Check out Off-Piste Magazine’s expert ski gear reviews, including backcountry skis, AT ski boots, tech bindings, avalanche beacons, avalanche shovels, ski jackets, backcountry ski pants, ski packs, headlamps, AT ski boots, crampons, climbing skins and more. We use the gear we write up, and the reviews here represent the best of the gear we’ve tested.
Portable Chargers – Goal Zero Venture 30 The use of electronics in the backcountry is no longer the exception; it’s the norm. With apps like Gaia (GPS) and Avanet (snow study/tour planning/map), a phone becomes a worthy gps and map tool. As we rely more heavily on electronic devices for everything from communication to navigation and weather information, keeping them charged… Read More
Mountain Coloring Book for Outdoor People A wide variety of outdoor gear and related stuff comes across our desk over the course of a season, but this is the first time we’ve ever seen a coloring book. It’s a mountain coloring book to be specific. And, believe it or not, it’s worth a look. The Mountain Mix Coloring Book is… Read More
Voile Climbing Skins Reviewed Voile Equipment is well known for their backcountry skis, splitboards and bindings, but they also offer a variety of time-tested backcountry accessories including climbing skins. Given the width of today’s skis, a climbing skin’s weight and glide are more important than ever for efficient climbing. Every step with climbing skins on your skis is effected by skin glide…. Read More
Tailgate Niner Goggle Case We pack a variety of gear in our packs for a tour, but few things get taken in and out of our packs as much as our goggles. On storm days, goggles are right up there with our skins for getting used and repacked with every transition. We’ve all scratched or otherwise abused a perfectly good… Read More
Fritschi Tecton – Tech binding meets alpine binding ease The latest tech binding to make our test fleet is the Fritschi Tecton. As tech bindings evolve, the designs can be categorized into one of three general categories – minimalist, full-featured and – for lack of a better term – freeride. The Fritschi Tecton binding fits the freeride category. It builds… Read More
Scarpa F1 Ski Boot Review I’m no rando racer, but I still have a solid appreciation for the trend in lighter backcountry ski gear. Following design innovations pioneered in the randonee race world, alpine touring boots have benefited from the slimmed down, lighter designs born of the rando race world. These new svelte boots still offer strong downhill performance and are gaining momentum amongst the… Read More
Patagonia Snowdrifter Softshell Ski Pants Why Go Softshell If you’ve ever ski toured in a pair of GORE-TEX ski pants, you know how little they really breathe when you’re working hard on the uptrack. Unlike our upper layers, no one changes leg layers while out skiing. Backcountry ski pants require breathability to manage the demands of touring. Waterproof and breathable… Read More
Deuter Rise Lite 28 Backcountry Ski Pack Review The rise of the avalanche airbag pack has taken some attention away from traditional backcountry ski packs. Airbag packs are a solid innovation in avalanche safety and have proven to be true life savers, but the reality is that most of us still use regular, non-airbag ski packs for human powered ski… Read More
G3 SENDr 112 – Ski Review We have been fans of the G3 Empire for several seasons. It’s lightweight carbon build plus healthy width and rocker combined to deliver a surfy and playful ride in any soft snow conditions. Well, the next evolution is here and it’s a lot of fun, too: the 2018 G3 SENDr 112. The SENDr 112… Read More
Dynafit has revamped their ski lineup to include three distinct categories: Speed, Tour, and Beast. Speed, as you might guess, is the lightest category and targets the light-is-right crowd. The Tour category is the do-it-all ski for general backcountry skiing. And the Beast category is for skiers most concerned with damp predictability and speed on the descent. We picked a… Read More
G-Form Knee Pads – Soft, Flexible, Low-Profile Protecting your knees while skiing should be a no-brainer. We pad our heads with helmets and protect our bodies with avalanche safety gear. I’d like to think I’m more likley to hit my knee than trigger an avalanche, so it only makes sense to wear knee pads, too. Game Changers Once the domain of… Read More
Elan Ripstick 106 and Elan Ibex carbon 94 xlt Theres a healthy snowpack in the Northwest and it’s been a great spring for ski testing. We’ve been putting skis from Voile, DPS, Black Diamond, Salomon, Elan and others through the paces on Mt. Hood. Yes, you heard that right Elan is entering the backcountry ski market. It’d been decades since I jumped on… Read More
Active Insulation – Outdoor Research Ascendant Hoodie One of the more interesting outerwear innovations in the last couple of seasons has been the advent of active insulation. This year’s OR show was abuzz with the term. What is active insulation, you ask? Well, it refers to insulated jackets that maintain breathability and air permeability, giving you the ability to wear them… Read More
G3 ION Binding Review Although we skied the new G3 ION binding a little last spring and liked it, it wasn’t until January that I was able to mount and ski a pair for long-term use. The ION represents a full redesign of G3’s first tech binding, the Onyx, and it’s proving to perform well. Upon first glance, the G3… Read More
Tech bindings have evolved quickly over the past few years and the 2017 Outdoor Retailer (OR) show in Salt Lake offered a glimpse of the latest innovations on the tech binding front. Dynafit and Fritschi unveiled new AT tech bindings at OR, while G3 and Salomon continue to refine their offerings. Here’s quick overview: DYNAFIT: The brand that literally invented the… Read More
