First touring setup.

-arc-

-arc-

Member
Sup Ns, I'm securing a job in Revelstoke for next winter and was thinking it would be a great place to get into AT with all the sidecountry and backcountry options in that area. Haven't taken my Ast 1 as of yet but I'm fairly certain they run them pretty regularly out of the resort.

I'm in the market for new boots because I'm looking for something stiffer than my current 110's and now with tech inserts and a walk mode. Boot wise I'm going to go for whatever a boot fitter puts me in but I'm looking for a hybrid boot with some chargability.

In the ski department I'm looking into the Armada Tracer 108, Moment Wildcat 108 Tour, Head Kore 105, Atomic Backland 109, Saloman Qst 106. It doesn't have to be a twin tip. Looking for something with some backbone that won't kill me on the way up. The reason I'm not going wider is because I want to do some tours in the spring as well.

With bindings I'm looking at the new Shift binding, Marker Kingpins and the Fritschi Tectons. Feeling a bit scared off from the Shift with all the talk of issues!

With avy gear I'm blind as a bat. No idea what makes of beacons, probes and shovels are well received. No idea about skins either but I guess that's more ski dependent. I'm thinking any pack from a reputable brand will be good enough. Size wise I'm thinking of doing some day tours so 30l should do the treat?

Just looking for some guidance from those more experienced!

Thanks for the help in advance!
 
Nice, very exciting! Get that Avy 1 and earn some turns!

Skis: All fine options, I'd vote for Wildcat 108 Tour, or Deathwish 112 Tour as well. Hard to go wrong with anything on that list though.

Bindings: Don't get Kingpins, basically obsolete binding at this point. If you're planning on skiing inbounds a fair bit, Shift for sure, some folks have had issues, I've skied mine a bunch of days and haven't had any drastic problems more than any other touring binding I've used. And it skis better and safer than anything on the market. Otherwise, for more touring-oriented stuff, Vipecs and Tectons are both awesome. Rad 2.0 is also good if you're not skiing inbounds on it too much.

Avy gear: Get a long (200 cm plus) probe. Carbon's fine I guess, but doesn't seem worth the price / durability potential Get a big shovel, with a hoe mode, small light shovels are fine until you're trying to dig out your buddy with a freaking teaspoon. Get a beacon you know how to use. All the modern ones are fine. Personally huge fan of the Mammut Baryvox series. Way better than BCA's I've owned.

Skins: Big Sky Mountain Products skins are rad, super cheap, work super well, very durable. Save some money and upgrade down the road.

Pack: Yeah, whatever fits you well, I love the Thule Upslope pack personally, 30-35 L is perfect for most tours.

Welcome to the magical world of backcountry skiing. Look out, it's addictive!
 
14012344:cydwhit said:
Nice, very exciting! Get that Avy 1 and earn some turns!

Skis: All fine options, I'd vote for Wildcat 108 Tour, or Deathwish 112 Tour as well. Hard to go wrong with anything on that list though.

Bindings: Don't get Kingpins, basically obsolete binding at this point. If you're planning on skiing inbounds a fair bit, Shift for sure, some folks have had issues, I've skied mine a bunch of days and haven't had any drastic problems more than any other touring binding I've used. And it skis better and safer than anything on the market. Otherwise, for more touring-oriented stuff, Vipecs and Tectons are both awesome. Rad 2.0 is also good if you're not skiing inbounds on it too much.

Avy gear: Get a long (200 cm plus) probe. Carbon's fine I guess, but doesn't seem worth the price / durability potential Get a big shovel, with a hoe mode, small light shovels are fine until you're trying to dig out your buddy with a freaking teaspoon. Get a beacon you know how to use. All the modern ones are fine. Personally huge fan of the Mammut Baryvox series. Way better than BCA's I've owned.

Skins: Big Sky Mountain Products skins are rad, super cheap, work super well, very durable. Save some money and upgrade down the road.

Pack: Yeah, whatever fits you well, I love the Thule Upslope pack personally, 30-35 L is perfect for most tours.

Welcome to the magical world of backcountry skiing. Look out, it's addictive!
Click to expand...

Thanks man! Yeah I'm super excited to get into it! Always loved hikes and getting out in the mountains. Earning my turns just felt like the logical next step! Thanks for the info!
 
14012834:BrawnTrends said:
Never had a problem with my Shifts. Tumbled head over heels in wet powder yesterday and they released perfectly.
Click to expand...

Thanks for the input. I'm definitely not as scared off from the Shifts. They really just sounded like a miracle product, something I was sceptical about originally. Feeling more sold now.
 
14012355:-arc- said:
Thanks man! Yeah I'm super excited to get into it! Always loved hikes and getting out in the mountains. Earning my turns just felt like the logical next step! Thanks for the info!
Click to expand...

