What's on In My Climbing Rack? Climbing Gear that I Take on Every Climb
(This post contains affiliate links, which means that if you click on one of the product links and make a purchase, I’ll receive a small commission at no extra cost to you. This helps support the channel and allows us to continue to make videos like this. Thank you for the support!)
Last week, I talked about self-reliance. Well, that’ got to be a least part of the topic, again, this week. If we are talking about equipment, then the question is, ”Why bring [this or that particular piece] of equipment?'“ And the answer to that question has to be because that equipment lets you do something.
Well, when I’m talking about going into vertical or other environments with objective hazards (like glaciers), then the equipment I have with me has to be able to help me deal with unlikely but consequential experiences like falls, injuries, or medical issues. That’s what a first aid kit, is, after all, isn’t it? A bunch of equipment to help you deal with a situation (medical, in this case)? Well, in these complicated environments of crevasses or vertical rock faces, just getting to someone who needs help has to be step one, and that means having the stuff I need to help me accomplish that task - a task which is easy to mention but really hard to do, sometimes.
Then we can add in other kinds of risks that are potentially complicated by outdoor environments. What if I am high on a peak, and I’m past the point of return: it would take too long to go down before weather or some other risk becomes great. In other words, there are times where I must go up. Okay, all well in good until I get to some 5.13 rock or some other seemingly impassable obstacle relative to my climbing ability.
That’s where being able to do short sections of aid climbing might come into play.
Is this the best style? Absolutely not. But if it came down to style versus an outsized risk of severe injury or death, I’ll let go of style every time.
So, through both coaching and tinkering, I’ve got this standard set of personal gear down to a minimum amount to allow me to deal with the most complex situations I may end up in: crevasse falls, injuries on a vertical face, and climbing terrain that is above my ability. Of course, it has to do the standard stuff, too (like belays and rappels), but it’s the non-standard stuff that I’m thinking about, here.
So, from the video, here is the list of equipment, presented as links that you can use to find the specific versions of the items that I use.