Feb 09 2015
The most interesting new gadget at the recent trade shows was Fischer’s new Profoil climbing skins. They’re not made with a traditional plush of fibers lying down. Think of them instead as a removable base of plastic scales, or as Fischer would prefer, a waxless, grippy, crown pattern. The few leathernecks I ran in …
Nov 05 2014
Volkl’s new Vacuum climbing skins are the first skins to be marketed by an alpine ski company that you should really take a closer look at. In the last few years Volkl has offered skins to go with their lighter weight Nanuq and Nunataq skis. Those skins use a traditional glue that relies primarily …
Oct 08 2014
While at Dynafit’s 30-year anniversary party at the Outdoor Retailer show last January 2014 the conversation turned to snowshoes. One of folks I was talking to remarked how unbelievable it was that they ran into a bunch of snowshoers on a recent tour, miles from the trail head. They couldn’t believe that someone would …
Sep 10 2014
Stanley is transforming itself from a second rate copy cat company of cool camping gear into a top notch source of goodies for camp decadence. The latest evidence of that is their 1-liter Vacuum Coffee System. You still need a stove to get the water hot enough to boil it for making coffee and …
Aug 19 2014
JetBoil has dominated the stove market lately, but their competitors have been able to poke holes in their dominance by simply pointing out a few of their shortcomings. To be sure, the convenience of the JetBoil system is hard to beat. Perhaps better still, their dominance is visible so there’s an unspoken but strong …
Jul 29 2014
Now that the Sun is heading for the horizon, and with it the excitement of getting out in the snow, thoughts that tend toward getting ready for those coming days lead to gear. One of the three basic BC essentials are climbing skins. Experienced skinners know that good skins can make a difference in …
Jul 03 2014
Serious ski mountaineers know that on occasion crampons are an essential tool to have for climbing skiable snow. It isn’t that a few sharp points of connection to the slope aren’t needed, they are, but 12 points can be overkill sometimes. Manfred Quaeck was annoyed with the necessity of carrying the weight of full …
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