Category Archives: Gear Reviews

Every climber worth their chalk knows you can never have enough gear! Pros and cons of gear I’ve used, loved, and hated!

SNOWMAGEDDON (and Ducksday Giveaway!)

Feb 05 2014

It’s always a spectacle to the rest of the country when the Southeast gets some winter precipitation, but last week was about the most ridiculous I’d seen in a long time. Our forecasts started calling for the white stuff around lunchtime, with expected accumulations of 3-4 inches in our area. At noon the sun was shining and not a cloud was in the sky…then the weather app on my phone shifted to snow at 4:00…then 5:00. Finally around 6 a fine mist started swirling around outside. I’m not sure you could even call it snow, as it was more like…Read the rest of this entry →

Mountain Mama Review Collage – 3rd Trimester

Jan 29 2014

At 24 weeks I reviewed my collection of Mountain Mama threads that had so generously been provided to me by Teresa Delfin and her awesome niche company. As promised, I’ve written an updated version now that I’m in the latter stages of pregnancy. Also reviewed are some new clothing items that I hadn’t received yet at the time of my 2nd trimester review. Update from 2nd Trimester Threads: (For a more thorough description of each piece, check out the 2nd trimester review here) Tenaya V-Neck Eco Tee and Anya Performance Tee – These tees have both grown with me over the past…Read the rest of this entry →

New Offerings From Trango: Antidote Rope Bag and Cord Trapper (and GIVEAWAY!)

Jan 19 2014

In the past 2 years I’ve been signed on with Trango, one of the things I’ve come to love about this company is their innovation and creativity in product design. They see a problem, and they devise a product to fix it in a practical way. If you want an auto-locking belay device that also feeds rope smoothly, the Cinch is for you. If you want a pair of aggressive shoes that can still smear once you pull over that burly roof and onto the face, the Oasi’s are a perfect choice. And this “problem-solving” mindset is not just limited…Read the rest of this entry →

The Mountain Mama by Mad Rock: A Pregnancy Climbing Harness!

Jan 09 2014

With my first child I was blessed to have a relatively easy pregnancy, and was delighted that I never had to stop climbing. My original plan had been to climb until it became uncomfortable and stopped being fun…but that never happened, and my last session ended up being at the gym less than 48 hours before my son was welcomed into the world! That’s not to say that I was climbing at my pre-pregnancy intensity, or that I didn’t make any changes to my routine. I listened to my body and took it easy when I needed to, and stopped…Read the rest of this entry →

Boba 4G Review (Toddler Version…)

Dec 19 2013

Even though our little guy is not quite so little anymore (birthday number 4 coming up this spring!!!), I still regularly get questions about the best gear for infants. And while we certainly had our go-to gear favorites when it came to adventuring with the crag-kiddo, the gear junkie in me is thrilled to try out the latest and greatest in infant outdoor gear! (And as a side note, I’m shocked at all the stuff that is on the market NOW as opposed to just a few short years ago…) That being said, I’m very excited about the opportunity to…Read the rest of this entry →

“Not all who wander are lost.” —JRR TOLKIEN