Gear

How To Build The Ultimate Wash Station For Car Camping

August 4, 2015 by Jason Clements

How To Build The Ultimate Wash Station For Car Camping

In this article, you will learn how to quickly and easily build the ultimate wash station for car camping. This will work to wash your hands and your dishes. You should try it out on your next outdoor adventure. This wash station works best for car camping. And if your car will be your home base, this station will work for hiking, climbing, and any other outdoor activity.

This style of wash station is quick, easy, and one-hand operational. Once you try it, you’ll take it on all of your outdoor trips.

Water Container

For my first Wash Station, I used an old Tide Laundry Soap container. It took me many rinses to clear out the detergent residue. And for the first few times of using container, it still had a faint smell of detergent. I even wrote “WASH HANDS & DISHES ONLY” on the side so that no one would mistakenly drink this water.

Now that I’ve used it so many times, there is no soap smells.

But if you are not comfortable with re-using a laundry soap container, just buy a jug made for this exact purpose. Most grocery stores are going to carry a similar style to the one pictured here. If you can’t find one, Coleman makes on that is very affordable.

Soap

I have a huge bias for soap: [Read more…] about How To Build The Ultimate Wash Station For Car Camping

How To Choose Rock Climbing Shoes For People With Odd Size Feet

August 1, 2015 by Jason Clements

You are slowly falling in love with climbing. You are ready to stop renting shoes at the gym. You are ready to buy your first pair of rock climbing shoes.

So how do you choose rock climbing shoes? What if you have odd size feet?

The only rule you need to follow is this: Try on many shoes.

Start Your Search For Rock Climbing Shoes At Your Gym

If your gym has a shoe that fits you well, ask your wall manager if they sell the used shoes for a steep discount. Most gyms do sell their old shoes. Albeit, those shoes are going to be very worn out before your gym retires them.

Next, ask your wall manager to schedule a gear rep to come to your gym to demo shoes. At events like this that I have attended, I was able to try out 3 different kinds of shoes. Here’s the key benefit: You get to climb in them. And that is, without any doubt, the best way to feel out a new shoe. Just keep trying on shoes.

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Most likely, you will be headed to your local outdoor shop. Backwoods, REI, Moosejaw, Dynamic Earth. If you are lucky, they will have a mini wall to test out your shoes. Just keep your ears open for these words: [Read more…] about How To Choose Rock Climbing Shoes For People With Odd Size Feet

My Back Is Killing Me: Which Foam Roller Is Right For My Back Pain

July 28, 2015 by Jason Clements

Unfortunately, I am an expert in overcoming back pain.

I am hopeful that some of my experiences can benefit you, especially if you are suffering from chronic aches and pains. Or maybe you’ll find that using some of these tools may increase your athletic performance.

As usual, I am not a doctor. See your doctor for all of your medical needs. This is an article about what I experience with foam rollers and other health maintenance tools.

My Story Of My Back Pains

I’ve been seeing a chiropractor, on and off, for about 25 years. Many years ago, I had a serious biking accident. I fell over the handlebars, landing on my head. I ripped part of my sternocleidomastoid away from my skull. X-rays were negative for fractures. For a few days the only way I could be comfortable was on my knees in front of my recliner, with the foot rest on my belly and my face in the seat of the chair. I did go to a chiropractor who seemed spooked to adjust me. I saw him a couple of times and I was slowly getting better. A few months later, I ended up having these weird headaches that started at the base of my skull and moved up over the top of my head to my forehead. I finally went to a different chiropractor, and after one adjustment, I was significantly better. I continued seeing this new chiropractor for wellness care. And although I still have a hard little lump of scar tissue, I have full range of motion and consider myself 100% recovered from that injury.

Now, skip ahead a number of years, and I was T-boned by some moron driver doing a 360 out of a parking lot. Stupid driver and stupid maneuver. This was not a serious accident. However, I got the typically massive soreness in my neck within about 12 hours, typical of whiplash. Filed an insurance claim – saw the newer chiropractor – saw a massage therapist, too. In total, I had about 6 weeks of treatments.

Even though I was in pain for a good number of weeks after that car accident, I can say that after all those treatments, I came away the healthiest and strongest (my back and neck) I had felt in years.

Perform Basic Maintenance On Yourself With A Foam Roller

Again, I am going to mention Becoming A Supple Leopard by Dr. Kelly Starrett. The premise of his book is that all human beings should be able to perform basic maintenance on themselves. I believe that. And to help maintain my back’s health, I have employed a number of devices. [Read more…] about My Back Is Killing Me: Which Foam Roller Is Right For My Back Pain

Meet Kevin Brown: Owner at Friction Labs and Denver Bouldering Club

December 22, 2014 by Jason Clements

Kevin Brown is the owner of Friction Labs and the Denver Bouldering Club. Kevin sent me a sample of all three blends of his new chalk and you can read that review right here.

An all-American super star in the climbing community: Meet Kevin Brown: Owner at Friction Labs and Denver Bouldering Club

HCRB: What makes Friction Labs climbing chalk so special?

