Jon H

Heading up to the Canadian Rockies/Canmore area later this winter for my first visit to the area. Objectives are long alpine routes up to WI5/M7. And Polar Circus. Just because. Is the new Brent Peters book adequate? Should I try and find a (relatively) fairly priced Josephson 4th ed? Thanks all!

I think you got your front-back description crossed? Anyway, to add the "universal" heel will be problematic. The plastic cuff is riveted directly to the steel crampon heel. I doubt that the part you're looking for is even available for new purchase. You can try Liberty or you can also try The Mountaineer in Keene NY. They have been longstanding Grivel distributors and keep a very well stocked parts bin. Other option is to buy a full replacement heel. That way you can swap between crampon styles without buying a full set of new 'pons.

I can promise you this - you're gonna be miserable trying to ski in your Phantom 6000 boots. If the glacier gets any steeper than about 8 degrees (the pitch of the gentlest bunny slopes), you're gonna have a really bad time. My partner and I both took Phantom Guides and Silvrettas to Chamonix just to tool around on the glacier and approach climbs. It was an unmitigated disaster and nearly ruined our trip. And we weren't even trying to ski with sleds. Just daypacks.

Great story. I love tales of adversity overcome by teamwork in the mountains.

JCA - thanks for posting these great historical reports.

I'll say it now - any belay technique with the brake hand in a "palm up" position is downright terrible. It doesn't matter whether you're using an ATC, Grigri, Cinch, Smart, or any other device I can think of* - turn your damn brake hand palm down and belay. *(One minor exception - the relatively rare AlpineUp, when used to belay leader on double ropes, is probably better with a palms up technique. That's the only exception to the rule that I'm aware of.)

Jace asked for comments on strap configuration, not for everyone to shit on his new purchase. That's like telling your buddy that his new girlfriend is fat. Why be a dick unnecessarily?

8 pages worth of discussion on MP: http://mountainproject.com/v/edelrid-mega-jul/108052298 Long story short: Many people like it, some don't like it, everyone agrees it's not perfect. It belays a leader or toproper very well. It can be a bit jerky until you dial in the technique though, especially on rappel. You can flip it around to a plain tuber configuration (eg non locking) for rapping, but it's still nowhere near as smooth as an ATC. A couple people reported that the wire loop popped out from the device mid-rappel - not a true safety issue per se, but enormously inconvenient, and could escalate to be a safety issue in the face of objective danger, etc. I have one. I use it occasionally. It's sitting there in a bin with my Cinch, GriGri, and Alpine Smart. None of them have managed to replace my trusty ATC Guide - they all have a tradeoff that usually makes them less desirable in one (or more) performance categories. I use my Cinch for single pitch sport, and the plain old ATC for everything else (trad, multipitch, ice, alpine, mountaineering, etc).

What a wild TR. I love historical recollections. Please continue to post!

Sick TR. Thanks for posting! Makes me want to get back to Cham pronto.

The BD pick issue is mostly historical. I haven't seen any new reports of picks breaking in several years. Further, they've done a fantastic job of listening to users - the newest Laser picks don't need any tuning, they've really got the tooth profile right now. Quarks seem like the better option for what you're doing. Keep in mind their performance on mixed is so-so. You would probably be better served with Nomics (but poor performance on Lib Ridge) or something like the Cassin X-All Mountain which should tick all your requirements nicely, not to mention very affordable.

Any time you can clean your anchor pins by hand is a good time to reconsider your objective for the day.

I've also used BD heel levers on my Darts with no problems to speak of, even on some hard mixed with monopoint torquing.

Great video, thanks for posting it up. Really enjoyed the music and of course, the climbing.

Great video. The approach segments brought back memories from last summer when my partner and I took a shot at Liberty Crack. Hoping to do the Thin Red Line one day.... just gotta do a "couple" more hangboard sessions first