Delmarco

DO NOT GET THE Osprey Switch!!!! I had that pack for a year and found it to be one of the most useless packs for anything other than snowboarding. I sold my switch 45 on eBay in December and got a Lowe Alpine Snow Attack 50. At 50 liters it is a little big, but it compresses well down to daypack size and will carry everything you mentioned above... see below. Compared to the $189 price tag of the Switch, the Snow Attack cost me around $99. My useless Switch 45 that I got rid of(purely for snowboarding)

MAMMUT Taku Pants! Any lighter and you'd think you were naked! I had gotten two pairs by accident and sold one last fall on eBay. Retail you can prolly find these for around $99 or less if on sale.

I'm curious as to what size show you wear. I also have the Vertecals and found them to fit perfect in the correct size that I wear. I upgraded from my Degres and I admit I had all the problems you have with the Vertecals, but with the Degres. 1. Vertecals tend to fit more exact so no need to get a smaller size. In terms of width, I admit Verts are on the slim side and People I climb tell me they prefer wider, roomier Expeds over Verts because of that. These are things the store clerk should of told you. Unless you got them online. 2. I figure that Verts aren't as warm as I thought, but I've only worn them out in -25 weather and that was once this season and it wasn't during ice climbing. I usually climb above 0, not by choice but because of where I climb...so I never worry about cold feet. 3.Heel Lift is a personal thing and I find when other people say the get heel lift, I find it usually has less to do with the way my feet would fit in the same boots and more to do with the shape of their feet fitting in that boots. In other words, not a problem for me with the Verts, but I did complain about it with my old Expeds during winter hikes. I'm also looking for Intuition Liners for my Verts, but I've been holding out since I already spend way out my budget for all the gear I needed just to start ice climbing this season. I will say that I heard great things about mixing those Liners and Koflach boots.

Awesome pack! And light as well. I almost bought the same Vapor off the internet last month for ice climbing, but since the living rent-free at home days are behind me and I'm still paying off my grad school tuition I no longer care to spend more than $150 max on a 50L-60L size pack... I like Lowe Alpine packs because they perform well over the years and are torso fit friendly for the 18 to 20 inch torsos. I currently use a Lowe Alpine Ion HyperLite 60L pack that works as well in terms of being less than 4lbs when empty and hauling rugged & heavy gear securely as good as the more expensive packs-like the Vapor. I totally recommend Lowe Alpine packs since they are cheap and proven long-lasting packs. I can't tell you how many old schoolers I hike with that still use their 1994-1998 Contour 40 & 60 packs and on the same page how many noobs I hike with that bought newer $200+ super-wispy-light fabric packs with the fancy "air" suspension frames and copious strappings & clips (like the ones by North Face/Gregory) and only used them a few times before crampons or ice axes ripped thru the fabric or their packs just wore out after 1 or 2 heavy duty expeditions. The pack below is a super light Snow Attack 50L I bought at a closeout sale over the holidays and you can see the versatlity of the pack. It carries anything you need and then some. I used it once to haul the gear in the pictures and it worked perfectly for my 20 inch torso.

please do go on...I implore,

Degres also have a cheaper built on the shell where the rubber rand would peel off on some of them after a few wears. In terms of Asolo boots, My first plastics were Asolo AFS that I got for a 2000 winter backpacking trip in the ADK. They were warm when temps dipped into the -20s, but I found the shell to be stiff and the fit to be tighter than average. Also the were a pain in the ass to put on and lace up in the morning. I upgraded to the Koflach Degres in 2003 and after a few trips I had no complaints with warmth, comfort and wear-ability for long periods. I upgraded to the Koflach Verticals last month specifically for Ice Climbing and I wanted a warmer boots after the upgrade I realized that the Degre plastice shells are definately cheaper built than the Verticals/Exped shells. I would have gotten Expeds, but they felt klunky on my feet and for the price I would have paid for them I would have bought the ultra warm & light VASQUE ICE 9000 which is hailed as the future direction for Plastic Boots technology. Too bad they were sold out everywhere when I was shopping around. I'm happy with the Verticals and recommend them over Degres and definately over any Asolo boots. This is what Koflach offers w/ manufacturer warmth ratings... And the super hard to find VASQUE ICE 9000 boots said to be warmer than all the other boots whiles being very comfortable & light.

