New Belay Devices In The Offing

i like my ATC. you can’t slack on attention that way.

It’s sooo sexy……

I’m glad to see it accommodates smaller-diameter ropes, as the current model has a recommended lower limit of something stupidly fat like 10mm. With how many people use 9.2-9.8mm ropes these days, that is a nice improvement…

…although I’ve been using a Petzl Fuse 9.2 for years with the current GriGri and never any slippage that I could detect.

I have a harness from about 1999 that was a free rental at a Galyans climbing wall before I inherited it. My gri-gri is equally as old… These sport climbing things have like lifetime warranties don’t they?

Wow, a redesign after 20 years? It really took them that long to come up with something that would work with ropes less than 10mm in diameter?

After years of balking over the price I was finally given a gri gri as a wedding gift (thanks, Amy). Don’t think I’ll be upgrading any time soon, but innovation is always welcome.

Looks tits! I’m ordering two, good for “hands off” belay on multi pitch!

agreed that $95 isn’t THAT much money to pay for a piece of climbing equipment that you’ll use literally every time you go climbing. It’s like splurging on a good pillow or towel – if you use it every day, why not?

My point perhaps should be applied more broadly. It seems that nearly all climbing equipment is becoming more expensive at a substantially quicker rate than inflation. 70 or 80 bucks for a set of five holds? Even the most expensive slopers were closer to 50 or 60 a few years ago. Climbing shoes have gotten ridiculous.

I don’t know why this is – perhaps so many people have pro-deals these days either by working in the gym, or by having friends who work in the gym who can hook them up? And those who don’t haven’t been around long enough to remember the lower prices, and have actual jobs and, for a combination of the aforementioned reasons, don’t give a shit about dropping some cash…

Maybe it is the right business model for such a niche market, it just seems like if I were getting into climbing now I’d find it hard to stomach $95 – I’d use an ATC until I met someone who would “totally prodeal that for you bro” and then pick it up for $50. Only after buying it at the cheaper price would I realize that $95 would have TOTALLY been worth it, and Petzl would have missed out.

I don’t know, I’m just throwing out things to consider – the outdoor industry is bizarre and I have little grounding in economics.

I hate to date myself – but I started climbing a few years prior to the introduction of the Gri-Gri.

While at first I was reluctant to give up my BD ATC when I was forced to work with the Gri Gri I quickly learned to like it.

If you want to be macho and belay only on an ATC that is fine. ATC’s are light, tried and true, versatile, and cheap. I’ll grant it would certainly be beneficial if most new climbers learned how to belay on them BEFORE getting the gri gri in their hands.

But let me tell you – you are the guy I worked with who wanted to belay off a munter hitch because he was an old school alpine guide and didn’t like the ATC or chalk.

So far as I can tell Gri Gri’s were not made for rope soloing… If you belay with them with proper technique you will be fine. Plus if you get hit in the head or pass out or get attacked by hornets…a bear.. .a lion… your climber might appreciate the autolock.

I’m a big fan of other devices – the Mammut Smart, Reverso – lots of neat gear to understand.

Terrible ad – a product long overdue.