Kevin: We use higher grade compounds to make our chalk. The end result is a chalk with very high Magnesium Carbonate and very low Calcium Carbonate. We also offer 3 different textures so climbers can pick their favorite.

HCRB: How in the world did you come up with the idea to make a chalk company?

Kevin: We grew frustrated at running out of chalk and being stuck with what ever the gym had in stock. We started researching chalk and found that there are a bunch of distributors out of China, so we went a different direction and researched all of the options and production methods. From there we went to the lab and got to work. Right away we felt a difference, had all of our friends try it and they all said it was way better. We knew we had a better product, so we figured out texture and started offering subscriptions, so you never had to be with out your favorite chalk.

HCRB: What is the inspiration behind the names Bam Bam, Gorilla Grip, Unicorn Dust? [Read more…] about Meet Kevin Brown: Owner at Friction Labs and Denver Bouldering Club

Climbing Chalk Review: Friction Labs Climbing Chalk

December 4, 2014 by Jason Clements

CLIMBING CHALK REVIEW; FRICTION LAB CLIMBING CHALK

Summary

Purchase some of the World’s best climbing chalk at The Friction Labs Store.

Pros:

Friction Labs Climbing Chalk (F.L.) does climbing chalk the right way.
F.L. is significantly better than the “Wal-Mart-style” cheap chalks; and a solid degree better than, what I believe was the premiere brand of chalk, Bison.
F.L. is stickier and lasts longer on your hands for multiple burns.
F.L. has the science to back up their claims.
F.L. has a robust website that will answer all of your questions.
F.L. has 3 different blends to choose from: Bam Bam, Gorilla Grip, Unicorn Dust
F.L. has a very convenient auto-ship service.
F.L. creates a relationship with their fans.
F.L. can be used in your regular workouts with dumbbells, kettlebells, etc.

Cons:

You will pay more for a quality product.
I don’t like the wording of their guarantee. But I am certain that if you don’t act like a complete grocery bag, and you happen to be the 1 out of 1,000,000 people who may not like the F.L. chalk, their customer service will probably treat you right.

A Little Background on My Opinion – I Have Been a Bison Chalk Snob

I am a chalk snob in the same way that I am a beer snob. Bud Light just doesn’t taste like anything I want to put in my mouth. Gross! Give me a Boulevard Tank 7 and I can taste the fruit tanginess and full flavor and the long crisp finish. Pair that Tank 7 with any pizza and I am in Heaven.

Yeah, I’ve tried all the Wal-Mart-style cheap chalks like Metolius, Evolv, Black Diamond. Those are just entry-level chalks. Plain and simple. You can burn through a brick or container of that cheap stuff in a busy weekend. All of those are gritty and you just about have to chalk up after every single move. You really get what you pay for with those brands…not much besides the basic idea of chalk to keep your hands dry. Continue Reading

Cleaning Your Webbing With Sterling Rope Wash

July 23, 2014 by Jason Clements

Sterling Wicked Good Rope Wash Do not neglect your webbing. Even if you only use your webbing for your hammock or your slack line, it is important to wash it and care for it as you do any other soft gear.

Allow me to recommend Sterling Rope’s Wicked Good Rope Wash. It does exactly what it says it will do: “Makes old ropes [webbing] look and feel like new!” Cleaning your webbing with Sterling Rope Wash is very simple.

My orange webbing is used for my hammock and slack line. In these first three pictures, you can see how dirty the webbing is. And, after anchoring the slack line for about 2 weeks, this orange webbing is also very stiff.

Instructions to Clean Webbing:

1. Soak webbing for about 12 hours a bucket of plain water. This allows a bunch of the loose dust and dirt to rinse off. Slosh it all about and dump that water.

2. Soak webbing for about 12 hours in a bucket of water and Sterling Rope Wicked Good Rope Wash.

3. Dump everything into my washing machine. Note* Sterling recommends that you wash your rope in a front load washing machine. I have a top loader. I have never had any problems washing my rope nor this webbing in my top loader. I also check it every few minutes to ensure that the webbing (or rope) is not tangling around the agitator.

4. Double rinse to ensure that all of the soap is out of the webbing (or rope).

5. Loop the webbing (or rope) carefully over any indoor drying rack and allow to thoroughly dry.

The Results

The webbing is clean. Most of the grime and dirt is gone. There are still a few spots that didn’t get clean, but that is acceptable to me. Additionally, the stiffness is gone and the webbing now handles as it did when new.

When Should You Replace Your Webbing

A clean piece of webbing is considerably easier to inspect for damage. Any signs of scuffing, tearing, breaks, or cuts should be reason enough to consider buying some new webbing. Webbing is relatively affordable.

Special Notes

I use this webbing for my hammock and my slack line. I set my slack line so that it is about knee to mid-thigh off of the ground.

If you use webbing for climbing, setting anchors, or any situation where there is a high risk of injury or death; be smart and use common sense.

Amazon Links of Mentioned Products

You support the Hike, Climb, Relax: Beta Blog by making your purchases at Amazon through the following links. If you have purchased items through the HCRBeta Amazon links, you have my sincerest gratitude.