It is reasonable to say at this point in history–now that popular climbing media has existed for decades–that there are climbing superstars: athletes that combine a definitive personality with difficult and stylistically charged climbs. Alexander Huber is certainly one of those superstars…
“Man, I wish my thumbs were bigger.” Testing these gloves is, unquestionably, the only time in my life I have uttered that phrase. The Marmot Alpinist Pro glove has, far and away, the largest thumb of any glove I’ve ever worn. I don’t know how to rectify this fact with the rest of my impressions of the glove, which were generally positive.
Several years ago I humped a 92-pound pack full of the cheapest, heaviest climbing gear in the world uphill for several days in Wyoming’s Wind River Range. We’re talking old school: full-gate oval biners on everything; 11mm ropes; old, rigid-stem Friends; big hexes; everything horrid you can imagine. I seriously debated purchasing either a large dog or a small burro for my next expedition.
There are a multitude of reasons we climb–more often than not they are expressed in pithy, sound-bite phrases like Mallory’s “Because it’s there.” Within, Mike Robertson offers a reason more satisfying.
