Jan 26 2016

Airbag Effectiveness – Less than you thought.

Terrain consequences are extremely important. If the avalanche we may trigger will take us over a cliff, into trees, down a very large avalanche path, or into a terrain trap, then we have a low chance of survival, despite whatever rescue gear we may carry.
— Bruce Tremper

Avalanche that claimed the life of a Utah man on Gobbler's Knob in the Wasatch Mountains.

Avalanche that claimed the life of a Utah man on Gobbler’s Knob in the Wasatch Mountains.

In the aftermath of a recent rash of avalanche deaths, in particular the latest fatality in Utah involving a skier who wore and deployed an airbag yet died anyway, it bears repeating that when it comes to avoiding becoming an avalanche statistic, caution is the better part of valor. The fatality occured on Gobbler’s Knob, in the Wasatch mountains. Not only was the victim using an airbag pack, he was with Tyson Bradley, an experienced mountain guide. Tyson has been guiding in Utah for over two decades, with climbing and ski mountaineering experience around the world. Yet all this knowledge and preparedness does not make anyone all knowing or immune from making a bad call.
Keep making backcountry turns

Jan 14 2016

Meidjo lures a Luddite

…tele tech bindings that use the duckbutt, like the Meidjos do, are pointing directly at the future of telemark.
— Cesare

Disclaimers

Cesare rides Colorado pow with Meidjos on V6's.

Cesare rides Colorado pow with Meidjos on V6’s.

I am a certified retrogrouch and notorious late adopter. But I’m not a Luddite, I swear. I have a smart phone and I’m even beginning to learn how to do some cool things with it. I can write code; that’s FORTRAN, right? I’ve never used a GPS in my life… not once. But I can navigate precisely in a whiteout with a map, compass, and altimeter. I have some modern ski gear, kind of… if you consider skiing unbuckled black and silver T1s in walk mode to be modern.

Keep making backcountry turns

Jan 08 2016

Airbag Pack Overview for 2017

This is a quick roundup of new avalanche airbag packs coming our way for the 16/17 ski season. As of today, these are the only packs I’ve actually seen. More to be added later, so check back in a week for a longer list of new or significant changes.

Arc’teryx

Voltair blows up big, packs down easy.

Voltair blows up big, packs down easy.

Tongues have been wagging for awhile now about Arc’teryx version of an avalanche airbag pack that, like Black Diamond’s JetForce, is powered by an electric fan inflating the airbag. Yesterday I got to see the Voltair up close and personal and it was impressive. Instead of a fan, Arc’teryx uses a blower, which is able to move more air quicker; not dramatically, but significantly. The airbag wraps around the wearer’s head on three sides, adding 150 liters of volume.

The power for the Voltair comes from a 22 V lithium-ion battery that is rechargeable. This system allows a user to practice inflating and the subsequent repacking several times for a fraction of the cost of systems using compressed gases. The benefit to users is their ability to build familiarity with a system that has the potential to save their life. Gordon Rose, Senior Design Engineer at Arc’teryx says, “In a high consequence situation, you don’t rise to the occasion, you fall back on your training.”
Keep making backcountry turns

Jan 06 2016

Pt I: Outdoor Retailer Winter 2016

Fischer's Travers - one of many new AT boots for 2016.

Fischer’s Travers – one of many new AT boots for 2016.

Once again the annual Winter Outdoor Retailer show will be held at the Salt Palace Convention Center in Salt Lake City. This year the show will be held at the beginning of January, not the end. The show kicks off today with the On-Snow Demo at Solitude mountain. Yours truly will be there checking out what is new and reporting back to you in the coming days and weeks.

Overall it appears there are a lot of progressive improvements to products, but nothing revolutionary. Of course each manufacturer would disagree with that assessment, and that’s what going and seeing the actual beta products is about.

My focus for today at the On Snow demo at Solitude mountain will be to see if the upgrades to many AT boots are significant enough to motivate buying new gear. Thus, my targets will mostly be in the lightweight, skimo style boots like the new Arc’teryx boot designed by ace boot designer Frederico (Garmont, Dynafit) and Fischer’s new Travers that uses BOA laces on the lower shell.
Keep making backcountry turns

Dec 30 2015

Part VII: Taming the Dragon of Self-Destruction

Sven Brunso rips it up.

Sven Brunso rips it up.

Continued from Taming Your Avalanche Dragon, published 17nov15.

When we have self-destruction as our dragon we lack the ability to care for and nurture our own best interest. Self-destruction may be fuelled by a general propensity for self-hate, depression, or a sense of despair. This is not a sought-after ingredient for making good decisions in avalanche terrain. It brings a “devil may care” attitude to an activity that requires great care and diligence to make good choices for the well-being of self and others.
Keep making backcountry turns

Dec 28 2015

Review: La Sportiva Spitfire 2.0 skimo boot

During my stint in Tahoe a lot of fellow turn earners wondered why the resorts wouldn’t allow uphill skinning. Now that I’m in Colorado, it is more obvious why rando races flourish here, and with it the opportunity for fitness skinning at resorts, but they’re rare in the Sierra.

Last leg of the A-Basin Dawn Patrol COSMIC race.

Last leg of the A-Basin Dawn Patrol COSMIC race.


In California, especially around Lake Tahoe, the approach for a tour is across the road. We all whined like hell when the US Forest service closed Spring Creek Road and we had to walk an extra mile over flat, inconsistently covered, bushwacky terrain to get to the slopes of Mt. Tallac. Woe is us, we can’t just start skinning from the road like at Jakes, or Incline, or Red Lake Peak.
Keep making backcountry turns

Dec 17 2015

Review: Sven Can See™ Anti-Fog potion

Sven Can See. So can I when applied before needed and per the direcctions. Duh.

Sven Can See™. So can I – when applied before needed and per the directions. Duh.

As a snow rider it is only a matter of time before you’re blinded by a fog in front of your eyes, whether sun glasses or goggles, the trouble comes courtesy of too much sweat steaming off your face and a cold lens mere millimeters away. Modern goggles are surprisingly immune to this phenomenon thanks to the magic of chemistry in formulating coatings that resist condensation, but they are still potentially susceptible.

One of the major flaws of these new coatings is the strict admonition to never, ever, wipe the coated surface dry. Never! And if you break this “suggestion” you’ll be cursed with a coating that is compromised. In other words, you broke the rules so now it won’t work as reliably.
Keep making backcountry turns