Crampons and their use
Crampons and their use
Crampons and their use is a contribution that will answer the questions of which crampons are on the market, what is important about them, and when they are used.
Winter always fascinates me, as nature dresses in its most beautiful whiteness and hides behind it all those black spots that we leave throughout the year. But besides being fascinating, winter also hides many traps.
One of such traps is slipping on frozen or icy surfaces. And since I believe the GRZS statistics, most accidents in winter are precisely due to slipping. And just as an ice axe belongs in the hands on frozen and snowy surfaces, crampons belong in the shoes. And the fact that not every crampon belongs in every shoe is especially true. A shoe for real and stronger crampons must be stiff and harder! Or at least the intermediate part where we attach the crampons must be stiffer and more rigid.
What crampons and why?
Which crampons we will use and why depends on our set of goals, and above all, on our experience and knowledge of using this equipment! Buying the best equipment does not mean that we are now ready for the most difficult climbs, but it is necessary to first acquire the appropriate knowledge and repeat it appropriately every year.
When the snow covers the roads and sidewalks, you will use mini crampons such as urban step or grip step or ice light for everyday use. For a nearby hill, where the paths are already well-trodden and smaller crampons prevent slipping , Ice track or Mount Track will be more than enough.
As we wrote above, we first choose a shoe and based on that we decide to buy crampons. Basically, crampons are divided into hiking and climbing. The essential difference between hiking crampons and climbing crampons is that hiking crampons offer more comfort when walking, while climbing crampons, as the name suggests, offer more comfortable climbing of waterfalls or ravines and combined routes.
Hiking crampons
Hiking crampons can be divided into classic, semi-automatic and automatic. Classic crampons have a basket at the front and back and can be installed on any shoe! Attention - learn how to properly fasten crampons and adjust the crampons to your size at home. An example of such crampons are Serac Strap hiking crampons.
Automatic, semi-automatic crampons
Sabretooth Clip crampons are an example of more than excellent semi-automatic crampons that satisfy both hiking and mountaineering ambitions.
An example of hybrid crampons is the Sarken model.
Automatic crampons include the Sabretooth Pro and Serac Pro crampons . These crampons are mounted on a boot that allows the use of automatic crampons, such as the Mont Blanc Pro . The advantage of such crampons is that they are quick and easy to install.
Stinger, Cyborg, and Lynx are examples of climbing crampons, which we will discuss in another post.
When ice axes are in his hands, crampons are on his feet! And there is much pleasure in walking.