Sterling Evolution Velocity 9.8mm

We have been running these ropes at Sylvan Rocks Climbing School for the past two seasons. Dragging them around the Needles of Custer State Park in South Dakota, and up Devils Tower, they take quite a beating. When you are teaching people to climb, they fall, ropes get worked! We are always looking at other ropes for durability, but balanced with ease of pulling through our belay devices and such.

For now, this is the best we have found for the money. There are probably better ropes out there, but none we have found are this good at this price point, and they are better then many we have tried that cost more.

No doubt larger diameter ropes last longer, but at the cost of increased effort to manage them, the guides all appreciate these strings. If you want your string to last more then a season or two, get a larger diameter rope....If you like Starbucks over Folgers, buy a Velocity and be happy.

Daryl Stisser
Sylvan Rocks Climbing School

I have been climbing for about a decade, and and I can say that without any doubt, the Sterling Evolution Velocity 9.8mm is the worst rope that I have ever used. Every time I used it, the fuzz would become worse and worse. After only one week of use the fuzz had revealed the core, necessitating the rope to be cut.

I contacted Sterling, and even sent them the damaged section of rope (from Australia), and their response was extremely disappointing. They were extremely slow to respond to my emails, and when they finally got back to me, they advised me that there was nothing wrong with the rope.

I have heard others say that they are very pleased with their Sterling Evolution Velocity rope. So perhaps I bought a lemon. Regardless, I am going to avoid buying ropes from Sterling in the future!