I've used and own a lot of bike, ski, climbing, and camping gear. Here's some of what I use and like.
The designs are simple but fun: fish prints, climbing gear, checkers, salmon and everything outdoors in between.
The fit is pretty dead on, lasting a couple of years of wear every couple days. The only pair I don’t wear anymore is the pair I sadly left in a friends dorm room halfway across the country.
At $32 a pair, I can’t justify buying a replacement, but you really can get away with a couple days in town or a week backpacking in these, so no need for more than a few pairs.
Try on the sizing at your local REI to make sure they fit.
I have been playing with the Dynafit Speed Turn Binding for about 10 months since it came out for the 2013-2014 season in Europe. In Europe and the US, the price is the cheapest among Dynafit-style tech bindings, making it the obvious choice for first-time tourers looking to drop weight and the budget-minded.
The Speed Turn is negligibly different in weight from the Speed Radical, and comes with the same Guide leashes which significantly reduce weight compared to brakes and can be used as needed to reduce lost skis. Starting at the toe, the differences begin. The toe is a 5-hole classic Dynafit pattern begun by the first TLTs and continued into the Vertical series. For all-around mounts, it is narrower than the 4-hole Speed Radical, but offers more versatility for all but the fattest boards. Under the metal toe plate is a nice plastic riser with crampon mount, which gives a little more upright skiing position.
The big improvements come in the heel piece. Dynafit takes an updated Speed Radical heel plate— with better anti-rotation that the initial Radical series— and adds a bombproof steel “volcano” for the heel rise. This allows for three positions that won’t break in the field like the Speed Radical lifters occasionally do. Turning the heel to engage different heights is as easy as of the other Dynafit bindings, and it feels solid in all positions. The 25mm of adjustment of other Dynafit bindings is maintained, as is the approximately 4mm setback from boot heel, making for a versatile and familiar level of adjustability and much more than the original 4mm adjustment of the Speed Classic.
On snow, the binding performs like any good Dynafit, with the added confidence of an all-metal volcano. The toe lever works great, and feels much like the Radical lever it is based on. I have’t had a chance to ski the toes on big boards, but on K2 Gotbacks and skinnier skis, the toes handle just fine. There is a nice mount for ski crampons should you need it, and metal loops for leashes mean keeping your skis with you isn’t hard in the case of a fall. No changes have been made to the pin design to ease entry, but the simplified volcano is less likely to get jammed with snow and hasn’t broken yet. At DIN 4-10, this is still a touring binding, but can handle some challenging terrain if you’re on the lighter end. Though with such light weight and bomber feeling while climbing, you may appreciate ups more than downs.
For charging or if you need brakes, I would still recommend grabbing a pair of Speed Turns for the bombproof volcanoes, swapping these risers onto a burlier heel piece, and voila, you have an ideal binding and a not-quite pair of Speed Radical bindings for some true touring.
I’ve been running on the La Sportiva Bushido since they came out in the spring. With classic La Sportiva yellow/black available, you can look retro but enjoy the newest performance advantages in La Sportiva technology too. The elastic, sock-like tongue setup is soft but not overwhelming, and the heel cup and stiffer sole just speak stability.
Though not a minimalist or lightweight shoe — about 10 ounces and with over 1cm of lift all around- these are light enough for longer races but sturdy enough for a whole day in the alpine. The fit is cozy, size up a half unless you really enjoy a gloved fit. The fit is good for medium width feet, with pretty dense lacing that holds the foot in place well for technical terrain. A nice mix of breathable front mesh and side reinforcements allows for drainage and protection. The included insoles are fine for most purposes, and the sole is stiff enough enough to not need inserts.
