Having grown up sailing in Seattle with my dad, I was familiar with wire gate carabiners as they’re very common in the maritime industry, so when it came to the “lightweight” part of the product description, this seemed obvious. The first prototype I made of the wiregate carabiner involved hand bending a piece of “piano wire” from a hobby store and milling the body out from a solid billet of some exotic military grade mystery metal that a supplier had sent us.  I printed out drawings of the design and spray mounted them to the metal as a template for cutting and remember going through about 50 endmills as the material was so gummy and unmachinable.

HotWire Prototype #001 circa 1994

Between the crude prototyping and horrible gate action, this first prototype was greeted with almost universal disdain by everyone except Johnny Woodward.  Johnny was also a Designer at BD, as well as having a background in math and being an incredible climber. At the time, the hallmark of BD carabiners was that the gate action was “as smooth as a BMW’s transmission” and Johnny was the guy who actually dissected the pivot points and geometry of the wire gate to understand why it worked and how to optimize it. He also realized that with less mass, a wiregate biner wouldn’t be as susceptible to gate whiplash, which can lead to carabiners being loaded in the “open gate” mode, which can reduce their strength from 25kN to 7kN. To prove this, Johnny mounted carabiners on a pivot and used high-speed photography to show beyond a doubt that a wiregate closed in a fraction of the time that it took a standard gate to retract.

A classic photo of Johnny Woodward on “Beau Geste.”

The wiregate idea was dropped from the immediate carabiner design, which eventually turned into Black Diamond’s first hot forged carabiner, The Fin. The Fin was intended as a sport climbing specific biner, but after it was introduced it became obvious that it had been designed and tested by people with large hands and was ridiculously oversized.  It died a fairly quick death, but the namesake “fin” on the back spine eventually resurfaced on the LiveWire biner years later.

The short-lived “Fin” carabiner – so large you could fly a Space Shuttle through it.

Meanwhile, Johnny was still interested in the wiregate concept and it was decided that if we were going to make a wiregate biner, it needed to have its own body as the tail sections of existing biners was too small to house two holes.  This was the official start of the HotWire biner and it took roughly a full year and 15 prototypes to dial in these two simple parts – the body and the gate.

Even after all the weights, strengths, functions, manufacturing and price issues had been resolved, there was still a large degree of skepticism about the biner and it was commonly referred to as “the paperclip gate” as it looked so weird. I distinctly remember the disappointment of hearing the pre-sales projection numbers before the  HotWire was introduced as they were a tiny fraction of the numbers for the best selling Ovals, Light D’s and Quicksilvers.  It was almost seen as a novelty biner with a host of unforeseen issues, like ropes being cut when it was cross-loaded (unfounded), gates losing their action or worst of all, general rejection by climbers.

Instead, what happened was that experienced climbers started using a few of them and realized that wiregate made an Aid rack lighter, they didn’t jam in the snow for alpine climbing, they were easier to clip for sport climbing, and best of all, there were no cut ropes or widespread failures.  After that, the wiregate concept basically sold itself.

The modern day HotWire carabiner, which has been through a few redesigns since the mid 90′s.

For the first few years the HotWire had a “Pat. Pending” stamp on it, which was a crafty move on BD’s part. While wiregates may have been new to climbing, as other carabiner manufacturers pointed out, they were hardly a new invention, so how could they be patented? Good question, but is it worth sinking a bunch of time, effort and money into a project knowing that you might be infringing on a patent? Considering that the patent process can take years, especially if the applicants want it to, and gearing up to design and make a wiregate from scratch could take years, there were no other wiregates on the market for many seasons. The patent itself turned out to be on the riveting process for the two ends of the gate, and although I don’t know if it was ever granted, it served its purpose of holding off the competition, at least for a little while.

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The pot parkas themselves are basically just an asbestos (?) cover that you put over your pot while it is melting snow, cooking or boiling water.  It helps a little bit with fuel efficiency, but it also serves to cut down on the roar of an XGK stove, and most importantly, you can redirect the stove’s exhaust gases to dry out gloves, boot liners or help thaw frozen food. It is a lightweight, multipurpose accessory that seems well worth the additional few grams.  They are available in two sizes (the 10″  fits a 3L pot well) and as an added bonus, folding them back up correctly is an excellent little time wasting brainteaser.

Using this setup with an MSR XGK stove for heavy winter burning, I figure on .18 liters per person, per day of white gas fuel consumption.

