Gear Articles tagged ‘backcountry skiing’

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A Day in the Life of the Utah Avalanche Center: An Interview with Bruce Tremper

By: Beth Lopez | April 20th, 2011
1 Comment »

photo: Tommy Chandler

It’s April already, and the ski touring season is winding toward its close. (Of course, after over 600 inches fell in the Wasatch this winter, we still have a hearty base for the die-hards who prefer to keep on skinnin’.) Many tour-ists are deeply indebted to their local avalanche forecasting centers for another season of life-saving information provided on a daily basis.

We Utah skiers are spoiled by more than fantastic snow and terrain; whether we plan to dash out of the resort gates for a glory lap or we’re plotting a hut-to-hut trip in the Uintahs, all we have to do is consult our local Utah Avalanche Center’s website (or podcast, or phone recording, or radio announcement) for an in-depth avalanche forecast and analysis. On the site, easy color-coded charts explain what types of danger exist, how high each type of danger is, and where to watch for each type. This information is a daily complement to one’s own snow safety education and experience. Everyone, from the newbie to the expert, can find invaluable beta to use while planning a tour. Read More …

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Posted in Interviews, Outdoor Articles, Skiing, Splitboarding |

Monday Q&A: Skis, Boots, Beacons, & More

By: Beth Lopez | March 21st, 2011
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Wish your Monday would go away? We do too. But at least we can offer some pleasantly gear-centric diversion; take a look at this week’s product questions from our customer community on Backcountry.com. We whipped up some answers, and we’d love your two cents too.

Keen Klamath Mid Boot

Hi Gear Freaks,

I recently bought these boots to take backpacking in the canyons of Utah. I wore the boots around for 3 days prior to going and felt the tongue was uncomfortable at first but no other problems arose. I have wide feet and high arches and love all my other Keen shoes. As a gal with large feet I often buy men’s shoes.

After hiking seven miles on the first day over rocky and sandy terrain my arches were very painful. It just got worse from there. I don’t know if it’s the boots or the backpacking. Has anyone had a similar experience or suggestions to improve this problem. Otherwise I love the boots.

-Outdoorsy CO Gal

A: Hey, Outdoorsy Gal. As a trail runner and hiker, I can definitely empathize with your pain. Sometimes you find a brand that usually works for your foot shape, but even then, there can be some anomalies within that brand. Maybe your Keen sandals and walking shoes fit your feet well, but these boots are constructed differently because they’re intended for a different purpose—long hikes. Read More …

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Posted in Gear Guide, Q&A |

Monday Q&A: Marker, BD, & More

By: Adam Riser | March 14th, 2011
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Here’s our latest heap of Monday gear questions and answers. It may resolve some burning questions that were occupying your mind, or it may just fend off the Monday-brain for a few minutes. Either way, we hope it serves you well.

MSR Evo Ascent Snowshoe

Q: Suggestions on packing these for BC snowboarding? I’m looking for a durable, comfortable backpack that I can stow these in while snowboarding. Any recommendations appreciated.

By: Bryan P
March 7, 2011

Read More …

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Posted in Gear Guide |

Re Wikstrom Interview

By: Adam Riser | March 9th, 2011
1 Comment »

The lady behind the lens.

A few years ago, I’d occasionally open a ski magazine, see a photo of some girl going huge, check out the credit, and say, “Hey, I know the girl who took that.” Today, it’s rare to open a ski magazine without seeing a few Re Wikstrom photos inside, or even one on the cover. As Re’s career has blown up, she has seen her work printed in Powder Magazine, The Ski Journal, Freeskier, Backcountry Magazine (including two covers), several catalogs, and multiple pages around the interwebs. She even scored a several-page spread all to herself in The Ski Journal Photobook.

What sets Re apart from the pack (you know, besides unwavering dedication to her craft, a great eye for composition, and just being an incredibly nice person) is that she focuses primarily on female freeskiers. Outraged because no one could seem to take a photo of a women on skis unless it was a cheesy outtake or someone wearing a bikini, Re decided that instead of complaining about the state of ski photography, she would do her part to change it. After years of working with a crew of ladies who will ski you into the ground, it’s safe to say that she’s accomplished (and continues to accomplish) her mission.

Winter is a hard time to nail Re down for more than two minutes, but I get ahold of her during a quick stop in Bellingham between trips to Canada and ask her a few questions.

Read More …

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Posted in Interviews |

Ode to the Office Job

By: Adam Riser | February 23rd, 2011
9 Comments »

Drying gear and working hard (or at least appearing to) after a morning of face shots.

I have an office job. I sit in a cubicle and spend most of my day typing on a computer and looking at spreadsheets. It wasn’t always like this; I used to be a river guide. I worked rivers all over Washington and Oregon while living in my truck. I climbed 200 days during my first year as a river guide. Then I became a climbing guide on Mt. Rainier. What could be better? I got paid to climb and climbed all day. Well, in theory anyway. Really, I got paid to carry a big pack and walk slowly in dangerous places while tied to clients who were seemingly trying to kill themselves (and, by extension, me). When I did finally have a day off, climbing was the last thing I wanted to do. Eventually, and entirely by accident, I landed a “real” job. I hear a lot of people blaming their office jobs for their failure to get out and get after it. However, I find that my desk job hasn’t killed my climbing; it’s actually given me the freedom (and rest) to do more.