The rubber is where the Bushido really stands out for me- a high rubber bumper on the heel, wrap-around rubber toe cover, rubber on the arch, and nice lugs as part of the Impact Brake System. I feel very confident running rocky and wet terrain, knowing that I can stop abruptly and even afford a few scrambling moves on talus. In snow and mud, the lugged sole succeeds as well, with spacing just wide enough to not trap too much and just narrow enough to not feel like you are missing traction. While no spikeless shoe performs excellent on ice, I had good experience running on ice-covered roads and paths in Norway with the Bushidos in the spring. On rough dirt and rocky trails they don’t perform poorly either, a true all-rounder.
I have seen one pair killed by a full season of fieldwork in Colorado, but most of the structure is still intact with limited wear on the soles. My main pair is still going strong over 300 miles, and I expect another batch of good long runs before retirement.
I have been using the Smith Vice Poler Goggle on both coasts this season. But first, I took the included camo Poler bag (the goggles come with a nice camo Smith bag as well, don’t worry) and turned it into one of the best shower kits I’ve used.
Smith Performance
The goggles performed well, with the double lens with vent only fogging in uphill-travel-in-a-whiteout situations in 100% humidity conditions in the Cascades. For those with smaller faces like me, the fit is a bit large, with some downwards pressure on the nose, but not extreme and mitigated well by the thick & warm foam. The strap and lens are both wide. The wide strap tends to win bonus style points, and I think provides a little warmth when worn with just a cap.
Lens Tech
The wide lenses allow for a nice field of vision, especially up and down, which in early season is crucial. I still can’t find a good lens for skiing-in-a-cloud conditions, but the Blue Sensor comes pretty close, and the Blackout lens performed well under varied sunny conditions. The lens swap is simple: twist the end pieces and pop out the lens. Possible with thin gloves and feels secure.
Black Diamond: Carabiners, harness, raven ultra ice axe, express ice screws, camalots are all awesome.
I put a lot of trust in BD gear, and I'm glad that I do. Its never failed me, and wears pretty darn well given the demands of belaying and clipping bolts every few days.
Favorite: Raven Ultra Ice Axe. Bright orange color, perfect shaft size and coating for gloved hands, so light I forget that its on my pack. Arrests well, and though poles are often enough, I can dangle it with comfort.
First Ascent: Softshell/ hardshell combo jacket, Ignitor jacket, Cloud Layer fleece, Peak XV jacket, climbing jeans, multi-clava, Sirrocco windshell, Stargazer 2 tent, Alchemist 40 backpack, Microlight down vest
A pretty new brand (around 2009), derived from Eddie Bauer's original lineup of expedition gear. Cheap prices (you can always find their stuff on sale), pretty good workmanship, and light materials. Some fit issues, but fortunately FA is sold in most Eddie Bauer stores so you can try it on.
Favorite: Soft shell climbing jeans. Brilliant mix of stretch and classic dark-blue fashion.
Rab: Neutrino jacket, Event mitts, Alpine jacket, Endurance sleeping bag
Overall very high level of workmanship and design from this UK company. Uses mostly event and pertex fabrics, which are very good, breathable performance fabrics. The Pertex wears especially well too.
Fischer: RCS Carbonlite classic skis. All types, if you're reading this you presumably know the feel and flex of carbonlites. I get mine through Winthrop Mountain Sports.
Alpina: ECL/ ESK boots. Again, the crucial ski boot combo. Red dot design award, durable construction, sticky heel cups
Swix: waxes, T73 irons, star poles
Salomon: XT wings trail shoes, mid GTX winter shoes, XR crossmax 1s- The trifecta for trail, winter, and mixed running conditions.
Bike Stuff
Ortlieb bags: bombproof, waterproof, smart designs but pretty darn heavy. Submersible, which is nice when doing water sports.
Detours bags: a lot of brilliant designs, fun patterns, smart attachment systems. Maybe not as durable as Ortlieb, but weigh much less and look much better
Free Parable design works T2 trailer and monkii cages. New designs, old school simplicity. Perfect blend of style, function and repair when bike touring.
Kona bikes: Golden standard for XC and cross. Especially their scandium and easton ultralight tube sets.