The pot parkas use to be part of the Backpacker’s Pantry baking kit and you could buy the parka as a spare item, but I haven’t seen that option for a while.  The parkas take a lot of abuse, but I did have one suddenly melt down on me, in which case it sent out a harsh acidic smoke that probably caused all sorts of lung damage.

The photo that launched a thousand “Where do you get those?” questions.

By putting items on top of the pot lid and below the parka, it is possible to steam them, or at least get a surface defrost going.  Gloves can be laid directly on top of the parka (mfg probably doesn’t advise this…), and boot liners can be inverted and balanced for a fairly good drying session.  You have to keep an eye out once the water starts boiling, as steam can quickly undo any drying progress you’ve made.

Thanks for the link Forrest!  The race looked, uhmmmm, fun and you probably didn’t need those three fingers anyway.  ;)
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Probably the most asked question in all OR Show history is “Have you seen anything new & cool?”  This is kind of a trick question as most of the stuff there is new and cool, but the deeper meaning of the question is more like “Have you seen anything revolutionary?”  Most of the time, gear design is evolutionary, which means new colors, sizing or products designed to hit a specific marketing niche.  But occassionally, revolutionary new  products like plastic teleboots, multitools, portable solar power, hydration systems, shaped skis, camming devices for climbing or portable GPS units come out that change they way people recreate in the outdoors.   I didn’t see any such game-changers at this show, but in all fairness, I didn’t look very hard either.  Usually, if they are out there, you’ll hear about them.

However, there was some interesting gear that caught my eye…

Pieps Vector – I’ve been a fan of the Pieps DSP transceiver for the last few years and haven’t felt any reason to change until I saw the Pieps Vector.  The Vector has all of the great features of the DSP, but also includes GPS and weather data capabilities.  If the unit is on, it will track your location, which can then be downloaded onto a computer while the battery is being recharged via a USB port. This is more of a home-based beacon than for expeditions, but it is a nice combination of technologies.

Mountain Hardwear Chute Packs – I’m admittedly partial to these packs as I helped design them.  Available in two sizes, a 28 liter and a 15 liter, they are dedicated ski touring packs.  The Chuter 15 is for lightweight day tours or mechanized skiing, and the Chuter 28 is for longer outings, guiding or anywhere you might need to carry more stuff.

Voile Vector Skis – A moderately wide (92-96mm), versatile backcountry ski with rockered tips and a fishscale pattern embedded into the base which allows you to climb up mellow slopes without skins.  If you do need skins, you can still slap them on. These would be perfect for “farming” powder laps, but you could also easily take them anywhere else.

ABS Packs – There isn’t much new with the actual guts of the ABS airbag backpack system, but ABS has added a few new styles of “bags” and buffed out their existing design.  Unlike other airbag backpacks, the ABS has a “frame” which different sized “bags” can be zipped on/off of.  This also allows other manufactures, like Burton and Arva, to make their own bags which can then be merged onto an ABS frame.

BCA Airbag Packs – These have undergone a much needed facelift for 2012/13.  I tried the Float 30 and Float 18 last year, and although the airbag safety aspect was indisputable, as a pack they were lacking.  For next year, the bags have been redesigned and look nice.

Splitboards – I don’t know phukall about splitboarding, but it is great to see that those who do are getting faster, lighter and more dialed.  Jones Snowboards  looked well thought out, and the beautifully crafted Karakorum bindings are a pleasure to behold in all of their CNC’d brilliance.

GoalZero Guide 10 Plus – I bought one of these as a show special and they are techie little units that now come now come with a 10 dongle USB adaptor (not shown in the photo below).  The unit can be charged from a solar panel or a computer USB port, and then in turn can charge (or power) a variety of items ranging from camera or cell phones to just about anything else.

Sterling Hollow Block  – There is alot more to this little product than meets the eye.  It is a sewn loop of tubular aramid fiber which will work well as a runner or for a prusik loop.  The advantage of using this for a prusik loop is that the aramid fiber has a very high melting temperature, so if you are using it as a glacier prusik and take a long fall into a crevasse with it, it won’t melt or glaze like regular accessory cord.  Then, if you want to use it as a runner, it is good for 14kN.  Lightweight, low profile, simple and functional.

As an Industrial Designer (ID) by profession and education, it was interesting to see the explosion of ID in the outdoor industry. In the 1950′s ID was all about fins, steel and streamlined shapes, but the two-thousand-teens are going to be remembered for everything looking like an iPhone. You can almost hear the Sales Directors shouting “I DON’T GIVE A DAMN IF IT IS A CARABINER! MAKE IT LOOK LIKE AN APPLE iPRODUCT!”  What kind of apps does this binding run?

