A Review of the Metolius Long Draws .........

When the new Metolius Long Draws were recently introduced, I wasn't sure in which vertical environment these ultralight quick (long) draws would best suit my needs. After having taken them on dozens of days of climbing as varied as sport climbing in Colorado to Alaskan alpine rock in the last month, I've welcomed these draws onto my permanent rack for both extremes due to their key features- low weight and high strength.

I climbed with the Long Draws in the 12", 16", and 20" lengths and with the FS carabiners on each end, we're talking ultra lightweight set-ups that can take a serious beating. The FS are some of the smallest carabiners on the market, yet at 22kn strong they leaving nothing behind other than weight.  Only climbers with the biggest hands will likely not be able to deal with these smaller biners well, but if you weigh over 200#, 'light is right' probably matters less anyways.

About the Metolius FS Mini Long Draws

These are a uniquely designed quick (long) draws that give the climber options for extending gear placements or bolt attachments to reduce rope friction in rock, ice, or alpine climbing systems.  Low water absorption and light weight make this a perfect draw for the alpine where these two equipment considerations are critical. For sport climbing, this draw works great on lengthy pitches where longer rope attachments are desirable for minimal friction, or on projects where having different length long runners gives the climber multiple options for setting-up their draws for the redpoint ascent.

Features:

• • Two FS Mini or Inferno carabiners joined by a 10 mm (0.39") tight at both-ends Monster Sling (40% Dyneema/60% nylon)
  • Available in 12" (25.4 cm),  16" (40.6 cm) , or 20" (50.8 cm) lengths
  • Strength: 22 kN (4950 lbf)
  • FS Mini Long Draw weights:  12" 2.1 oz. (61 g),  16" 2.2 oz. (64 g),  20" 2.3 oz. (67 g)
  • Low water absorption material
  • Excellent abrasion resistance
  • MSRP: 12" - $18.60 16" - $19.60 20" - $20.60

Metolius FS Mini Long Draws Review

My review time frame for these long draws was a little over a month of prime climbing season in June in Colorado and Alaska, which quickly adds up to more than 25 days on routes as varied as Andrology at Jurassic Park and on the west face of The Throne, above the Pika Glacier in Alaska.

On sport routes, I typically would carry these long slings already extended on my harness (at least the 16" and 12" long varieties). The 20" sling would be clipped to itself (see the video below) to keep it hanging a bit higher on the harness. On my alpine rack, I preferred to carry all of these Long Draws a bit shorter (clipped together) to keep them well out of the way above crampons and all that trad stuff hanging off the harness.

The tiny FS Mini carabiners took a little getting used to having never handled a carabiner that small, but with a little experience there was soon little difference in my clipping abilities with these biners as they have a generous gate opening.  I haven't yet tried them with gloves on, but I imagine that with a practiced technique, clipping likely wouldn't be any more difficult. Having seen the rope unclip from a quickdraw multiple times on a lead fall recently, I think that these smaller openings might even reduce this risk which is more of an issue in trad climbing where there is often less redundancy (pro) in the system and a single unclip could have serious consequences.

Having three options in Long Draw lengths could make it a bit confusing as to which you'd find yourself reaching for the most. Overall, I found that I used the 12" length the most on sport routes and the longest (20") the most on multi-pitch trad routes where roofs or traverses are common. I surprised myself more than once when using all three of these lengths on sport routes when the bolts seemed mostly in-line- but the reduced rope drag and straighter line of the rope told me that they had done their job. And isn't that all we can ask for in a quick (long) draw?