Lately I’ve been doing some hunting for new spring touring skis and there are a ton of great options out there. I thought I would highlight some of the best light and skinny (but not too skinny) sticks that are available. These are all somewhat similar with a waist of around 95mm and are on the lighter end of the spectrum. However each ski is slightly different and will appeal to different types of skiers. These are listed in no…
Recently I finished reading this book for the second time and realized it definitely deserves more public awareness. Autonomy, Mastery and Purpose in the Avalanche Patch isn’t your everyday avalanche safety or snow science book. It’s more an exploration of the mind of a backcountry skier and our decision making processes. If you’re an experienced backcountry traveler interested in making better decisions, this is a must read. About the Author Author Bruce Kay has over 35 years of experience as…
I spent many days in the original 2017/18 Atomic Hawx 130 Ultra XTD and picked up a pair of 21/22 130 XTDs this season so I thought I would do a comparison of the two versions. Atomic has made some improvements, most significantly to the liner, but the fit and performance remain very similar. For skiers with low volume heels/feet that want a beefy touring boot (like me), the Atomic Hawx line is worth trying on. With some shell stretching/punching…
I posted a quick first look at the Zero G 105 skis early last season and had some good adventures on them throughout the winter. Some deep, some not so deep. Overall I’m really pleased with these skis – they’re strong in most areas and are a pretty darn good ski if you’re looking for one pair of touring skis that can handle most anything. For the record I’m testing the 188 cm version for this review. Specs Lengths: 164, 172,…
I’ve been carrying a new shovel and saw in my kit this season: the Backcountry Access A-2 EXT shovel with saw. One reason I was looking for a new avalanche shovel was to save a bit of space in my pack. My old Black Diamond Deploy shovel is a bit of an awkward shape and doesn’t pack super well in the avy gear pocket of my Mammut Spindrift pack. The blade of the A-2 is lower profile and looks like…
There are so many good tech/pin bindings out there right now it’s hard to go wrong. But with all the options it can be confusing to figure out which binding will suit your needs. Every skier is a little different and not every binding will be perfect for every skier. Far from it. In this article we’re going to narrow it down to a few of the best light touring bindings as of early 2022. We aren’t going to rank…
Well Christmas came really early (or maybe a bit late?) for me. New skis arrived on my doorstep this afternoon and I couldn’t wait to unwrap them. This is a true first look – I haven’t even mounted bindings on these yet. What I have in my hands is an ultralight powder touring ski: the Black Diamond Helio Carbon 115, which is the successor to the Helio 116 Carbon. BD is really getting crazy with the name change…’Carbon’ has moved…
Update: my new skins from the warranty claim finally arrived in June, so I’ll be getting out on these again this season for an updated review. Pomoca skins are one of the most commonly seen climbing skin out in the wild in my experience. Their website claims that they are the ‘world leading manufacturer of climbing skins’ and I don’t really have reason to doubt this. They make a wide variety of skins (there are 10 models on their website…
After a couple of seasons of backcountry skiing on the Salomon MTN pin bindings I’m ready to share my thoughts. In short: simple, light, and solid (with one caveat I’ll get into below). The toe clamps are crazy strong, the lifters are easy to use, and they climb and ski like a traditional pin binding. Which is mostly good but can be bad in some scenarios – hard pack in pin bindings is never great. But hard pack isn’t what…
After 2 seasons of skinning on 2019 Candide Faction 3.0s, I picked up a new set of sticks at the end of last season. I had been itching to get my hands on the Blizzard Zero G 105 for a while – they sounded like they would be right up my alley. A combination of light but still fairly stiff with good float for the width is a recipe for success. But do they live up to the marketing hype?…