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Raidlight Foldable Trail Poles Review

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raidlight foldable trail poles trekking poles review
Raidlight Foldable Trail Poles - Trekking Poles
Credit: Raidlight
Price:  $160 List
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Manufacturer:   Raidlight
By Matt Gerdes ⋅ Review Editor  ⋅  Apr 9, 2012

Our Verdict

These are the lightest and most compact poles that we have ever seen. Raidlight is a French company, based in the Grenoble area, which specializes solely in ultra-light trail running and ski-touring accessories. For these poles, the only model they offer, their focus was clearly on weight and volume. They are the lightest model we tested and, notably, the only ones to fold into four sections, reducing their packed length to just 30 cm for the 110 cm version. If your priority is overwhelmingly on shaving grams off of your total equipment set, then these poles are hard to beat. However, we found them severely lacking in the durability department.
REASONS TO BUY
Light
The lightest. Four section fold makes for very low volume storage. These poles are small and short when folded
REASONS TO AVOID
You need to take special care not to break them. Not cheap. Grips aren’t the most comfortable. They do not come with any baskets

We used these poles for a full summer, and managed to finish the season with only a couple of bends. Once bent, the joints tend to not meet up properly and the poles feel a bit shaky. For the second season, we purchased a new pair and just a couple a couple of weeks into their use we snapped them in half while slipping while descending. Invariably, this is how your Raidlight poles will eventually meet their demise — you will weight one pole too much and it will bend or break. If it only bends, then it may be salvageable…to a point. After breaking the second pair we switched to the Black Diamond Ultra Distance.

That being said, these poles do provide a respectable ratio of support to weight and volume. For BASE jumping missions, where 6000 foot ascensions with medium weight packs are the norm, we need to be able to fit whatever we carry into our wingsuits for the jump down. These poles fit handily inside the socks we wore, taking up very little volume inside the wingsuit. We found them equally suited to stash inside a haulbag after an approach for a big wall project, but then again their fragility will not be of benefit while hiking under a heavy pack.

Our Analysis and Test Results

Grip & Strap


Again, clearly weight and volume were the design priority. The grip and strap offer very little support. The strap is not adjustable but fits my medium sized hands (glove size 9) fine without gloves.

Shaft


The narrow aluminum shaft is ideal for a low volume in packed configuration, but definitely not durable in any way. These poles are not for heavy or long term use. They strongly resemble tent poles.

Fold & Lock System


A dyneema cord runs the length of the shaft, and is secured by pulling and sliding a knot into a slot a the top of the handle. Not super durable, and significantly less solid than the Leki or Black Diamond options.

Tips


Comes standard with carbide steel tips.

Baskets


No baskets included.

Other Versions


None to mention

Matt Gerdes