delicious pleasure of carefully choosing our clothing system to extract that little bit more comfort out of our miserable wet day. To the doubters I say, go fill your underpants with wet teabags and recreate that Paramo feeling!

In reply to BnB:


Some do, some don't. Personally I'm in the old pullovers and a 15yo cagoule group which works for me. I'm in my mid 30s and still use my old school bag as my 'daysack' when I need something for climbing with. We're all different.

jk

In reply to Mr-Cowdrey:

Nice article.

For me I spend big money on protection that works, decent money on a warm jacket, and the rest is bargain bin or charity shops!

As far as general clothing goes if its suitable for the job and I can move in it, it'll do.

In reply to Steve nevers:


Last year I replaced my set of original 1980s forged friends with two sets of modern cams (Totems & Dragons). Ouch. That's it for the gear budget for the next year or two.

In reply to Mr-Cowdrey: Nice article Chris!

FWIW I just had someone at the wall on Monday say to me that they were surprised at my choice of climbing shoes. I wear, and have done for ages, what are generally thought of as (i.e. marketed as) beginners' shoes.

The truth is they are not. However, as you rightly draw attention to in your blog, the combined marketing efforts of climbing shoe companies seem to have established a new 'norm'. These have apparently convinced many climbers that the threshold for 'needing' £100+ 'performance' shoes is now something like V3/4 and f6c, whereas in my mind I'm thinking my current shoes are probably good for at least V8 or f7c.

To be honest, I'm mostly as guilty as the next man in terms of having loads of shiny new gear, however, in my defence, I do normally succeed in actually taking less of it up routes, than many.

In reply to Mr-Cowdrey:

I like having decent gear (pretty much always bought in a sale) when I really need it.
Wouldn't dream of cragging on a mildly breezy day in a £300+ technical jacket like plenty of folk you see.

Likewise don't wear mountain clothing to the pub or shops; "civvies" are generally cheaper and that way your mountain clothes last much longer.

In reply to Mr-Cowdrey:

It's not just gear manufacturers that push the attitudes you describe though, the mainstream press join in whenever someone comes a cropper in the hills the first things to hit the papers is how they were wearing jeans and a T-Shirt...because of course navigational skills and fitness don't affect your safety it's just what you're wearing. There is a perception that you can buy safety instead of earning the skills. the big marketing con is that the more you spend the more comfortable you'll be, but that's not very attractive to people so clothing is sold on style, an association with hard climbing and of course the perception that you can buy safety.

In reply to AlanLittle:


Bought a set of dragons last year..
..and have used the size 3 to back up a slackline so far, crap crag choice year 2014 was!