Andrew McLean

Andrew McLean lives in Park City, Utah and is a gear designer, writer, photographer, ski mountaineer, climber, Mountain Unicycle rider and father of two very loud little girls.

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Andrew McLean's Latest Posts

Guess the UT Skier Days WINNER!

Guess the UT Skier Days WINNER!

| June 6, 2012 | 2 Comments

Yep, the eagerly awaited Ski Utah 2011/12 skier daze numbers came out today and we have a winner! Out of about 35-40 entries, “mtb” came not only came the closest, but he also stayed slightly under the actual number, which would make him a double winner with the Price Is Right rules. Those rules are […]

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Kris Holm MUni Book

Kris Holm MUni Book

| June 3, 2012 | 2 Comments

I learned how to ride a unicycle as a kid, took a multi-year hiatus and then got into Mountain Unicycling (MUni) about eight years ago after seeing a film of it in a Banff  Film Festival. It was mainly a novelty at first with lots of crashing, but after a while it took on a […]

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HotWire History

HotWire History

| May 23, 2012 | 10 Comments

I recently saw that Outside Magazine had voted the HotWire carabiner as one of the most influential pieces of gear of all time, which was a delayed honor as I designed the HotWire 18 years ago when I was working at Black Diamond Equipment.  I first started working at BD right after they had broken […]

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Working the Skin Pocket

Working the Skin Pocket

| May 16, 2012 | 4 Comments

In XC/Nordic skiing, the term “wax pocket” denotes a certain zone on the ski where applying wax is going to give you the optimal blend of both grip and glide. A similar concept applies to climbing skins, although the “skin pocket” is fixed as you can’t adjust it fore/aft each day like you can by […]

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Cook Tent Architecture

Cook Tent Architecture

| May 11, 2012 | 0 Comments

My first impression of pyramid style tarp tents was not good. After arriving at a barren, windy trailhead late at night, we set the tent up, stripped down and crawled into our sleeping bags.  The next thing I knew, I felt a cool breeze on my face could see the stars.  Realizing the tent had […]

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Guess the 2011-12 Utah Skier Days

Guess the 2011-12 Utah Skier Days

| May 9, 2012 | 55 Comments

If tradition holds, Ski Utah will be releasing its 2011-12 Utah Annual Skier Day Visits any day now. This event is the skiing equivalent of Enron releasing their quarterly earnings statement and is always eagerly anticipated. I don’t think Arthur Anderson audits the final number, nor does S&P/Moody’s rate it, but the number is always […]

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Cardiac Bowl Peace Accord

Cardiac Bowl Peace Accord

| May 3, 2012 | 3 Comments

Last Tuesday, May 1, 2012, the Uinta-Wasatch-Cache National Forest re-issued a permit to the Cardiff Canyon Owners Association (CCOA) to allow motorized access to their private property. As part of this agreement, the private property owners have agreed to allow the public the same right-of-way through their land for backcountry travel. On the surface, this […]

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14-18 Year Old Kids Needed for Grand Adventure

14-18 Year Old Kids Needed for Grand Adventure

| May 1, 2012 | 4 Comments

The Hans Fund Youth Ski Mountaineering Course is looking for a few good 14-18 year-olds to round out registration in its 2012 Teton ski camp.  The camp focuses on ski mountaineering and takes place from June 14-18 in Jackson Hole, Wyoming. It is taught in conjunction with Exum Mountain Guides and includes instruction from Grand […]

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The Elusive Pot Parka

The Elusive Pot Parka

| April 27, 2012 | 1 Comment

I was checking out Forrest McCarthy’s ultralight gear list from his recent sufferfest on the Alaska Mountain Wilderness Ski  Classic, and was surprised to see that a pot parka made the cut.  I’ve been using them for years and haven’t been able to find them any more, so I was especially psyched to see that […]

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SkiLink Update

SkiLink Update

| April 25, 2012 | 19 Comments

As much as I enjoyed being in Alaska (details and photos forthcoming) for the past three weeks, I couldn’t help but have a Wasatch flashback while we were flying over the spine of the mighty Chugach Mountains. Cruising at  something like 125mph, it took us about an hour to cross the range and we saw […]

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