I did a search and didn't find anything on the subject. I am planning on doing some major shopping this winter for a set of beginner's gear for climbing and I also need to buy some winter-type clothing since I currently have nothing to speak of. I am wondering where everyone recommends I shop for the gear. I am currently in Yellowstone National Park for a few more days then I am heading back to Kansas City for the winter, then I'll be back out here again in April, hopefully year-round starting then. I am planning to start some real climbs next summer then some winter climbs the following winter. There aren't many stores in Kansas City that sell real climbing gear, since there probably isn't much demand, so I am probably going to do most of my shopping online.

I will be shopping for the following (at least):
Helmet
Harnass
Rope
Carabiners
Runners (what runners would everyone recommend?)
New trekking poles
Winter clothing (jackets, gloves, pants, etc)

Couple of easy suggestions just to get you started:

www.rei.com and www.mountaingear.com

Have fun!

There are several Web sites that I use and have had good luck with all of them. I bargain shop and price compare.

http://www.mountaingear.com: They have pretty much everything and always have a sale section
http://www.rei.com: They also have a comprehensive selection. Their companion site http://www.reioutlet.com has their sale items.
http://www.Whitakermountaineering.com. Really good customer service, but a somewhat limited selection of brands they currently are having an end of season sale.
http://www.sierratradingpost.com: Everything is on sale, all the time. They have top brands but the selection is hit or miss but if you are not set on any particular brand you could outfit yourself completely for a fraction of the price of retail.

As far as runners (I assume you mean slings and not shoes) I recommend 6 - 8 8mm spectra/dyneema sewn single (24") runners and 2 8mm double (48") runners. Mammut and Black Diamond both make them.

Thanks a lot guys. I had been shopping around on REI but I didn't really know where else to look. I'll check out all those sites.

There are certain things you want to make sure fit, like a harness, so I would not recommend buying these online. Boots fall under this also. I like REI because you can have anything shipped to your local store for free. I use that option a lot but I also have an REI just down the road from my office. It's nice for little things that you find in their outlet too.

I'm also a midwesterner so to get out usually means a trip for me so I used to get a couple things I didn't have before each adventure. I still do this but now I'm replacing, upgrading or tweaking my system.

steepandcheap.com

GearX

Backcountry

GearTrade

BackcountryGear

Some of my favorites.

Backcountry and its offspring (SteepandCheap and DepartmentofGoods in particular) are great online companies. I have always had good experiences buying from them and their customer service is great. BC is my go-to for online gear buying.

BackcountryGear has a lot of good stuff on clearance, check the sizes though.

If you're not averse to used gear, Geartrade is the way to go for jackets and other clothing. Some crap, but also some basically brand new stuff for cheap.

drtbg wrote:Have you purchased a copy of Freedom of the Hills yet?

Have you read it?

I have it yes, haven't read through the whole thing yet but I will be studying it this winter as well as joining a rock climbing club to get the very basics down. I know you can't compare a club to real climbing since you don't have to worry about points of protection or placing your own anchors or anything, but it's a starting point. I may have a veteran climber training me next year, depending on whether he comes back to Yellowstone next year or not. Either way, I will be looking for climbing/hiking partners for next season in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem, so if you are interested please message me. I am looking to do peaks such as Hilgard Peak, Mount Cowen and Abiathar Peak. I know there aren't that many technical portions on these but it looks like a good starting point. If I can find partners I want to attempt some technical Tetons as well. Also likely will want to spend quite a bit of time in the Beartooths since I will probably be stationed at Canyon or Mammoth inside the park and the Beartooths are close to there.

I have found some really good winter gear at thrift stores.

Learned a lot from talking with "the master" Randy tonight, about how belays work and how protection is placed and used. He has enough gear to spot about 10 other climbers if they have nothing at all, but I want to have my own gear in case he isn't back here next year, although he says he will be. I learned that having a wide variety of protection is vital, so that you will have something that works when you need it. It also looks like protection is by far the most expensive thing to purchase if you want to really cover the bases, and you do.

Anyway, I'm really sad I didn't meet Randy earlier this year since I could have learned everything I would need to know to be able to climb safely and effectively from him. I leave here in two days now so hopefully next year I can find some partners!

Marlow,

Great shots of some fine looking mountains . . . gotta get to Wyoming one day . . . i don't think you need "beginner's gear" though . . . Ha! . . . beginners rope, wimpy . . . beginners carabiners, never trust 'em . . . Looks like you need at least intermediate gear lucky you.

Don't they have some fine grain tower ice climbing in Kansas ( thread here somewhere)

bob

rlshattuck wrote:Marlow,

Great shots of some fine looking mountains . . . gotta get to Wyoming one day . . . i don't think you need "beginner's gear" though . . . Ha! . . . beginners rope, wimpy . . . beginners carabiners, never trust 'em . . . Looks like you need at least intermediate gear lucky you.

Don't they have some fine grain tower ice climbing in Kansas ( thread here somewhere)

bob

Well I was more referring to the amount of gear I will be buying, not its quality. I'm going to have plenty of budget to get more gear than I will rightly know how to use though, I'm sure. I will be saving all my money this winter toward being prepared for next year out here. All or nothing is my personality, and I seriously want to do some climbing next year, and years to come.

Edgewood wrote:steepandcheap.com

ditto that and Ebay. Know what you want, be patient, buy when the price is right, and stockpile consumables. 95 % of my gear came from those two places, It's all top line gear (new or near new) purchased 30% to 60% discounts.