Ritchey Breakaway and Flo: Fits in a suitcase. Just tell em its bike wheels and protectors. Nough said.
I tend to buy all my gear, but if you have a good reason to give me something and are looking for an honest opinion, I'm happy to check it out.
And a disclaimer: the links to shops below help me out a bit. If you want to see more gear reviewed here, you can help out by linking for your purchases.
Here are a few samples of stuff I love enough to write about.
Suunto Core Altimeter: For a pretty basic altimeter without GPS, the suunto core is my everyday favorite. In the mountains, swimming, and running, the watch tells time, direction, and altitude. The core is waterproof and the battery lasts almost forever. Perhaps I lucked out on the strap, but I haven’t had to replace in 4 years, while other cheaper suunto heart rate monitors watches have suffered from broken straps.
The display is pretty scratch resistant, and if you choose a core with black letters, the time and altitude are easily readable. More complicated smaller text displays sometimes don’t work as well. Changing settings and changing reference altitude is also a breeder, with a change settings in one spot.
I have yet to max out the altitude, but it’s seemed accurate around 18,000 feet under regular use. The barometer function works well at altitude too, nice for detecting storms on long trips or when forecasting is less than excellent. Overall an excellent tool in the mountains that looks fine in the city and will survive showering and swimming and running.
Get it at backcountry and enjoy regular sales, free 2 days shipping (a lot of the time), and an awesome return policy.
Patagonia Boxers are my go-to favorites. The three pairs I own disappear from my underwear drawer too fast.
I got some of the earlier ones on sale in 2006 and wore out the elastic in five years. The other four (now three) pairs I have had since 2010 and are my go-to around the house wear.
Sometimes the girls I live with ask me why I’m wearing just boxers at 4 p.m. on a weekday afternoon, but they are so comfortable I could care less.
Plus they don’t really fit that tight, which is a good thing.
Patagonia’s active boxers truly are I-don’t-want-to-take-a-shower-these-are-so-comfy boxers.
They have tons of breathing room, a silky feel all day, and don’t absorb too much sweat. I even choose to bike 100 km days in them, wearing them underneath spandex because they don’t bunch up or ride high.
Here are a few samples of stuff I love enough to write about.
Suunto Core Altimeter: For a pretty basic altimeter without GPS, the suunto core is my everyday favorite. In the mountains, swimming, and running, the watch tells time, direction, and altitude. The core is waterproof and the battery lasts almost forever. Perhaps I lucked out on the strap, but I haven’t had to replace in 4 years, while other cheaper suunto heart rate monitors watches have suffered from broken straps.
The display is pretty scratch resistant, and if you choose a core with black letters, the time and altitude are easily readable. More complicated smaller text displays sometimes don’t work as well. Changing settings and changing reference altitude is also a breeder, with a change settings in one spot.
I have yet to max out the altitude, but it’s seemed accurate around 18,000 feet under regular use. The barometer function works well at altitude too, nice for detecting storms on long trips or when forecasting is less than excellent. Overall an excellent tool in the mountains that looks fine in the city and will survive showering and swimming and running.
Get it at backcountry and enjoy regular sales, free 2 days shipping (a lot of the time), and an awesome return policy.
Patagonia Boxers are my go-to favorites. The three pairs I own disappear from my underwear drawer too fast.
I got some of the earlier ones on sale in 2006 and wore out the elastic in five years. The other four (now three) pairs I have had since 2010 and are my go-to around the house wear.
Sometimes the girls I live with ask me why I’m wearing just boxers at 4 p.m. on a weekday afternoon, but they are so comfortable I could care less.
Plus they don’t really fit that tight, which is a good thing.
Patagonia’s active boxers truly are I-don’t-want-to-take-a-shower-these-are-so-comfy boxers.
They have tons of breathing room, a silky feel all day, and don’t absorb too much sweat. I even choose to bike 100 km days in them, wearing them underneath spandex because they don’t bunch up or ride high.