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The Scarpa Aliens have all the features and more that you might expect in a racing boot, including a quick release heel throw, BOA style forefront tensioning, a minimal powerstrap and some sexy lycra gaitors to help keep the liners dry.

In sailboat racing, certain classes of boats are designed to hit a set group of requirements, and the Scarpa Alien does the same thing with ski mountaineering race boots.  An alternative name for them might be “Barely Legal” (legalesse miminalissimo in Italian) and they are intended to be competitive right out of the box, although for $1,000 more, you can get a carbonfiber infested upgrade called the Alien 1.0 which shaves a few grams.

Although the Aliens are intended for racing, they also work well for ultralight ski touring, especially when coupled with short little skis and basic Dynafit bindings.  In Europe, this type of skiing is known as “Ski Running” which is an apt description of the activity.  It’s about as far from Freeriding as you can get, but considering you can double your vertical and halve the weight, it has its advantages.

I first got into skiing on racing gear after an aborted traverse of Baffin Island left us with no other options but to ski steep chutes on spindly gear.  I was initially paranoid about skiing committing lines on F1′s and 160cm skis, but after a few runs I got use to it.  The key is to be very centered, which is much easier if the snow is consistent.  Skiing punchy, crusty, gloppy snow on race gear is no fun, but powder, foam or corn are no problem.

Booting up the 40-50 degree "Terror Firma" in northern Baffin Island.

"Look Ma! No brains!" Hahaha. getting set up to ski Terror Firma on some F1's.

One very unusual thing about the Aliens, or F1′s for that matter, is that in steep terrain, they have the potential to actually be dangerous if the rear heel latch comes undone as the boot instantly, and dramatically goes into tour mode.  With many boots this isn’t such a big deal, but because racing boots have such incredible ankle flexation, this means you can end up flat on your back with no warning.

Details to follow once I get them molded to my foot and hopefully, when we get more snow.
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On our recent trip to Antarctica I ended up bringing two 30m ropes of different diameters and was very psyched on the flexibility of the system.  Glacier travel with 4-5 people on a 30m rope makes for some tight spacing, but then again, it depends on the terrain. Antarctica had lots of crevasses, but they weren’t the Mack Truck swallowing monsters that you can get up in Alaska, so the tighter spacing meant better communications and less rope work.  We used the Sterling 9.2mm Fusion Nano most of the time and swapped out carrying the lighter 7.8mm Sterling Fusion Photon as needed.

Five people on a 30m rope is tight spacing, but it worked for this type of terrain. Either the leader or tail gunner can carry the second rope.

For skiing, it’s nice to have two ropes as the first and last person can both carry one.  It doesn’t matter how long or strong a rope is if the person carrying it falls to the bottom of a crevasse with it.  Some people carry 5.5mm Spectra rope as a “drop cord”, but these ropes are so specialized they can’t be used for much else.  By carrying two dynamic 30m ropes of different diameters, you can tie them together if you need to extend spacing on a glacier, or for a full 30m rappel.

Roped skiing on a 9.8mm 30m rope. In this case, we had to add the second 30m rope to extend the total distance to 60m.

Ropes only work if you use them, and not having to deal with an entire 60m at a whack makes that much easier. Coiling a 30 on top of a peak.

Another nice feature of carrying two 30m ropes is that you can upsize or downsize depending on the terrain.  Or, if you get to an area where you are just carrying a rope as insurance, you can leave the heavier rope at the bottom and pick it up on the way back down.

In cases like this, you can leave one rope at the base (where this photo was taken), then use the lighter rope to cross the glacier to get to steeper terrain.

The disadvantage of this system is that it is harder to do a full 60m rappel on a single line as you have to pass a knot, and, you can’t do a 60m protected lead unless you are willing to run out the first 30m before your first piece. But, these seem like a small price to pay for the vast increase in flexibility, reduction in weight and simplicity of dealing with a smaller amount of rope every time you tie in.

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This is perhaps a blessing as I recently had an opportunity to check out the 3D Atlas and posters from 2i3D, which provide a similar viewing experience for much less cost.  When viewed on a table, the images literally pop off the page in such clear, crisp resolution that it seems like you could slice your hand through them. This seems especially unbelievable as without the supplied 3D glasses, the images look fuzzy and muddled to the point that it almost hurts to look at them.

