Pondering crampons or mini-crampons for the winter snow? Here's some basic advice to help you make the right choice from naked boots though to spikes.
Winter Boots
Before we get into crampons and similar, the usefulness of stiff-soled winter boots tends to be forgotten. Yes, they make an ideal platform for crampon use, but the stiffened sole units, are actually versatile in their own right and can be used both to kick in to surprisingly hard snow slopes - like front pointing with crampons - for heel plunging in descent and, when kicked in sideways in a slashing motion, the edge of the sole will work like a saw to cut a small ledge in the snow which you can then stand on.
Pros They don't slow you down like crampons do and you may well be wearing them already. Teamed with an axe to cut slash steps, they can even be used to cross small areas of water ice and hardened neve.
Cons Limited griup on water ice and really hardened snow, need a certain amount of user skill and even nerve to use effectively plus experience to judge snow conditions.
More Reading - Snow Technique Tips
Posted: 09/12/2011 at 23:53
Went out running in last winter's snow with YakTrax over my Mizuno Wave Rider running shoes and can confirm they (a) grip excellently and (b) are indeed hazardous on indoor non-carpetted flooring
Common sense still applies and do not suppose to still go at full pelt as normal. Neither should they be used on flat solid ice. On fresh snow and even slush they are good. They are quite grippy on tarmac, providing good feedback when you come across melted bits.
Posted: 10/12/2011 at 20:20
Posted: 12/12/2011 at 11:43
