My Backcountry Alpine Touring Ski Gear Kit

With lift-lines often getting choked full of people, and youtube gopro videos highlighting the splendor of the pure outdoor ski athletes cutting new tracks into pristine snow, Backcountry Skiing is on the rise!

I recently did the research and bought a backcountry touring kit. This page details what I bought, for how much, and why -- in case it's useful for someone else.

If you want to skip right to the gear list, scroll down...

How I started Alpine Touring...

I got interested in Alpine Touring because I liked the outdoors exercise of Nordic XC, but I don't like those unstable thin skis and being stuck on the groomed tracks. A couple weeks ago, I finally had the chance to do some uphill skinning on Alpine Touring skis, inbounds at Aspen Buttermilk. And I really liked it! 

I think trying Alpine Touring inbounds is a great way to start, because you can see what it's like to go uphill without avalanche safety preparedness (or danger). I'm told there is a growing community of people who inbounds skin uphill for the workout, without even being strong downhill skiers. 

I find Alpine Touring more of a workout and less strain than Nordic style cross-country skiing. Those narrow unstable cross-country skis make even shallow uphill or downhill sections really challenging when the snow is hard and fast, and on the flat sections it's really not that much exercise unless you go long distances and spend lots of time doing it. Nordic XC does have some benefits - it's open to more skill levels, you can chat more, there is virtually no avalanche danger, and it's somewhat easier to bring a dog (where allowed). When Nordic XC is done in groomed tracks, it's like running laps at the gym.

In comparison, Alpine Touring gear feels like stable snowshoes with a little glide. They come in various traction-to-glide ratios. With the nylon rental skins, I could just point uphill and walk. 

If my memory is right, my first ascent was about 1700ft vertical in 80 minutes (I forgot to strava). I'm a moderately athletic 45 year old, and I found it much more of a cardio and breathing workout than anything else. On steep sections, I had to breathe heavy and slow or stop to catch my breath. My legs never hurt, but started to get tired near the top. 

Aspen's inbounds uphill policy is pretty flexible. Both Buttermilk and Snowmass allow uphilling during lift operating hours, and they rent (mediocre) uphill gear for $70/day at the base. You don't even need a lift pass. At Aspen you're allowed to bring dogs before lift hours, and on AJAX you can even download dogs (and yourself) on the gondola for free. 

It's not so easy to do inbounds in Tahoe. Diamond Peak's uphill policy allows inbounds skinning before and after lift hours, most other Tahoe mountains don't allow it inbounds at all.

From Inbounds to Backcountry

Inbounds is only the beginning, skinning makes access to the Backcountry possible, though to do this involves avalanche risks and requires serious attention to safety gear and preparedness.

I began my research, and whoa there is both a ton to learn, and a *ton* of equipment out there for backcountry. In addition to specialized skis and boots and bindings, skiing outside the safety of ski patrol (even on day laps) requires a kit of safety equipment. After pouring over tons and tons of gear reviews, and shopping for online bargains to keep the prices down, I assembled my kit.

Alpine Touring has been around for a while, but it wasn't until around 2015 that bindings achived TUV certified DIN safety release settings, and a couple AT bindings came out with alpine-style lateral safety release at the toe, and alpine style pressure heel retention. (I'm speaking here of the Fritchi Tecton, and Solomon Shift). While there is no perfectly safe binding, these newer bindings seemed closer to something I'd take a chance on, especially Salomon Shift, which converts into a full Alpine style binding for the downhill.

I ordered absolutely everything online. I feel a little bad not supporting local retail, but they make it really hard. First, San Francisco is not a ski town, so the selection of back-country gear is pretty poor, and requires driving around to different stores. Even when they had something I want, they didn't have it in my size. Tahoe/Truckee has a backcountry store with great selection, but when I travel to snow, I want to ski, not spend my time shopping or waiting for binding mounting. Second, the prices at retail are hugely inflated. The Jetforce AVA backpack is priced at $1400+tax at retail. I got it for $910 shipped from France, saving $590. That's over 40% savings (or 64% local markup). That's more than the cost of my skis or bindings. Plus, I find it easier to research online reviews at my computer, make lists at my computer, and order at my computer.

The most obvious thing to buy in a local store was the boots, but mid-season shopping for a touring boot was really tough. I visited 3 different San Francisco area stores, and even a backcountry store in Aspen, CO, and I didn't find any boots I wanted. I measure a 27.5, but I have a mid-high instep. The Zero G Pro Tour 28.5 bit into my instep and my heel swam. I couldn't get my foot into the HAWX XTD 130 27.5 (though the clerk never suggested to try it in walk mode). A 28.5 Hoji Pro Tour fit decently but doesn't work with the Shift binding. The Lupo Air 27.5 fit okay but had pretty localized shin pressure and i couldn't find any decent reviews. The Cochise 120 fit but is too heavy for what I wanted. The most comfortable boot I found was a Maestrale XT in 28.5/29, but it seemed too roomy. I decided to take a chance and order the Maestrale RS 27.5/28 on Amazon (free returns), as this is a very-popular boot and has the same lower as the XT. If I don't like it I can use it to decide if I want the XT 27.5 or the RS 28.5 -- or give up and wait until I can shop in Tahoe.