The computer generated imagery provides the equivalent of viewing the maps/images from a god-like vantage of 20,000′ and with eyes 5,000′ apart. The map data for the Wasatch Atlas book came from a 1998 Forest Service update which was done in anticipation of the 2002 Olympics, and as such is very up to date with trailheads, campgrounds and private property.  If you can follow it, there is a detailed explanation in the beginning of the atlas about how anaglyphic 3D maps are made, but it is hardly required reading as the images speak for themselves.

The Wasatch Tri-Canyons Atlas contains 21 spreads of 7.5 minute quadrangles. Each spread has an photographic image of the terrain on the left and then a complementary topographic image on the right. This is a cool feature as it is easy to see a nice looking peak or feature on the left, then instantly identify it on the right.

2i3D currently has two atlas available – the Tri Canyons area of the Wasatch Mountains $19.95) and Zion National Park ($29.95). The Zion maps are like virtual canyoneering and slots like Imlay and Heaps pop out in all of their glory.  There are also four posters available, including upper Little Cottonwood Canyon (Alta & Snowbird).  If you happen to have a pair of red/cyan glasses, the 2i3D website is also in 3D and worth a look.

The posters range from between $9.95 and $19.95, and like the books, can be purchased at 2i3D.com.  Since a CMH floor table model may never happen for me, I’m thinking of just taping a 2i3D poster to my IKEA table, handing out 3D glasses and calling it good.
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“Breaking Trail” is the latest offering from the Wasatch based PowderWhore production company and it is yet another good one from the Ho’s. Aside from breaking trail, they are also breaking with tradition this year by expanding outside of the tele world to include AT and Splitboard skiers/riders.   The tele purists need not worry – the deepest pow and fullest faceshots still belong to the tele segments with skiers like Paul Kimbrough, Jake Saxton and Noah Howell drowning in it.  As always, Noah seems to reserve the deepest of the deep for himself and I can imagine him turning the camera duties over to his partners on the truly sick days.  “This looks dangerously deep, but I’m willing to ski it for the team.  Here – take the camera.”

I like PowderWhore films for a number of reasons.  First, they feature a lot of Wasatch terrain, which is fun to pick out.  Second, the skiers/riders seem to be having fun and don’t take themselves too seriously, which is a painful short-coming of far too many ski films nowadays. Third, they find interesting local characters to include in their films,  like Tom Kimbrough and Bret “Kowboy” Kobernick which helps create a storyline outside of the gnarlysickbrobrahuckyermeat genre.  And fourth, in a misery loves company kind of way, I fully appreciate how Noah & Jonah are cursed with a creative artistic urge and a love of the backcountry.  They just can’t help themselves, which is good news for the viewing public.

Having been behind the scenes in a few PW shoots, it is fun to see how the Ho’s have adapted their style and equipment to enable them to get footie from deep in the backcountry.  Whereas a full-blown, heavy metal film crew might never make it further than a quarter mile from the nearest helicopter or base lodge, the PW crew has adapted all sorts of equipment to enable them to be able to travel relatively fast and light to get to the most remote areas.  A lot of times this is lost on the viewers, but to backcountry aficionados, it is what makes the PW films unique and real.

Last night’s sold out show was standing room only and the P-Ho Roadshow is about to get underway with a tour of roughly 837 cities.  Being on tour means the Brothers Howell will be missing out on tons of early season turns and there is nothing quite as sweet at scooping the Whores in their own backyard and sending them text messages about what they are missing.  However, they tend to make up for it later in the year.

The DVD is available here, or new this season, you can torture yourself by watching it on an iPhone as a digital download.
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I don’t think I toured a single day last year in anything but Scarpa Maestrale boots.  For resorts, I have a pair of Scarpa Mobe boots, but I have yet to brave any touring with them.  I come from a long line of Scarpa boots dating all the way back to the leather Tele Savauge (yes, tele…) and have been very happy with the Lazer/Matrix/Spirit line of three buckle boots.  My first impression of the Maestrale was dismay as it was a four buckle boot – gasp – but it turned out to be lighter and toured better than the Spirit 3 it replaced, so I never looked back.  But still, I secretly yearned for a three buckle boot as I seldom if ever adjust the toe buckle on a 4 buckle boot, so it is kind of vestigial and needs to be dropped.