Read More …

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Posted in How To, Newsletter, Outdoor Articles, Skiing |

Monday Q&A – Will You Be My Valentine?

By: Justin Mool | February 14th, 2011
1 Comment »

questionsSince the holidays, we’ve been using Mondays to answer some of the community’s questions.

But why should we have all the procrastinating fun?

Here are five chances to be someone’s Valentine. Read More …

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Posted in Gear Guide |

Friday Video – Full Mental Jacket Part II

By: Austin Holt | February 11th, 2011
1 Comment »

Happy Friday; only a few short hours exist between you and your weekend. Be strong, push through, and while you’re killing time, check out the videos featured below.

In follow up to Wednesday’s Full Mental Jacket: Finding Your Ideal Touring Shell article, we’ve included a series of videos below. Each video outlines a different portion of the article, with the first being an introduction, the middle three being overviews of the respective jackets, and the fifth and final video representing a conclusion and overview of the Outdoor Research jacket I finally decided on.

Special thanks to Sam Peters of the Backcountry.com video department for shooting, and editing the videos below.

Part I. Introduction

Read More …

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Posted in Gear Guide, How To |

Full Mental Jacket | Choosing Your Ideal Ski Touring Shell

By: Austin Holt | February 9th, 2011
6 Comments »

Full Mental Jacket: Finding Your Ideal Touring Shell

Conquering the Quest for a New Piece of Kit

Pulling the trigger on a new jacket can feel like a daunting mission to gear newbies and veterans alike. Maybe you’re new to ski touring and looking for your first, truly “bomber” shell, or you’re a old pro upgrading from your withering old shell jacket. Either way, the options are seemingly endless. To add to this needle-in-a-stack-of-needles feeling, these days, even the cheapest technical jackets offer a surprisingly high level of protection matched with well thought-out features.

Dave Kelly touring in the Utah backcountry, photo: Austin Holt

Fear not, though; I recently embarked on a quest to find exactly the right hardshell jacket for my own personal touring needs, and here I explain, step by step, what I learned about narrowing down the options. Read More …

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Posted in Gear Guide, How To |

Backwoods Skiing: An Appalachian Reaction

By: Jeffrey Miesbauer | February 4th, 2011
4 Comments »

Deep turns on Pinball Wizard, Moses Cone Memorial Park, NC

In an industry geared toward park jibbing and max-vert powder skiing, Right-coast snow-slayers are left with only dreams of super parks and 30,000 feet of fluff. But, as some attest, the numbers and names can get in the way of what sliding on snow is all about: good turns with good people.

You don’t need a world-renowned ski resort to have a life-changing experience on snow. All you really need is snow, a little creativity, and a lot of patience.

Backwoods Skiing

noun \ˈbak ˈwu̇dz skē-iŋ\ (1) The planning, waiting, and eventual act of making turns on the best snow available to you (2) A guerrilla skiing tactic that sticks it to the man for trying to charge you $70 to wait in long lines and ski on 500 feet of groomed-to-death granular (3) The dirty redneck cousin of backcountry skiing and a rural opposite to urban jibbing Read More …

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Posted in Outdoor Articles |

Heading for the Hills: The How and Why of Ski Touring

By: Beth Lopez | February 1st, 2011
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Photo: Austin Holt

If you’re interested in getting into backcountry skiing and snowboarding, the first thing that comes to mind is the huge pile of expensive gear you’ll have to amass. (The second thing to come to mind is likely, “OK, once I’ve auctioned my gall bladder on the black market and taken my rhythmically challenged roommate’s drum set to the consignment store, I still need to learn how to use this stuff.”)

You’ll get past those obstacles, though. You’ll pull the money together to purchase the basic gear, you’ll take an avalanche safety course, you’ll assemble a posse of worthy pals to go out with, and you’ll figure out how to get your AT bindings into touring mode (tip: practice this before your friends are watching). You’ll get to the point where you can really start touring.

Read More …

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Posted in Featured |

Slackcountry to Backcountry

By: Adam Riser | January 25th, 2011
5 Comments »

How to step away from the lifts and come back in one piece

No one is looking out for you here. Learn to make your own decisions.

Let’s face it: if you ski enough, you’ll eventually reach the point where the resort just won’t satisfy your powder jones anymore. Even on the deepest days, runs get tracked out too fast, and you find yourself venturing into the slackcountry. You duck the rope, traverse for 15 minutes, drop in on the 400 feet of untracked snow that you find, and then traverse back at the bottom. So, what do you do when those few hundred feet of fresh are no longer enough? You leave the lifts and crowds behind and get into the backcountry.

The backcountry is not the resort or even the terrain on the other side of the boundary ropes. No one has tested these slopes or determined if they’re safe. You need different gear and a different skill set to avoid trouble and move efficiently. This is a quick-and-dirty guide on the basics to get you from the sidecountry to the backcountry without gambling your life on avalanche conditions. Read More …

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Posted in Newsletter |

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