Mountain Athlete
Even for an experienced equipment tester helmets are an inherently difficult thing to review. Despite their many and varied design features helmets are really there for one obvious reason, to protect your head from the type of serious impact you ideally want to avoid. So their is always a certain guilt associated with commenting on …
I have long been a dedicated fan of synthetic insulation. The last 12 years of winter climbing in Scotland have taught me many things about surviving brutal winter conditions in the mountains. Among the most critical, is that if you want your insulation to fight with you to the very end as you do battle on …
Continue reading "Review: Black Diamond Stance Belay Parka & First Light Hoody"
This review is a quick follow up to this post from back in February: https://scottbecker.co.uk/2019/02/08/review-rab-mythic-sleeping-bag-alpine-bivi/ At the time I discussed the features of Rab's top end Alpine Bivi bag, but had yet to personally test it in action. Having recently come home after almost two months in Patagonia for the winter season, I can assure …
As I packed my bags to return to the wild mountains of Patagonia this winter it became pretty clear to me that I was going to need a serious clothing system. With some ambitious plans in the pipeline, I needed hard shells that could do everything. I needed comfort for the brutally long approaches, as …
Continue reading "The Sharp End: testing top of the range pro shells from Black Diamond"
Mention solo climbing to anyone and you will inevitably get mixed reactions. Most people will immediately conjure up extreme images in their head of the most insanely epic freesolo climb they have ever heard about, before promptly calling you crazy. Others will take a more pragmatic approach in their judgement, considering the practical issues and …
Continue reading "Patagonia winter solo attempt: Aguja Guillaumet"
In the mountains sometimes success finds you when you least expect it. When Matthew Tufts suggested I join him and Pedro Fina for the start of their icecap traverse so I said why not, knowing little about the actual objective the had in mind. There were several days of good weather on the forecast and …
Continue reading "Cerro Rincon: a new route and a summit in Patagonia at last!"
It’s been several days now since Carlos and I stumbled back into El Chalten after eight exhausting days alone in the cold Patagonian winter. We stretched our supplies of food and gas to the limit so by the time we made it back to town we were completely destroyed both physically and mentally. Since getting …
After a few weeks of waiting for a good weather window to climb in Patagonia, the overwhelming uncertainty and the pressure it brings with it can really start to take its toll on your psyche. You know need to stay motivated and keep the belief that the good climbing weather will eventually come before its …
After a few busy months I am lucky enough to find myself back in Patagonia. It’s been a tough winter for me in the northern hemisphere with poor climbing conditions in Scotland and all the pressures of normal life taking their toll. Down here time seems to move more slowly and this seems to be …
Having worked in the outdoor industry for several years it takes something special to really grab my attention these days. Every once in awhile though, I encounter something truly unique and this year that was the Dolomite Veloce GTX. So what is the Veloce GTX? To label this product as an approach shoe, trail shoe …