The designs are simple but fun: fish prints, climbing gear, checkers, salmon and everything outdoors in between.
The fit is pretty dead on, lasting a couple of years of wear every couple days. The only pair I don’t wear anymore is the pair I sadly left in a friends dorm room halfway across the country.
At $32 a pair, I can’t justify buying a replacement, but you really can get away with a couple days in town or a week backpacking in these, so no need for more than a few pairs.
Try on the sizing at your local REI to make sure they fit.
I have been playing with the Dynafit Speed Turn Binding for about 10 months since it came out for the 2013-2014 season in Europe. In Europe and the US, the price is the cheapest among Dynafit-style tech bindings, making it the obvious choice for first-time tourers looking to drop weight and the budget-minded.
The Speed Turn is negligibly different in weight from the Speed Radical, and comes with the same Guide leashes which significantly reduce weight compared to brakes and can be used as needed to reduce lost skis. Starting at the toe, the differences begin. The toe is a 5-hole classic Dynafit pattern begun by the first TLTs and continued into the Vertical series. For all-around mounts, it is narrower than the 4-hole Speed Radical, but offers more versatility for all but the fattest boards. Under the metal toe plate is a nice plastic riser with crampon mount, which gives a little more upright skiing position.
The big improvements come in the heel piece. Dynafit takes an updated Speed Radical heel plate— with better anti-rotation that the initial Radical series— and adds a bombproof steel “volcano” for the heel rise. This allows for three positions that won’t break in the field like the Speed Radical lifters occasionally do. Turning the heel to engage different heights is as easy as of the other Dynafit bindings, and it feels solid in all positions. The 25mm of adjustment of other Dynafit bindings is maintained, as is the approximately 4mm setback from boot heel, making for a versatile and familiar level of adjustability and much more than the original 4mm adjustment of the Speed Classic.
On snow, the binding performs like any good Dynafit, with the added confidence of an all-metal volcano. The toe lever works great, and feels much like the Radical lever it is based on. I have’t had a chance to ski the toes on big boards, but on K2 Gotbacks and skinnier skis, the toes handle just fine. There is a nice mount for ski crampons should you need it, and metal loops for leashes mean keeping your skis with you isn’t hard in the case of a fall. No changes have been made to the pin design to ease entry, but the simplified volcano is less likely to get jammed with snow and hasn’t broken yet. At DIN 4-10, this is still a touring binding, but can handle some challenging terrain if you’re on the lighter end. Though with such light weight and bomber feeling while climbing, you may appreciate ups more than downs.
For charging or if you need brakes, I would still recommend grabbing a pair of Speed Turns for the bombproof volcanoes, swapping these risers onto a burlier heel piece, and voila, you have an ideal binding and a not-quite pair of Speed Radical bindings for some true touring.
I’ve been running on the La Sportiva Bushido since they came out in the spring. With classic La Sportiva yellow/black available, you can look retro but enjoy the newest performance advantages in La Sportiva technology too. The elastic, sock-like tongue setup is soft but not overwhelming, and the heel cup and stiffer sole just speak stability.
Though not a minimalist or lightweight shoe — about 10 ounces and with over 1cm of lift all around- these are light enough for longer races but sturdy enough for a whole day in the alpine. The fit is cozy, size up a half unless you really enjoy a gloved fit. The fit is good for medium width feet, with pretty dense lacing that holds the foot in place well for technical terrain. A nice mix of breathable front mesh and side reinforcements allows for drainage and protection. The included insoles are fine for most purposes, and the sole is stiff enough enough to not need inserts.
The rubber is where the Bushido really stands out for me- a high rubber bumper on the heel, wrap-around rubber toe cover, rubber on the arch, and nice lugs as part of the Impact Brake System. I feel very confident running rocky and wet terrain, knowing that I can stop abruptly and even afford a few scrambling moves on talus. In snow and mud, the lugged sole succeeds as well, with spacing just wide enough to not trap too much and just narrow enough to not feel like you are missing traction. While no spikeless shoe performs excellent on ice, I had good experience running on ice-covered roads and paths in Norway with the Bushidos in the spring. On rough dirt and rocky trails they don’t perform poorly either, a true all-rounder.