My prayers were answered this year with the Scarpa Rush.  The Executive Summary is that it is a 3 buckle version of the Maestrale, which makes it a bit lighter.  I have yet to actually ski it, but in flex tests and on carpet tours, it feels very much the same as a Maestrale.  Why would you get this boot over the Maestrale?  It is a little lighter (85 grams/3 oz), a little simpler (3 vs. 4 buckles) and a little less expensive ($549 vs. $599).  Dropping the toe buckle means that the toe profile is a bit cleaner, which is nice for booting and/or technical climbing as it is less cluttered. The bright yellow doesn’t match my eyes as well as the Day-glow orange Maestrales, but I can live with that.

The Rush covers all of the essentials - Vibram sole, tech fittings, top quality & top materials.

It is hard to discuss the Rush (right) without mentioning the Maestrale (left) as well. The Maestrale is one of the all-time classic AT boots and has won all sorts of awards - the Rush is a slightly trimmer version of the same.

Aside from the obvious 3 buckles vs. four, the Rush (left) has a solid ankle strap instead of the split version on the Maestrale (right).

I've removed the Powerstraps from both boots, but as the photo shows, they are very similar in height and construction.

Both boots have Intuition liners, tech fittings, Vibram soles, etc, etc..  For either boot, I use SuperFeet or FootBalance insoles, get the liners molded with lots of extra room in the toes for warmth and remove the power strap.  Aside from that they are 100% stock – no grinding, punching, tongue swaps, carbon cuffs or drill holes.

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For the past eight or so years, I’ve been using alpine climbing jackets and pants as I like the looser fit, stripped down design and generally better construction and materials.  I’ve found that most “ski” specific clothing is more geared towards riding the wire, and as such has too many doodads and is too hot for hiking.  This year MHW has come out with a line of clothing that is far & away the best they have ever produced.  A big part of this push has resulted from them moving to their own proprietary breathable membrane, Dry.Q, which has allowed them increased design flexibility.

Dry.Q is available in three different flavors with the Dry.Q Elite being the ultra smack-daddy membrane of the Alpine line. The construction, materials and detailing of this jacket makes my inner designer swoon with joy.

For outerwear this season, I am using a Jovian Jacket and Bokta Pants.  Both are gorgeous pieces of clothing, but I am especially excited about the pants as; a) they are red, b) they have full length zippers. The full length zippers are essential for taking your pants on/off over ski boots (or even while wearing skis), and taking other things, like visits to the outhouse.  In the past I’d often cut the powder cuffs off right away, but now I let them rock until they inevitably get torn & ripped to the point that they serve no purpose, and then remove them.  This usually takes about half the season and is 100% user error.  I wear soft shell Synchro pants as a baselayer, which fit over the boot top, and if I really need powder cuff protection, like for extended postholio sessions, I’ll cinch the cuff down with a Voile strap.

I love the simplicity and bomb-proof quality of these pants. In case you are wondering, Bokta is just east of Chindwin.

The Jovian Jacket follows in the tradition of the Beryllium and Vertical jackets – a clean, simple design with fantastic materials and construction. If I were god, I’d do away with the pit zips and bicep Chapstick pocket, but I can live with them.

The Jovian Jacket is all business with two large, front waist pockets and a big mesh inner pocket.

I’m thrilled to see jackets and pants like these, as from a manufacturers perspective, they must be a tough sell.  To the disconcerting customer, it appears you can get a jacket with more bullet-points on its hangtag for less money elsewhere, but if you are using these things on a daily basis in the environment they were designed for, their value quickly becomes apparent.

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Overview
A very well made and designed pack that features excellent detailing without going over-board on marketing features.  It is comfortable, carries well and has enough capacity to use as a day touring pack or for mechanized skiing.  The ability to swap out different “packs” onto a single base unit is nice.  The Powder 15 is lightest of the three packs I tested and its trim size makes you forget you are even carrying an airbag pack.  On the downside, it is the most expensive of the three packs I tested.

The ABS Powder 15. The eight plastic loops on the shoulder straps (four on each side) allow the trigger system to be moved to either side for left or right hand pulling, or up/down on the shoulder strap so you can have the trigger exactly where you want it.

Nitrogen Gas
ABS uses nitrogen gas instead of compressed air as the nitrogen is not affected by temperature or elevation.  “So what?”  you say, or at least I did when I first heard this, but it makes sense, especially for skiing. Deploying an airbag on Thompson Pass (2,800′) versus a Colorado 14,000′ peak, or in minus 20 degree  Montana weather versus a baking hot day in the Sierra’s will result in radically different amounts of bag pressure.  Nitrogen helps even this out, which is why it is also used for inflating race car tires.  For refills, you need to find an ABS dealer and then exchange the used cylinder/trigger kit for a fully activated one for a fee.

