Comments on: ABOUT

By: Andrew

Andrew — Fri, 11 May 2012 15:56:01 +0000

Hi Jerry – Since my skiing objectives determine my climbing routes, I always climb in a pair of AT boots. I think that AT skiing boots make better climbing boots than climbing boots make ski boots. You *can* ski in them… just not very well. So, it really depends on what kind of route you are attempting. If skis are just going to be used for the approach (skinning up a glacier, gliding on the flats, etc.) then Alpine boots are fine.

I’ve found that most/all crampons work well with AT boots. I’ve done a few WI-5 ice climbs in ski boots, and although it’s not ideal, they work well enough.

By: Jerry Pothen

Jerry Pothen — Fri, 11 May 2012 06:31:27 +0000

Hello Andrew,

I am from India. I climb and ski in the Himalayas and came across straightchuter.com whilst looking for a pair of boots for my next climb.

I was curious about the combination of “boots/crampon/ski” you use in order to ascend and then descend on skis – especially down the big 8000m peaks.

Do you use
1) Mountaineerinig boots for the climbs with AT Bindings on your skis for descent or

2) Do you use Alpine Touring Ski Boots for the climb as well as Descent?

If 1 – Is it awkward skiing in mountaineering boots

If 2 – Is it difficult negotiating technical sections like Ice Walls and Rock faces etc and “crampon”ing with AT Boots

I use a CAMP C12 Semi Automatic Crampon which is like an allrounder which is to say that one may use it for glacier traversing, technical sections and at times for mixed climbs and ice walls.

Anything else you feel I need to know in order to plan for my next climb/adventure.

Thanks a ton,
Jerry

By: Dom

Dom — Tue, 28 Feb 2012 15:25:21 +0000

Hi Andrew.
A recent gift of a stack of back issue Backcountry magazines lead me to your ‘Size Matters’ McLeanings story.

It’s an unfortunate comparison you make, between big wave surfers and big line skiing. There is no comparison, other than the fact that both are athletic endeavors which put the athlete in extreme danger, at the top of their game. I think a closer comparison would be choosing to ski only when the mountain will absolutely, positively avalanche at some point. And I’d hazard a guess that a big wave surfer who can competently ski would fare better skiing a big line, than a similarly skilled skier paddling out at Jaws, Mavericks, Shipsterns or Teahupoo.

Have you ever sat out in the heaving sea on a stick of fibreglass, barely in the lee of the impact zone?

By: AlpineZone

AlpineZone — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 01:48:26 +0000

Just came across this when someone on Alpinezone posted about Baffin Island and I came across this site. Some amazing stuff you have going on here! Very cool indeed. Love the baffin island pics, it looks really incredible.

By: Antarctica | NoahHowell.com

Antarctica | NoahHowell.com — Thu, 05 Jan 2012 04:26:32 +0000

[...] newbies, veterans, hippies, punters, bros, powder hos, yuppies and euros. Chris Davenport and Andrew McLean have been down there multiple times and they made great tour [...]

By: Andrew

Andrew — Wed, 07 Dec 2011 21:40:03 +0000

Hi Nick – it depends entirely on how severe they are. If they aren’t too bad and there’s only one or two, I’ll just keep waxing over them. When I eventually get enough to break out the p-tex, I’ll scrape the wound clean, then drip p-tex into the gouge and file it off. I use the p-tex that is made for the guns and heat it up with a little mini blow torch as it doesn’t have any wax in it (like the traditional p-tex candles), so it doesn’t stay lit. I also do a mini preheat of the ski base to help the new p-tex stick to it. If it is a really deep gouge, I’ll trim it out with an undercut and then fill that in with slow dry epoxy. This usually cracks, but it serves its purpose. If it is a new/favorite pair of skis and I really tag them, I’ll take it to a shop as they have far better tools to deal with patches, edge repair and big base welds.

By: Nick

Nick — Tue, 06 Dec 2011 20:57:33 +0000

How do you fix core shots?

By: Jamie

Jamie — Fri, 28 Oct 2011 17:23:47 +0000

Where were you born?

By: Andrew

Andrew — Tue, 20 Sep 2011 15:15:26 +0000

Hi Dan – Last season I used:
- Scarpa Maestrale boots
- K2 Wayback skis & skins (167cm)
- Dynafit ST Vertical bindings

I am very particular about my gear and once I find something that works, I tend to stick with it, which is partially why I’ve been using Scarpa, K2 and Dynafits for the last ten years or so. As such, I haven’t tried out a lot of the other boots, skis and bindings, although I know there are some good ones out there.

By: Dan

Dan — Sun, 18 Sep 2011 20:23:15 +0000

Thanks for your reply. I’m looking to build a lighter backcountry set-up than my current one (181 Coomba’s w/ Fritschis w/Garmont Adrenalin boots). I’d like to say I only get powder days but not every season is so gracious to us in Colorado. I will keep my current set-up for shorter tours and powder days but I want something for spring/summer backcountry skiing -longer tours/approaches, steeper cols., and variable conditions. The set up will include a tech boot (Maestrale?) and tech binding. A couple friends are skiing the Manaslu but haven’t been that happy with its durability or descending. I’m a lighter guy (under 150 at about 6’) and don’t want a ski too prone to deflection since the corn at 12000’ can be frozen crud at 14000’. Any recommendations (would love to demo about 50 different skis but unfortunately I don’t really have that option)?