I have seen one pair killed by a full season of fieldwork in Colorado, but most of the structure is still intact with limited wear on the soles. My main pair is still going strong over 300 miles, and I expect another batch of good long runs before retirement.
I have been using the Smith Vice Poler Goggle on both coasts this season. But first, I took the included camo Poler bag (the goggles come with a nice camo Smith bag as well, don’t worry) and turned it into one of the best shower kits I’ve used.
Smith Performance
The goggles performed well, with the double lens with vent only fogging in uphill-travel-in-a-whiteout situations in 100% humidity conditions in the Cascades. For those with smaller faces like me, the fit is a bit large, with some downwards pressure on the nose, but not extreme and mitigated well by the thick & warm foam. The strap and lens are both wide. The wide strap tends to win bonus style points, and I think provides a little warmth when worn with just a cap.
Lens Tech
The wide lenses allow for a nice field of vision, especially up and down, which in early season is crucial. I still can’t find a good lens for skiing-in-a-cloud conditions, but the Blue Sensor comes pretty close, and the Blackout lens performed well under varied sunny conditions. The lens swap is simple: twist the end pieces and pop out the lens. Possible with thin gloves and feels secure.
Black Diamond: Carabiners, harness, raven ultra ice axe, express ice screws, camalots are all awesome.
I put a lot of trust in BD gear, and I'm glad that I do. Its never failed me, and wears pretty darn well given the demands of belaying and clipping bolts every few days.
Favorite: Raven Ultra Ice Axe. Bright orange color, perfect shaft size and coating for gloved hands, so light I forget that its on my pack. Arrests well, and though poles are often enough, I can dangle it with comfort.
First Ascent: Softshell/ hardshell combo jacket, Ignitor jacket, Cloud Layer fleece, Peak XV jacket, climbing jeans, multi-clava, Sirrocco windshell, Stargazer 2 tent, Alchemist 40 backpack, Microlight down vest
A pretty new brand (around 2009), derived from Eddie Bauer's original lineup of expedition gear. Cheap prices (you can always find their stuff on sale), pretty good workmanship, and light materials. Some fit issues, but fortunately FA is sold in most Eddie Bauer stores so you can try it on.
Favorite: Soft shell climbing jeans. Brilliant mix of stretch and classic dark-blue fashion.
Rab: Neutrino jacket, Event mitts, Alpine jacket, Endurance sleeping bag
Overall very high level of workmanship and design from this UK company. Uses mostly event and pertex fabrics, which are very good, breathable performance fabrics. The Pertex wears especially well too.
Fischer: RCS Carbonlite classic skis. All types, if you're reading this you presumably know the feel and flex of carbonlites. I get mine through Winthrop Mountain Sports.
Alpina: ECL/ ESK boots. Again, the crucial ski boot combo. Red dot design award, durable construction, sticky heel cups
Swix: waxes, T73 irons, star poles
Salomon: XT wings trail shoes, mid GTX winter shoes, XR crossmax 1s- The trifecta for trail, winter, and mixed running conditions.
Bike Stuff
Ortlieb bags: bombproof, waterproof, smart designs but pretty darn heavy. Submersible, which is nice when doing water sports.
Detours bags: a lot of brilliant designs, fun patterns, smart attachment systems. Maybe not as durable as Ortlieb, but weigh much less and look much better
Free Parable design works T2 trailer and monkii cages. New designs, old school simplicity. Perfect blend of style, function and repair when bike touring.
Kona bikes: Golden standard for XC and cross. Especially their scandium and easton ultralight tube sets.
Ritchey Breakaway and Flo: Fits in a suitcase. Just tell em its bike wheels and protectors. Nough said.
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