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Mountain Standards Award

Petzl e+lite: For Emergencies and Every Day

The luggage gods are not kind. Multiple times, when traveling internationally, I’ve had to wait days for my luggage to catch up with me. I’m starting to get used to it–but it becomes problematic when I’m scheduled to guide clients and my gear is in airline purgatory. This was the case at the outset of a recent twelve-day trip to the Alps. Luckily, my bags arrived on the first evening as we prepared to leave for a backcountry hut. But one of our clients was not so lucky–her bag had not arrived by the time we departed. Between me and the other guide, we assembled an ample amount of climbing gear for the client. She ended up with my normal LED headlamp, and I pulled the Petzl e+lite from my first aid kit to use for myself.

Rab Power Stretch Grip Glove: Almost Too Sticky!

This lightweight glove packs a punch for as light as it is and as well as it climbs. Had the temperatures been more normal in the Tetons this season, I probably would have squeezed more milage out of the thin Rab gloves, but global warming had most of us stripped to light sleeves–and certainly gloveless–many a day up high.

Arc’teryx Dually Belay Parka: Avoiding Wetness for Winter Warmth

When I first heard of a new truly hydrophobic (no water absorbtion) synthetic belay parka called the Dually Belay Parka from Arc’teryx, I was sure it could not be true. We have all heard the promise before: “This synthetic insulation will keep you warm even when it’s wet.” The disappointment of realizing you are not warm–but in fact cold–sitting in a damp belay parka is true betrayal. This feeling goes away when you realize there is no better solution. Now there is no reason to compromise, or be wet and cold, as the Dually Belay Parka insulates while refusing to absorb water.

Grivel G12 Crampons: Do-It-All Spikes

Anyone who has exited from the top of the Aiguille du Midi ice cave to descend the narrow ridge leading into the Vallee Blanche above Chamonix will agree: it has your full attention. To the left, the ridge drops away down the famous Frendo Spur, somewhere in the neighborhood of 4,500 vertical feet. To the right, 800 feet of 50-degree snow will drop you to the base of the Midi’s south face. So as I guide two guests down the steep and exposed arete, the last thing I need is my crampons balling up. Holding the rope tight between us, I wait for just the right moment, when all’s steady, to whack my boots with my axe and knock the snow from them. That’s it. I am buying new crampons, I tell myself. Tying yourself to people who are seemingly trying to pull you off of your feet every other step can make the cost of a new pair of spikes seem like chump change.

Mountain Hardwear Typhoon Jacket: No Water, No Weight

The search for the perfect multi-season jacket is exasperating–it has to perform well in various temperatures and conditions yet pack well, weigh nothing and (most importantly) look good. So you can imagine my excitement when I found a lightweight, durable shell that lived up to all my expectations. I found Mountain Hardwear’s Women’s Typhoon Jacket to be the perfect merger of fashion, function, and price. Weighing in at thirteen ounces and sporting a reasonable retail price of $199, its design and color options add a sense of style that rounds out this performance garment.

Rab Neutrino Endurance Jacket: An Alpinist’s Dream Come True

Sometimes first impressions are hard to shake, and I tried not to let my first impression of the Rab Neutrino Endurance jacket influence this review. No luck. The jacket wowed me at first appearance. Made from a water-resistant Pertex Endurance outer fabric and packed with 850+ goose down fill, it’s an alpinist’s dream come true: maximum warmth to weight ratio in a lightweight, weatherproof package.

FiveTen Camp 4 Approach Shoes: Sturdy and Steadfast

My go-to approach shoe for three years has been the La Sportiva Exum Ridge. Sturdy yet nimble, stealthy enough for talus-hopping but rugged enough to endure all the missteps that result in abrasion, the shoe has held tough for me through three summers in the Tetons without blowing out or debilating the tread. It’s a tough benchmark to beat.

Metolius Monster Rope: Worth the Weight

When you hear the name “Monster,” it may conjure visions of a huge, ugly beast. Or for all you movie buffs it might bring a horrifying vision of Charlize Theron and Christina Ricci. Scary. Luckily, when I hear the name “Monster,” I associate it with Metolius’ climbing rope line–burly and strong.

MSR 22″ Lightning Ascent Snowshoes: Strong Like Bull

Let’s begin with an understanding. If given the choice either to snowshoe or ski on an approach, I am going to pick skis every time. When guiding on Denali, however, I find that the combination of people’s varied ski skills, and the fact that we are schlepping huge loads up the Kahiltna Glacier, makes snowshoes the right choice.

Black Diamond C3 Camalots: Four-Season Approval

I was looking forward to getting a set of Black Diamond’s new C3 cams since I first saw the prototypes, and when I did, they were everything I expected them to be. They’ve been on my rack for a year now, and have been put to the test in just about every condition imaginable. From the misty summit of Torre Egger to a first ascent on Mt. Alberta; from greasy Squamish finger splitters to Bugaboo wall routes; and from overhanging quartzite trad routes at the back of Lake Louise to the mixed desperates of the Icefield Parkway, these cams have served me well. Despite the abuse, they’re still working like new. They’ve held my repeated whippers, inspired the confidence I need when it comes time to run it out, and have shaved precious grams off the weight I’ve carried.