02 Gear
The Classic Diaper-Seat Harness
After years of looking, I still haven’t found a harness that works better for general ski mountaineering than the trusty “diaper-seat” design. This design is at least 25 years-old and its most famous incarnation is the Black Diamond Bod Harness, (named after Rod “The Bod” Johnson who designed it) although many other companies make them as […]
Ditch the Plastic Shovel
By the numbers, plastic shovels are supposedly as strong (or stronger) than steel and able to withstand incredibly low temperatures. Their big selling points are that they are lighter and cheaper than metal. The weight claims are a bit suspect as plastic shovels tend to be on the small side, which naturally makes them lighter, but […]
A Shovel Named Desire
Avalanches shovels are a matter of personal choice and with so many out there, it is hard to go wrong. The most important thing is to carry one – after that, if it works good, it is good. I consider a well-made shovel to be a quality tool and am very particular about what I […]
Love’m… and Leave’m Behind
Thermos’, goggles, ski crampons and helmets – these are a few of my least favorite things, at least in terms of backcountry skiing day trips. I’m a less-is-more kind of guy and if I’ve carried something in my daypack for more than a few trips without using it, it gets the chop. If I find […]
Probes – Leave Home Without Them?
I hardly ever carry a probe for day backcountry ski trips. I know this makes me a bad person and I’ll burn in hell for it, but I have my reasons. 1) Cheap lightweight probes are a disservice to humanity. They bend, break and don’t have the heft to punch through solid avalanche debris. If […]
Used Gear Selling Strategies
Ski mountaineering gear loses a small amount of its value as soon as you peel off the packaging, quite a bit of its value once it has been used for a season or less, and almost all of its value after a few years of use, regardless of its condition. At times, after 3-5 years, […]
Making Shims for Dynafit Bindings and Bellowed Boots
Dynafit bindings and Scarpa F1 or F3 bellowed boots are a match made in heaven, yet officially you are not suppose to use them together. Perish the thought! The reasoning is that Dynafits rely on a fixed boot sole-length to work properly, and because the F1 & F3’s flex, the effective sole length changes, which […]
Gear – Use it & Don’t Lose it.
Whatever gear you decide to use, make sure to actually test it out before taking it on an extended trip. Little details, like boots not fitting in bindings or crampons being the wrong size can be show stoppers in remote locations. It sounds basic, but it is surprising how often this comes up and how much it […]
Equipment Design
“Weight, strength, cost. Pick any two.” Joe Skrivan, Black Diamond Design Manager on designing outdoor products. Equipment design is a series of trade-offs between function, weight, strength and cost. Hitting any two of those is easy, any three is difficult and getting all four is what constitutes a “classic design.” A super-strong, lightweight set of […]
Spare Gear
Skins and beacons are popular items to forget, which shuts down a tour before it even begins. It’s almost a physical impossiblity for a person booting through deep snow to keep up with a group on skins, and forgetting a beacon not only means you won’t be able to find them, but they also won’t be […]
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