Winter’s here, and so is the gear. Whether you’re chasing sends indoors, heading for alpine missions, or just keen to upgrade a few essentials, there’s a fresh batch of releases worth checking out. From Scarpa’s new precision shoes to Petzl’s updated axe and Patagonia’s lightest Nano-Air yet, we’ve pulled together some of the season’s standouts—tested by real climbers, made for real adventures. Here’s what’s new.
Scarpa Drago XT
The Drago and Drago LV have become almost iconic shoes within the comp climbing scene, and subsequently the indoor bouldering scene, as many climbers wear whatever shoe their climbing idol wears—look like Oce, climb like Oce! Well, Scarpa has just introduced a new member of the ‘Drago family’ with the XT, but what’s the difference? Apart from the obvious (full black, double strap, etc), the difference is mainly in the fit and the heel design. To give people the best chance of fitting something within the Drago family, the XT has a slightly narrower forefoot and a much narrower heel than both the Drago and Drago LV (small-heeled people rejoice). You might also notice the heel is sporting a different look, and it is…but maybe not in the way you’re expecting. You’d be forgiven for thinking the XT’s honeycomb-patterned heel is moulded, but it’s not. Scarpa has really emphasised not wanting to use any moulded parts, and has instead made the heel from a single flat piece of slightly thicker (3mm) rubber that’s been laser etched and then carefully wrapped onto the shoe to create an almost seamless heel that still provide plenty of tension (which sounds like an extremely painstaking process). The rest of the shoe has stayed more or less the same as the other Dragos (though fit will obviously affect how it feels to climb in). So if Dragos haven’t quite fit you in the past, maybe give these a try.
RRP: $329.95
Available at local stockists
Instinct VSR LV
Speaking of iconic shoes, the Instinct family is also getting a new addition with the new purple VSR LV. For those wondering how this differs from the VS LV (the teal instinct, for those allergic to acronyms), the VSR LV will have a slightly different volume and fit—still low volume, but in a different way. Scarpa says that most of the volume change will be in the heel, which is narrower, but similar in height/depth to the VSR and VS heel (blue and orange ones). Scarpa has also made some minor updates to the toe patch to lower the risk of rubber catching and peeling. Other than that, it features the same rubber, materials, and midsole as the standard VSR, just adding a different fit for those who need it (or those who just like purple a lot).
RRP: $329.95
Available at local stockists
Petzl Glacier & LINKIN
With all the focus on innovative new tech for fast & light alpinism in the gear world, it’s nice to see companies haven’t forgotten about gear for us mere mortals. The new Glacier is still a traditional straight shafted mountaineering axe/piolet, with a few meaningful updates. The pick has been overhauled to a slightly more aggressive geometry and pick taper, more holes have been added to lighten things up (a 50cm Glacier weighs 320g, or 340g with the LINKIN), and the adze has been re-shaped to provide a better grip in the piolet-canne position. Petzl has also updated the spike & pick protectors and designed a new removable leash, the LINKIN, for your piolet carrying pleasure. The Glacier is available in four lengths (50, 60, 68, & 75 cm), and the Linkin leash ($34.95) and new pick/spike protectors ($28.95) can also be purchased individually.
RRP: $229.95 (Glacier), $254.95 (Glacier Linkin)
Available at local stockists
TNF Women’s Direct Sun Hoodie
Say it with me: “sun hoodies are for winter too”! The new Summit Series Direct Hoodie is designed with climbing and mountaineering in mind, built using The North Face’s LIGHTRANGE™ fabric to help maximise sun protection (UPF 40+) and moisture management. It features a fancy centre half zip (YKK® AquaGuard® FLATKNIT®), adjustable hood, thumb loops, and more flat sewn seams than you can throw an ice axe at (most importantly, the shoulder seams). The cut is also designed for full arms-up mobility while climbing, lest it untuck from your harness, all weighing in at 158g and a pretty slick colour.
RRP: $200.00
Available at thenorthface.com.au
Wild Country Session 2.0 Harness
The Session harness is back in black…and several shades of green. The Session 2.0 is the latest update to Wild Country’s all-rounder harness, with a new look and some tasteful tweaks. Firstly, they’ve added a new abrasion-resistant ripstop fabric to the outside to improve durability—for all you thrutchers out there! They’ve also swapped out the old belay loop for a 16mm Dyneema one, and added wear indicator threads to the bottom tie-in point (hint: when you see red, it’s time to retire it). There is also a women’s specific fit (the lighter green one), which Wild Country states is ‘specifically designed to fit the female anatomy based on extensive testing with women climbers’. Both versions feature 5 gear loops, 2 ice clipper slots, adjustable legs, and weigh in at 374g (Women’s small) & 395g (Men’s small)
RRP: $159.95
Available at climbinganchors.com.au
Patagonia Nano-Air Ultralight
There are plenty of gear prototypes and ideas out there that will never see the light of day, thankfully this isn’t one of them. The new Nano-Air Ultralight Hoody is a lighter version of a light version of the original Nano-Air…and as funny as that sounds, it makes perfect sense. It features just 20g of FullRange® insulation in the torso, hood, and upper arms, which is all you need during proper high-output activities. They’ve also added panels of Capilene® Cool fabric at the forearms, meaning the sleeves are easily pulled up to help you dump heat, hood that plays nice both with and without a helmet. In the interests of keeping things light (and light it is at 249g), you won’t find any hand pockets here, just a very generous chest pocket that the whole hoody stuffs into should you want to rack it—though we doubt you would ever need to take it off. Apparently this piece is quickly becoming a favourite amongst Patagonia’s sponsored athletes, and we can certainly see why! PS: it’s also available in a half-zip pullover jacket.
RRP: $399.95 (Hoody) & $329.95 (Jacket)
Available at patagonia.com.au
This gear review originally featured in Vertical Life # 51. Grab your copy here
