Handling
The Sterling Helix was one of the most popular ropes tested in this group of midsize ropes. Testers regularly commented on the soft, supple feel that took knots with ease, moved easily through a belay device and caught falls with security. That popular handling held up despite the dozens of days of use and abuse the rope received, maintaining a good feel throughout the time.

Resistance to Dirt
The Helix held up remarkably well to dirt during testing and received the highest mark in this group of ropes. The rope was put through a variety of terrain during testing and was run through plenty of dirt and sand and while it lost some of its initial brightness, before and after pictures show that the bright colors of the rope stayed intact more than any other rope tested.

Durability
During both in-house and field tests the Helix received high scores for its durability. During in-house testing, the Helix showed fuzz on the sheath during abrasion testing and the core was mostly exposed during the sharp edge test. During field testing the sheath held up well and looks better than any of the other ropes in this group. Taken together, the Helix scored close behind the top ropes in this category.

Features
Sterling’s Evolution line of ropes have been featured by the company for over 20 years and the Helix is what they describe as their skinny workhorse. The Evolution Helix lacks fancy names for features but includes Sterling’s sheath and bantam weight core construction that is intended to allow the rope’s fine handling characteristics hold up over time, which proved to be the case during our testing. The Helix we tested lacked a middle mark but now the Helix is sold with a black middle mark to aid in finding the middle of the rope for rappels. In addition to a wide range of lengths, the Helix is also available in dry treated and bicolor patterns, offering ways for climbers to fine tune their ropes.

Versatility
The Helix is available in a number of iterations and hence, its versatility can be adjusted according to which dry treatment or color patterns you choose to pay for. The standard 60 meter version we tested was a capable, durable and well handling rope for sport and trad climbing single pitch routes and that’s where testers found it most suitable. At $213 for the tested version of this rope, it’s in the neighborhood of other ropes in this group. A bi-pattern, dry treated version of a 60 meter Helix will set you back $310 and offer greater versatility for ice and alpine climbing and multipitch objectives.