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The Bearable Lightness of Skiing 

By

Jason Albert

  I remember the instance I pivoted toward lighter gear. I was maybe 14 years younger and chasing my friend Tosch, who remains ~24 years younger, when I bent over, maybe dry heaved, and enveloped myself in a big puffy jacket. We were a few hundred feet below the top of Rainier. I stayed put.…

Responses

  1. Christian Strachan

    Thoughtful write up. I’m terminally torn between the aesthetic ideal of a one-ski/boot quiver, which seems to cover more types of snow and types of days each model year, and the N+1 approach. Quite a tension to be in… until I’m of course out on the snow and just enjoying… until of course I’m in a ridiculously terrible situation with whatever gear I’m on for the type of snow and type of skiing… but part of that is some of the allure, isn’t it? being in ridiculous situations and dealing with them with what we’ve got at the moment, whether that be material, spiritual, or psycho-emotional.

    Anyway, from the N+1 part of me: what’s the width of the ski you mention above for the 2400g/foot setup with the Travers Carbons?

    1. Jason Albert

      Hey Christian… a lot going on in your comment—which I like. I love this “I’m in a ridiculously terrible situation with whatever gear I’m on for the type of snow and type of skiing… but part of that is some of the allure, isn’t it? being in ridiculous situations and dealing with them with what we’ve got at the moment, whether that be material, spiritual, or psycho-emotional.”

      For certain, using the gear you have, in the conditions you are confronted with, is part of the allure. But, I’m weak, and I’m constantly (to a degree) trying to maximize my smile quotient while descending. The ~2400g setup (it could have weighed a smidge more) was with a Movement Alp Track 100, and BD Helio 200 bindings. For another option, a friend in town, (who just organized an awesome ISSW—shout out to Kevin Grove), skis pretty much everything with Dynafit TLT 8s (he doesn’t mind the snub nose), Dynafit Radical bindings, and an older model of Dynastar M 99. He always has a smile on his face.

      Now, in typical midwinter conditions, I’m on a boot that runs ~1400g and a ski at ~1650g.

      Curious, what is your preferred one boot/ski quiver?

      1. Christian Strachan

        Thanks for the reply! If I had to ditch everything except one ski/boot combo for skiing CO/NM, would keep the BMT 94’s and Skorps, no doubt. Really good tools for everything except the deepest days.

        Keep the great content coming! Looking forward to this first full season for you guys.

  2. Tim Benson

    Echoes of my experience circa 2007… trying to draft my touring partners on their fairly heavy setups, while I was on an even more cumbersome setup: K2 hippy stinx with OG hammerheads and Garmont boots. Orange nylons. I shudder to think what my weight/per/foot was on that setup. I quickly made a hard pivot to BD Aspects, dynafit speed turns, and those snazzy green and yellow Quadrants. And I was still (and still am) pretty darn slow, but a much more enjoyable type of slow 🙂

    1. Slim

      I agree with Tim:
      I am not sure how much faster dropping a few hundred grams makes me, but it certainly makes the uphill much more fun.

      And a big part of that is that (at least until recently) low-weight was also a good proxy for uphill performance:

      Narrower skis are lighter, but at least part of their higher speed is simply due to the narrower ski+skin.
      Lightweight skins are faster, but that’s because they also usually made with faster gliding plush.
      Lighter boots are faster because they have less resistance to flexing the ankle. This allows longer strides and better kick, which in turn means you can use faster, less grippy skins.

      I think the key is finding the balance that gives you the most fun. Light and efficient enough to make the uphills fun, and supportive and stable enough to make the descents enjoyable.
      Of course, where the balance point lies will depend on your skill, endurance, goals for the day and the snow and terrain you encounter.

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