Field Tested: Mammut Sender Harness

Light and Durable

They say you can’t be pretty and smart. If this harness were a person, it would be proof to the contrary.

The Mammut Sender Harness is bright traffic-cone orange. It’s also a light, comfortable, and affordable harness, thus proving to be an excellent compromise that features everything I want in a harness. At just 320 grams (11.3 ounces), it’s comparable to the Petzl Sitta. There are others on the market that go much lighter, but, at least in my experience, are also less durable.

On average, I’ll wear through a harness in about two seasons. The bottom tie-in point always busts first. Here, the Mammut Sender Harness comes with a protective plastic guard. This is not a new feature; I’ve seen it on other harnesses before. But this guard has actually held up over my two, going on three, months of testing, which is a new development for me, as I’ve had that piece break off other harnesses on more than one occasion in the past.

The belay loop is fortified with red indicator threads, which only show up when the harness needs to be replaced. I’ve yet to see those, which is good considering the 100 or so pitches I’ve put into it so far.

Comfortable

I’m a fairly lightweight climber—my partners are almost always heavier. For me, the real testing moment comes when I have to belay; falling is the easy part! So how will it feel to be yarded up to the first draw? Or when I have to do a series of jump maneuvers to keep my full weight on my end of the rope while my partner boinks up? This is where harnesses shine or flop. Unquestionably, the Sender shines. It’s constructed with split-webbing technology, meaning more than one piece of webbing shares the load through the waist belt, which reduces pressure points. And the webbing is enwrapped in a mesh-like fabric (laser-cut, according to Mammut), which is soft and breathable.

Both the waist belt and leg loops are fairly flexible, which I love. I hate it when stiffly padded harnesses dig in. This one does not.

My current project in Rifle, Colorado, The Crew (5.14c), has eluded me for the year…thus far. It requires me to skip a bolt in one section, predictably the redpoint crux, resulting in massive whips. Despite the excessive falls, the Sender has not only held up but proven to be unobtrusive, which is exactly how a harness should be.

Flashy

The color is not to be unmentioned. I’m not a fan of “Euro-style,” if you know what I mean. But honestly, in my usual black shorts and black tank, the harness did make for a nice pop of color. And I definitely got plenty of compliments.

The harness has four gear loops—the two forwardmost ones are fortified with a plastic coating and the back two are not. No complaints there. It also has four loops compatible with ice-screw carabiners, if that’s your thing.

I tested my normal size: XS, which fit perfectly. The leg loops aren’t adjustable, although you can tailor the rise via the stretchy pulley straps connecting the loops to the waist belt. If the standard leg-loop size doesn’t work for you, Mammut does offer a companion harness, the Sender Fast Adjust, which has adjustable leg loops.

Given all of its features, it’s remarkable that the Sender rings in at only $100. It’s not exactly a starter harness: If you’re a beginner, you can save a few bucks and go for something cheaper. But for those who have put time into the craft, quite frankly, it’s a bargain.

Delaney Miller is Associate Editor at Climbing.