To keep the buckle which is not used securely fastened (normally the
left buckle for most people), a small keeper is provided beside the attachment
loop, in addition to two small elastic strap end keepers.
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The Nova is an innovative new harness designed to make tying the climbing rope safer and easier, by provision of a high-level, bow-shaped attachment hoop sitting above the waist strap, where it is clearly visible and easily used. The conventional belay loop is gone, and the attachment hoop provides a single tying-in point.
Alone this new feature provides numerous advantages. But the Nova is a ground-up design, in which every aspect has been evaluated and designed to provide the lightest possible comfortable harness, with safety an intrinsic part of the design. Other features that are novel or rarely seen are:
Added to these innovations are features found in all modern top-end climbing harness, such as ergonomically-shaped padding, articulating circular leg-loops, textured pad linings, detachable elastic rear risers, and separable waist and leg-loop sections.
Apart from its innovative features, the Nova is probably the lightest padded climbing harness ever made - just 270 grams in the medium size - and yet stronger and safer than many harnesses that are far heavier.
Attachment
hoop
Risers
Leg-loop
design
Other features
The primary feature of the Nova is the attachment hoop, which is positioned above the waist belt. This concept has been used in instructional harness for around 15 years - our own highly successful Adventure harness appeared in 1991, after two years of evaluation of designs using the attachment hoop. But the Nova is a far more sophisticated design, which bears no other similarity to an instructional harness. This advantages of this new approach applied to climbing harnesses are numerous:
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The Nova uses lightweight but extremely strong 13 mm Dyneema® webbing to form the risers - the section of the harness joining the waist belt and leg loops. The webbing is rated at 17 kN, but is used double throughout the risers, so the strength is effectively twice this level.
Dyneema® is a proprietary version of High Molecular Weight Polyethylene (HMWP), made by DSM in Holland. Another version of HMWP is the Honeywell product Spectra®. Both of these fibres are super strong materials, with roughly twice the strength of nylon. In webbing they are interwoven with nylon yarns. HMWP has a lower specific gravity than water, so its use in webbing has reduced the weight of climbing equipment considerably - especially because its high strength enables the use of smaller sizes of webbing. It has not previously been used in structural components of climbing harnesses though, as far as we know.
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The essence of the padding is the high-density polyethylene foam, only 5 mm thick but firm enough to provide optimum comfort. The pad itself is carefully shaped - relieved through the inner leg and a full 75 mm wide around the back of the leg in the main load-bearing area.
The fabric used on the inside of the leg-loop is a finely woven stretch material, lightly textured to allow air movement. The outer material is actually a very fine webbing, which is used to maximise the strength of the leg-loops where the padded section is sewn to the narrow connecting section. This part is made from 15 mm Dyneema® webbing to minimise the bulk and weight. Bar-tack stitching is used to join the Dyneema® section to the webbing forming the outside shell.
The method of connecting the risers to the leg-loops is the commonly used articulating method. The risers loop around the leg loop, but the leg-loops are free to move independently of the risers. Theoretically this gives the maximum possible comfort, because the pad sits at the right angle.
Why adjustable leg loops are not necessaryThe Nova leg-loops are not adjustable, and there is no adjustable leg loop version planned. This is because we believe that adjustable leg loops are not necessary, unless the harness is to be used by more than one person.It's commonly stated that you need adjustable leg loops if the harness is used for alpine as well as rock climbing, because of the extra thickness of clothing. In fact even thick fleece doesn't add more than about a centimetre to the size of the leg loop. As long as there is a bit of room in the leg loop, alpine clothing can be worn without the leg loop becoming excessively tight. If possible choose the leg loop size according to the common maxim that you should be able to freely slide your hand down the front of the leg loop. If this space is available, the leg loop should be loose enough for alpine use. New thinking....
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To keep the buckle which is not used securely fastened (normally the
left buckle for most people), a small keeper is provided beside the attachment
loop, in addition to two small elastic strap end keepers.
A useful feature is the overlapping of the rear gear loops across the front ones, bringing the equipment on the rear loops further forward. Otherwise there is a greater separation between the two sets of gear, and the equipment on the rear loops can be difficult to reach.
The rear straps on the Nova are fitted with small plastic buckles, and made from an elastic which is specially ribbed so that it grips the buckle initially, but under greater tension slips. This avoids excessive tightness occurring on the rear straps, which can inhibit movement. They can be easily tightened again if needed.
Copyright Aspiring Enterprises, revised
18 July 2005.
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