Don't get a shovel that is made out of plastic!!!, because it will break in the cold. And make sure that it fits with your backpack.
 
14012858:MoritzF said:
Don't get a shovel that is made out of plastic!!!, because it will break in the cold. And make sure that it fits with your backpack.
Click to expand...

Didn't intend to. Didn't even know they sold avy shovels that were plastic. And yep I'll definitely but my shovel after my pack in person to checkout the clearance.
 
The concept of the Shift bindings is great but sadly I would not recommend them unless you need to use the same skis for normal non tech boots to. I have way to much problems with mine and from the looks of it I'm not the only one if you look in the Shift thread in gear talk. On tours I don't see that big of a benefit with them either anymore as other tech bindings seems to release just fine.
 
14013427:Mar-O said:
The concept of the Shift bindings is great but sadly I would not recommend them unless you need to use the same skis for normal non tech boots to. I have way to much problems with mine and from the looks of it I'm not the only one if you look in the Shift thread in gear talk. On tours I don't see that big of a benefit with them either anymore as other tech bindings seems to release just fine.
Click to expand...

I'm certainly not saying the Shift is issue free, it's certainly not but if other tech bindings released as well they would get TUV certification. The shifts also ski really well in all conditions.
 
14013427:Mar-O said:
The concept of the Shift bindings is great but sadly I would not recommend them unless you need to use the same skis for normal non tech boots to. I have way to much problems with mine and from the looks of it I'm not the only one if you look in the Shift thread in gear talk. On tours I don't see that big of a benefit with them either anymore as other tech bindings seems to release just fine.
Click to expand...

The primary benefit I see in the shift is the stability/reliability of an alpine binding on the way down. In pow might not be as much of an issue but with corn in the spring I've heard regular tech bindings feel like they have a but of play in them.

Thanks for the input though!
 
14012344:cydwhit said:
Skis: All fine options, I'd vote for Wildcat 108 Tour, or Deathwish 112 Tour as well. Hard to go wrong with anything on that list though.
Click to expand...

The Wildcat Tour 108 may be the best touring ski I've ever been on. I've been singing its praises to anyone who will listen to me.
 
14014352:Peach. said:
The Wildcat Tour 108 may be the best touring ski I've ever been on. I've been singing its praises to anyone who will listen to me.
Click to expand...

Yeah, I've been eyeing them up. Any other comments on the ski? Never skied any of the Bibby's before so coming in pretty blind. My pow skis are currently On3p Billygoats and I've been told they're similar (i.e Billygoat is a more directional Wildcat).
 
Kore 105 is a dope ski I love mine, as for the shift if you go down that road just make sure you don't get a boot that's made out of a soft plastic, thats where my issues have come from with them, avy gear in revelstoke go for a 250-30 cm probe and try and stay away from bca for a tranciever as much as you can despite the price!
 
Don’t get a big shovel. You’re not building a jump but trying to move consolidated snow and ice quickly. You’ll get to your budy faster with a smaller blade.

Kingpin isn’t obsolete; it’s lighter and easier to use than a shift. I’d rather ski a tecton, but you can get kingpins for less.

It’s also already had it recall, the shift and tecton haven’t.
 
14014930:SKIINGPARK said:
Kore 105 is a dope ski I love mine, as for the shift if you go down that road just make sure you don't get a boot that's made out of a soft plastic, thats where my issues have come from with them, avy gear in revelstoke go for a 250-30 cm probe and try and stay away from bca for a tranciever as much as you can despite the price!
Click to expand...

Can you tell me anymore about the kore 105? I can get some nice prodeals through work on Head stuff and was seriously considering them. Don't ski switch much and think I would do it even less in the BC.
 
14015548:-arc- said:
Can you tell me anymore about the kore 105? I can get some nice prodeals through work on Head stuff and was seriously considering them. Don't ski switch much and think I would do it even less in the BC.
Click to expand...

I only have a couple of days on mine but I had the mounted on an attack 13 and i loved them, they have a super even flex pattern and float really well. They also charge through crud pretty well, definitely less chatter than my jj zeros as well.
 
14015534:cobra_commander said:
Don’t get a big shovel. You’re not building a jump but trying to move consolidated snow and ice quickly. You’ll get to your budy faster with a smaller blade.

Kingpin isn’t obsolete; it’s lighter and easier to use than a shift. I’d rather ski a tecton, but you can get kingpins for less.

It’s also already had it recall, the shift and tecton haven’t.
Click to expand...

Sure, to a point, but there aren't many shovels on the market that will fit in an avy pack that are "too big" to move firm snow/ice/debris quickly. Get a stupid small shovel and go touring with me and I'll make you trade shovels with me before we ski anything.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top