A5 revolutionised the tools for Big Wall climbing in the 80's and 90's

A5 Portaledge Development. A5 Portaledges enabled a huge boom in big wall standards in the 1990's because for the first time, climbers were able to withstand Himalayan type storms. The innovation continues with the new D4 Portaledge Design at  http://bigwallgear.com

 Old A5 Catalogs!  Download the 1996 A5 Catalog which shows innovations that helped foster a huge breakthrough of big wall standards in the 1990's.  You can also download the first A5 Catalog (1988) and the second A5 Catalog (1989) which have some fun stories and gear tips.

A5 Haulbags --all current haulbags "borrow" ideas from the original A5 design, including the "tuckaway" shoulder straps (an A5 first), the waterproof closure, the offset clip-in, and many other features now standard on many modern packs and haulbags.

A5 designed a range of new equipment, a lot of our designs have since been copied and  become standard tools.  A5 design was an alternating process of field testing and building prototypes in the shop.  

Above are Middendorf's notes written on a back page of  a book he was reading during an ascent of El Capitan with new ideas. But A5 was a team effort--here, the 1995 team and the original A5 "credos" on the shop wall.