Altura Boulder 3/4 Shorts

Advantages: Cheap, relativly light
Disadvantages: Leash comes off

...and cracked by being used in grade III winter climb on thin ice with hard rock under the ice. When holding the axe head in your hand and putting weight on the head, you will get a sore hand after a while, although this is quit common. The axe feels fairly comfortable enough, to use when held acros the chest, and the wist strip looks and feels studry enough, The strap can travel from the top of the shaft to almost 3/4 to the bottom of the shaft where it is stopped by a welded on ring that keeps the lease on the shaft. The lease also has a plastic adjustment to make sure it fits the wrist snuggly. The axe, although light does have enough weight in the head to make penetrating solid ice relativly easy. Having practised on a steep (and yes safe slope) for a while, i felt confident enough to take the Anoch Engich ridge in Glen Coe with in. After... Read review

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Advantages: Nice ride, reasonable pricetag
Disadvantages: suspensions a touch soft

...The £250 price tag means you can't expect an incredible bike, but giant do very well with the money, providing a good set of equipment for a first bike. The Suntour M7600 forks give about 3 inchs of travel they are slightly soft but rarely bottom out. The gears are a fifteen gear set, with shimano altus rear mech and rapid fire ez shifters, which are cool. The brakes are v-brakes which take a little getting used to, but will definitly stop you! The frame comes in anything from 14" to 21.5" which means you can choose the right size for you. The overall ride is pretty smooth, the control is good, the braking is excellent without being too fine. It's the kind of bike that lets you belt up and down hills, but can also be used safely on the road. In conclusion a great bike for a starter, with a reasonable equipment range and a nice price... Read review

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Advantages: Comfortable, durable, all round
Disadvantages: A beginners shoe

...shoes they are not designed with a specific style of climbing in mind. Some shoes you can by are curved with extra rubber for toe and heel hooking that would normally be of most use on a bouldering problem. This is the only real disadvantage as I found that as my climbing progressed I needed a shoe capable of doing what I was trying to do with my feet. There is no real edge to the toe so when tottering on tiny flakes of rock by the tips of your toes it was often difficult to get any real purchase. This tended to put a bit more strain on the arms and led to getting pumped quicker. I try to climb 2-3 days a week if possible and these shoes have held out well. They lasted the best part of a year and weren't in tatters when I replaced them so are still handy if I'm taking someone climbing who maybe doesn't own a pair of their own rock shoes... Read review

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