The Daily - January 31, 2020 - 34

Ideas
B I G

T R E N D S

From top: Dalbello Quantum
Asolo Factory, G3 Zed9,
Marker Duke PT, Salomon
Shift Pro, Backcountry
Tracker S

Backcountry Beta

Pin bindings, easy-walking boots, lightweight skis, and snow-shedding
bibs define the backcountry landscape. By Eugene Buchanan
The backcountry segment is going
nowhere but up in sales. Fueling
the craze: lighter, higher-performance gear, better safety equipment, and people's unquenchable
thirst for powder.

BOMBPROOF BINDINGS

Retailers are pinning sales on a
new era of high-performance pin
bindings. "Skiers want to access
more terrain without sacrificing
on-mountain power transmission,"
says Marker VP Geoff Curtis. The
brand's new hybrid freeride Duke
PT combines Jester-like ski performance with pin tech for climbing. In
DIN 12 and 16, it features a gliding
AFD that aids in lateral release.
For touring, users rotate the upper
toepiece forward. Weight at the foot
can be saved by stowing the toepieces in a pack. The PT 12 weighs 850
grams in uphill mode (toepieces
removed) and 1,090 grams in downhill mode. G3 ups its game with
the new Zed9, designed for lighter
users with an easy-to-use toepiece
and release value as low as 3 for the
younger generation.
Companies are standing tall
behind products. Dynafit debuts a
lifetime guarantee on its bindings
(excluding partner OEMs), including
its new Superlite TLT 150. Weighing 150 grams, the aluminum 4-13
DIN binding features optional front
spring for additional adjustment,
icebreaker pins, optional ski stopper,
and an adjustment plate.

GET THE BOOT

This year's crop of boots features
enhanced walk modes and lighter

weights. Shaving ounces is what it's
all about in boots for the backcountry. At the Show, Dalbello
debuts its Quantum Series, with a
Bonded Shell tech that's injected in
two lengthwise sections for better
contour and fit. The Asolo Factory
model weighs 980 grams, with
a Grilamid shell reinforced with
long-fiber carbon.
Salomon embraces backcountry
comfort with its new Shift Pro boot,
borrowing fit tech from its S/Pro
collection with a Sensifit insert
and instep geometry. It comes with
40-degree walk-mode motion,
a range of flexes, and Coreframe
construction for power. Combine it
with the S/Lab Shift MNC binding
(available in a DIN 10 this year)
and it's the Alps of schralp.
"Lightweight, ski mountaineering boots are being used well
beyond their original design
intent," says Scarpa NA CEO Kim
Miller, whose F1 LT marries its
ultralight Alien race boots with a
more versatile, backcountry design
for its lightest AT boot yet at 990
grams. A Grid Frame Tech cuff
adds stiffness and power. "It's the
new world order in boots for going
uphill and down," he says.

FASTER FINDS

"Backcountry safety is still about
simplicity and speed," says Backcountry Access VP Bruce Edgerly,
whose new Tracker S transceiver
stands for both. The company's
most streamlined Tracker yet boasts
real-time display, "pitbull" signal
locking, and no-nonsense multiple-burial searching. "We removed

/ OUTDOOR + SNOW SHOW 2020

some of the high-end features that
only professionals need and reinforced our biggest strength: easeof-use for the typical backcountry
rider." Retailers will appreciate the
lower $300 price point.

LIGHTWEIGHT SKIS

Weight is also dropping in skis. A
speed ski for peak baggers, Dynafit's new Blacklight is its lightest
yet at 2.2 lbs., made from unidirectional carbon fiber and paulownia. With tip and tail rocker, it's
available in four models, including
the 80mm Blacklight Pro. The
skis employ the Pin Skin System,
anchoring skins with a small pin
and ski insert to save weight and
time. G3's new SLAYr, made with
a custom wood core, carbon fiber,
and tip-to-tail titanal aluminum
for dampness and power, is billed
as the lightest weight in its class-
and it comes with magnetic contact
points for booting.

BIBS ARE CLEANING UP

Flylow's Siren Bib for women,
the brand's lightest yet, has been
updated for Fall 2020 with waterproof-breathable eVent Dv Expedition fabric for even more waterproofness. "It's a true backcountry
bib built from scratch," says
founder Dan Abrams. Weighing
545 grams, the bib features three
vertical chest pockets mapped
for backpack straps, outer thigh
vents, and, new for next season,
Flylow adjusted the thigh pockets
to hold a PB&J on one side and
a neckie on the other, even while
wearing a harness.

The Daily - January 31, 2020

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