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I was wandering around Backcountry.com earlier today—a tic of mine when I don’t want to be doing what I’m supposed to be doing—when I realized that one of my favorite jackets from the last few years was on sale for barely more than $100 dollars.
Click.
I was halfway through the checkout process when I came back to consciousness and realized that I already own the coat I was purchasing. It’s waiting for winter in my gear closet. So I removed it from my cart and scrolled around a bit more. What I saw, among other things, was more gear that I had tested, and loved, and reviewed. So I decided to make a deals post.
Here are five pieces of gear I’d absolutely buy if I didn’t already own them.
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Black Diamond Solution Harness for $60 (was $80)
The Black Diamond Solution is a basic sport climbing harness. It’s nothing special, but it’s also all you need. It’s cheap, it’s light, and it’s far more comfortable than most harnesses I’ve tested that are twice the price. I bought my Solution two years before I got this job, and I still often wear it when I’m not testing other harnesses. It’s got four gear loops, fixed leg-loops, and absolutely no frills… unless you end up (as I did) with the Honnold Edition, which is not currently on sale, and which—aside from the fact it’s signed by the lanky titan himself—is identical to the regular Solution. I like to think I climb harder with it.
La Sportiva Skwama Vegan for $139 (was $199)
La Sportiva’s Skwama Vegan, an excellent all-around sport and bouldering shoe, is basically identical to the much-loved OG model except it doesn’t use animal-sourced materials. The Skwama (both vegan and original) is softer and more comfortable than the Solution line (both iterations), which means that it loses some pure edging performance; and it’s stiffer than many gym-focused shoes (the Drago, the Veloce L), which means that it’s less bendy than ideal for indoor parkour climbs. But as a result of these compromises, I found that the Skwama excelled on a huge variety of terrain. I wore it on everything from vertical basalt sport climbs to technical limestone cave boulders to marathon gym training sessions.
Tester tip: size up a half size. They’ll be comfortable on day one and won’t change much, since the leather alternative doesn’t break in like leather. The Skwama Vegan is currently on our list of Our Favorite Sport Climbing Shoes.
Outdoor Research SuperStrand LT Hoodie $105-$131 (was $234)
I reviewed the SuperStrand LT Hoodie nearly three years ago—and I still love it. Lightweight and athletically cut, the SuperStrand is a mid or outer layer for climbers of all kinds. The VerticalX™ SuperStrand insulation combines the principal benefits of traditional down insulation (lightweight flexibility and great warmth-to-weight ratio) with the principal benefits of synthetic insulation (warmth when wet and animal-free materials). Meanwhile, the hoodie’s supple ripstop nylon fabric is wind-resistant, and the discontinuous quilting pattern reduces weight from excess stitching.
From my January 2022 review:
I’ve spent the past four months (autumn and winter) traveling back and forth between New Mexico and Massachusetts, and in that time have literally worn my SuperStrand LT Hoodie most of the day, every day. I’ve worn it bouldering, I’ve worn it hiking, I’ve worn it hangboarding in the garage. I’ve worn it while doing yoga. I wore it when moving the contents of my apartment into a moving truck in a Massachusetts snowstorm. Then I wore it while driving the truck. I’m wearing it right now, over a T-shirt, as I write this review, and I’ll wear it (over some base layers) out to the boulders tonight.
What I’m getting at is this: The SuperStrand LT Hoodie is (a) pretty awesome and (b) extremely versatile. For me, it occupies the same clothing niche as a sweatshirt or fleece—except it’s far lighter. Worn over a few base layers and under a hard shell, it can play the role of a winter coat; but worn over a T-shirt, it’s more like a flannel. During my climbing days, I often wear it for the approach and warm-up. Sometimes I remove it while climbing, but other times—as with a recent night session on the basalt boulders outside Santa Fe, when temperatures never got above freezing—I’ll spend the entire session in my hoodie, wearing a heavier puffy over it while resting.
$105-$131 at Backcountry (Men’s)
$105-$131 at Backcountry (Women’s)
Scarpa Quantix SF for $132 (was $189)
When I reviewed Scarpa’s Quantix SF in late 2022, I called it the best new all-around sport shoe of the year—outperforming many specialized shoes even though it looks less flashy and costs much less.
From my review:
One reason that the La Sportiva Solution [also 30 percent off!] was such a popular and groundbreaking shoe was that it combined an aggressive downturn with a stiff midsole and a sensitive toe box, building something that performed equally well on overhanging and vertical terrain. The Quantix shares this strength. Built with their new “Single Frame” technology, which Scarpa says “holds the foot from below like a hand providing even pressure around the entire foot,” the Quantix has a stiff outsole, medium soft midsole, and soft heel, all of which combine to create a shoe that’s capable of extending far on edges without the tip of the shoe changing shape and losing purchase on whatever edge you’re standing on. It is—with the possible exception of the Muira VS and the Katana—the single best shoe I’ve used when doing powerful moves on terrible feet. (Note: I must say, it has a rival now in Ocun’s Sigma, which I reviewed this spring and is currently not on sale.)
Read the full review here. Surprise, surprise, the Quantix SF made the list of Our Favorite Sport Climbing Shoes.
La Sportiva TC Pro for $142 (was $219)
I’m no trad climber, but I do own a pair of La Sportiva’s legendary TC Pros. Actually, I own two pairs. I bust out the small pair whenever I’m trying hard, low-angle granite. And I bust out the big pair whenever I’m heading up something moderate and properly long. I’m not quite versed enough in the trad shoe market to have written my own review of these—but I do know enough to stand by most of what Chris Van Leuven said in his review for us.