the distance from my belly button to the belay loop is average whiles the distance from my belly button to my neck is slightly shorter than average so the harness "feels" higher 'specially when its pulled on. yup the human body is a weird thing, LOL! below is an old scan (~1999) w/ the Dionysis Harness. you see the belt rides high on me (not as high as other brands tend to- exception being the Mammut harnesses I ordered that sits perfectly on me & I have to check out the adjama & meto ones you mention) when you compare to how the Mammut Focus in this link fits me 100% better and you'll see what i mean. http://www.cascadeclimbers.com/forum/ubbthreads.php/ubb/showflat/Number/636418/page/3#Post636418

Thanks Aya, I used to swear by PETZL Harnesses and I wore out my favorite Dyonisis harness over a 7 year period. I'll definately check out the Adjama next paycheck. BTW. The Mirage Harness came today and it's not as light as it looks in the picture. The blue sections seem to be stiff and contributes to most of the wieght. My problem is I have a short torso (19-20 inches) for my height and most of the newer harnesses I tried on fit higher on my waist than I'd like except the MAMMUT "contour fit" harnesses, that is why I lean towards that brand.

I don't know about the toe bail, but I spent a longer time than I expected getting the yellow antibott plates on the front end!

Awesome, Someone I actually know is now famous! Danny's an awesome guy! If you guys get a chance check it out.

Thx. I already ordered it ($39 free shipping-eBay). I needed to replace my old Mammut harness that was too small for winter climbing (see yard sale). I sold that one and decided to buy two for future use. Another reason is I sometimes climb with people (/co-workers/gfriends/relatives/kidnapped Dunkin-Donuts clerks) that don't regularly climb and own gear so sometimes I share or lend out what I have. I never considered buying fixed leg loops even for sport. I'm aware of the weight savings being the key difference that claims to improve climbing and make consumers fork up more dough at the cashwrap. I'm sure the sweat that clings and drips off the average climber from climbing a few pitches weighs more that the two buckles combined on the adjustable leg loops. Hopefully, the Mirage will come before I go up to the catskills on Thursday so I can give it some sort of review.

I've been using the USA Mammut Focus, the one sold at REI, and I came across the European version of the Focus (its also called the Mammut Mirage in the USA) last weekend and it looks much more bad-ass and lighter...I'm just not sure about comfort and wanted to know if anyone can comment on it. It's also similar to the Mammut mana harness except the leg loops are adjustable on this one. (I want to do more sport climbing this year and thinking of picking it up specifically for that.) Thanks.

dbpower amp! get it free w/ codecs from bitlord... this allows you to do just about every possible conversion of any music format.

I heard they were warm down to -20 but below 14k elevation.

I just bought Koflach Verticals in a EU 9.5 which is quoted to be a US 10 or 10.5 and I'm still perplexed over what the hell size these are. I normally wear a SIZE 44 shoe (or US 11 in Nike running sneakers and 10.5 in business shoes or Euro brand hiking boots) But these Koflach sizes are perplexing!

Oops, I forgot that this site was primarily for west coast folks. So if anyone is travelin in the NY area this fall feel free to look me up

I'm an Environmental Engineering Grad Student looking for a partner to do a couple of runs at the Gunks in New Paltz and other hotspots in New York. My bestfriend and former climbing buddy just bought a house and moved with his wife and kids in Decatur, GA this past summer, So I've been off to a slow start this season. I'm off on some weekends and thurs or fridays. I usually do day runs between Labor Day and Thanksgiving in this region. I also just moved up to Westchester just south of Hastings/ The Greystone stop on the Hudson Metro North Line...so I'm accessible to train transport or I can drive up. The Gunks are about an 1 hr or less north of me. If interested you can post back here or reply to my Blackberry olaf2046@tmo.blackberry.net. About Me: Also I'm moderate intermediate climber (climbing since I was 14, 12 yrs ago). I used to instruct for Outward Bound NY and I instruct High Ropes/Rock Wall Climbing courses in the summer. So I can climb with beginners or advance climbers.

Its called the stratus.... http://www.mtntools.com/cat/techwear/Down/mammutstratushoodedjacketvest.htm What about the North Face RedPoint Optimus? I'm also shopping around for a belay synthetic for an upcoming Patagonia trip.

I'll be there late june