Explosive charge for trigger
Instead of using a wire cable to trigger the airbags, the ABS system has a small explosive charge in the handle that when detonated sends pressure through a tube running over your shoulder and ruptures a disk which allows the bags to inflate.  This has the advantage of fewer moving parts to break or freeze and also allows the handle to be completely removed for travel or loading in/out of cars, helis or trams.  It raises a big question-mark about air travel, but then again airlines allow hunters to travel with ammunition, so perhaps this is the same.

On the Powder 15, the handle contains an explosive charge which in turn ruptures a copper disk on the nitrogen cylinder and then fills the airbags. The handle can be completely removed for safe travel in a heli, car, snowcat, tram, etc..

The trigger has a velcro guard over it for times when you want the system activated in the "stand by" mode, like for skiing through trees or hiking up. The strap can be pulled off to the side to place the trigger in "full alert" mode, like when you are skiing a suspect slope. The "T" shape of the handle isn't ideal for use with mittens, but isn't too bad either.

Dual System
The Powder 15 uses the ABS Dual System, which entails two separate venturi valves and two separate 85 liter airbags.  The two systems work unison, but if one fails (say the bag pops on a rock),  it doesn’t affect the other.

A photo of the ABS "Dual System" showing the two red venturi valves (most airbags just have one). When inflating, 70% of the volume comes from air being sucked into the venturis from the outside, not from the cylinder itself, so the Dual System is like having two lungs instead of one and you get a faster fill.

Pack & Carrying Capacity
For a $1,152 pack, ABS has shown commendable restraint from adding tons of extra junky features to the Powder 15 pack itself.  There is a small top key/wallet pocket and then a main pocket with internal sleeves for shovel handles/blades and probes, as well as enough room to carry the basics (jacket, food, water). It is an easy pack to use and carries well. On the to-be-desired side, I wish it had more options for strapping gear to the outside and I prefer lighter fabric colors for packs as black seems to swallow all available light and make it hard to find things inside the pack.

The Powder 15 with its "bag" removed. The part on the right is all of the airbag mechanism and harness. Different size and purpose bags can be zipped onto the ABS frame.

The ABS Powder 15 "bag" taken off the frame and rolled up. It is very light, simple and basic, which I think is a big plus.

By nature, there's not much room in a 15-18 liter pack, so you often have to strap jackets or skins to the outside. The ABS Powder 15 could use a few more attachment points, but you can also make due in a pinch.

Details:
Velcro waist belt – This is a small, but nice detail.  Airbag packs forgo dainty Fastex buckles and use a beefier two-part metal buckle for the waist belt which becomes a pain to get into and out of over the course of doing it ten times a day.  The ABS packs allow you to Velcro the waist belt together, which not only makes it easier to eventually buckle the harness, but also works well for ascending safe lines when you want to just have the waist belt on loosely.  The steel buckle on the ABS pack is a nice trim little unit that stays out of the way.

A close-up of the Velcro waistbelt and steel buckles. The Velcro is great for skinning up as it holds the pack comfortably in place and keeps the buckles from dangling around like wind chimes.

Helmet Hammock – The Powder 15 comes with a detachable 4-point exterior helmet hammock on the back.

Ski Carrying Method – None, although it is easy to rig a diagonal/vertical strap system to the helmet hammock buckles with some foresight.

The Powder 15 doesn't have ski carrying straps, but they can be jury-rigged using Voile straps.

No Gauge on the Nitrogen Cylinder – Unlike the compressed air cylinders on other airbags, the nitrogen cylinders on ABS packs do not have a dial gauge telling you what the tank pressure is.  As a life-saving device this is a bit disconcerting as there is no visual way to ensure the cylinder is full, aside from taking it out and weighing it, which is what ABS recommends.  The plus side of this is that it weighs less and is smaller.

The ABS nitrogen cylinder on the bottom and a BCA air cylinder with dial gauge on the top for size comparison.

Flying with Nitrogen & Explosives - This could potentially be a concern if you were flying commercial airlines to go on a heli-skiing trip.  Personally, I wouldn’t take an airbag pack on an expedition (too heavy), so this isn’t a big deal for me.

These small airbag packs are mainly intended for mechanized skiing, but if you can live with minimal carrying capacity, the Powder 15 works great for touring as well.  The Powder 15 is lightweight and trim enough that I would carry it for the majority of my Wasatch skiing, which is a key issue for me.  If a pack is too heavy or uncomfortable, I won’t use it all the time, which you need to do in avalanche terrain.

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