Gear Reviews

Ultra Trail Australia by UTMB was, for the first time, a World Major Race. I lined up for the UTA100 with the goal of finishing top 10. I'm pleased with the outcome of placing 6th despite not having my best day. We always try to prepare for these big races in the best way possible and that includes trying not to get sick.

The new and much anticipated Ondra Comp by La Sportiva recently arrived on the shores of Australia and my toes have had the privilege of cosying up with them (almost exclusively) for the last month! Being the newest member of the extensive fleet of climbing shoes by La Sportiva, they are an incredibly unique and carefully curated shoe with a particular set of qualities and use cases in mind.

With less than 2 weeks to go until The Track 520km - the epic journey from Alice Springs to Uluru - I threw myself into the Buffalo Stampede 100km with one clear intention: this was not just a race, but a rehearsal for something much bigger. Check out Sia's heartwarming account as part of her preparation for the big one in May this year.

I really like the Escape Hiking Pack, and it was hard to decide which pack amongst the Mont range would work best for me. In their range of back packs the focus to durability is present. Using Infinity Core spun canvas predominantly, I have had no concern for wear and tear issues, and I have learnt over the years that owning a canvas pack means that UV rays don’t shorten the life of your pack, or cause internal de-laminations and the like.

It's 2007: An ambitious expedition is proposed. A solo, unsupported, off-track walk to the geographical centre of Australia, the furthest point from the ocean in all directions. The trip will encompass over 1750km on foot, amassing over 3 million paces through gruelling, unrelenting terrain. 18 Years on, Asolo TPS Boots going strong.

One of our customers took out the new La Sportiva Prodigio Pro trail running shoes for their first run with the Dandenong Trail Runners on their annual Australia Day event. They ran just over 20km on a variety of surfaces with a couple of small technical downhills to test stability and grip.

I did my first trail run on Saturday 26/10/2024 at the Trails+ Halloween Howler. It was so much fun! I started my trail running journey with 5km distance on a relatively flat surface with subtle yet long inclines in between plus hints towards more technical elements in the future.

The Mistral is a new shoe from La Sportiva dedicated to climbers in the evolution phase. Built for comfort and versatility the shoe is a great all rounder, a comfortable indoor training shoe to a great multi pitch trad machine. With added environmentally friendly additions the Upper and insole are made entirely without the use of animal products and the sole is made from recycled Vibram rubber offcuts from the La Sportiva factory in Italy.

As part of preparing for my trip to Italy where I competed at the Club Crew World Championships with Melbourne Flames Dragon Boat Club, I was made well aware of pickpockets (prior to my departure from family and friends plus recall regular announcements on trains and stations in Florence and Rome) and knew I needed not only a pack to transport my dragon boat gear for training/racing with ease but essential items for my travels across the country as well.

Nestled in the corner of our in-store upstairs pack section, you will find an array of alpine specific packs. Alpine packs can roughly be divided into ski and mountaineering styles. These rucksacks are feature laden and have a lot to offer. Due to their similarities, some ski packs make a pretty good mountaineering pack and vice versa.