The Gear List

The grand total (minus the Garmin I already owned) came to $3457, which is quite a chunk of cash to invest in something new. However, this is around the price of a high end full suspension mountain bike, and most of the safety kit gear will last a very long time. Plus, I think by shopping around online, I saved at least $1000 off retail.

Rental could work for a couple more days, especially for resort uphill. The Dynafit radical setup at Buttermilk was $70/day, and worked fine for the uphill, though I didn't enjoy skiing down on the too-short skiis and chattery pin bindings. While one Tahoe outfitter will rent a "full" backcountry package (with safety gear) for $130/day, this seems more like a way to get gear for a safe intro class, not a way to actually take an avalanche class and brave the backcountry.

The Jetforce Pro electric inflation airbag was a bit of a safety splurge, as I would feel really really dumb being caught in an avalanche without one because I wanted to save money (I can afford it). And one of my friends *only* backcountry skis in powder conditions (which means avalanche danger). The gas canister models are a little cheaper, but only if they are reusable canisters. Disposable canisters cost money and must be discarded periodically or when you fly. I also like the idea of being able to practice inflation and test the gear without worrying about canisters. Getting a good deal on this made it an easier decision.

If one is focused on resort-uphill at a place that allows it during normal hours (or on no snow days), going without an airbag is no more risky than downhill skiing the same resort. 

* All prices are in USD, and include any tax and shipping to San Francisco, CA.

Skis	2019 Line Vision 98 - 179cm	1500g ea	$440 from Snowcountry.eu	A playful touring ski (mounted -6cm from center).
Boots	2019 Maestrale RS 27.5	1400g ea	$648 from Amazon.com	Midseason it was hard to find touring boots in my size in the bay area. ** more below
Binding	2020 Solomon Shift 90mm(Black on Black)	860g ea	$468 from snowcountry.eu	I ordered the Armada black/black, but they ran out and sent me a 2020 Solomon in the new black colorway
Poles	BCA Scepter Carbon Aluminum	240g ea	$100 from Snowcountry.eu	i like the unique snow scraper, and the strap safety release
Skins	Pomoco Glide-S Skins 140mm x 180cm	340g ea	$208 from skimo.com	Highly rated skins.
Light	Suptig Diving Light	120g	$22 on Amazon	Fits a gopro helmet mount, accepts a gopro on top. Light required for morning resort uphill.
Ski Finder	Find--me tracer	100g ea	$50 from find---me.com	innovative ski and rider tracer
Ava Backpack	Black Diamond Jetforce Pro Pack 25L	3000g	$910 from Telemark Pyrenees	A bit of a splurge, but it's for safety, so worth it.
Beacon	Mammut Barryvox S	200g	$406 from backcountry.com	Highly rated. Clear display.
Probe	BCA Stealth 300 Probe	320g	$70 from Amazon.com
SatComs	Garmin Inreach Explorer+	215g	$405 from Amazon.com	I already owned this for mountain biking.
CB Radio	BaoFeng BF-888S	200g	$30 for 2 radios and 4 batteries on Amazon	seems better than $180 for bclink radio. I programmed standard bc-link frequencies.
Water Bladder	Osprey Hydraulics LT Reservoir 2.5L	170g	$35 from Amazon.com	much more leakproof design
Saw	Fiskars 7-inch Folding Saw	141g	$15 from Amazon	for snow cuts or utility, only 17cm blade, ill see if I need longer.
MultiTool	Polelane Multitool Pliers and bit set	220g	$12 on Amazon	cheap collision safe compact multi-tool with screwdriver
Safe Scissors	Roxon Folding Pocket Knife & Scissors	141g	$25 on amazon	collision-safe scissors and knife, for first aid
First Aid Kit	M2 Basics 150 First Aid	-	$16 on Amazon	will remove scissors, as it's a collision puncture hazard
utility straps	Reusable zipties	--	$9 on amazon	voile straps equivalent, for fixit

2010 Lexus RX 450h - putting the rear map lights on switched power

Even though it's long in the tooth, we love our trusty 2010 Lexus RX 450h SUV...

....except for one thing.... The rear seat map lights can kill the battery!

Since our kids became old enough to turn on those map lights on their own, they have killed the battery *seven times*.

This problem exists because the map lights in the rear and front seats are all connected to "always on" power, so if you leave them on, they will kill the battery. This isn't something front-seat passengers accidentally do, but those little backseat rascalls do it all the time. And how often do adults think to check the backseat map lights to see if they are turned off? Basically never. And doing so would be hard anyway, because the dome light *is* on, so you'd have to carefully be looking for the map lights separately from the dome light.

I invested in a compact lithium-ion jump start battery, which I've used at least 13 times, because when the battery is completely dead it takes a while before I can charge it enough that it's back to normal. And this car is weird, it's not the easiest car to jumpstart, or to charge. The battery is located in the back, which you can't get to when the car has no juice, because the hatchback has an electric lock. And while I can jump the battery from the front, attempts to charge the battery from the under-hood terminals has never worked for me.

This problem has been such a hassle that my wife wants me to trade in the car (even though it's running great), because she considers it unreliable.

However, I'm a computer engineer, and a hobbyist. After cursing about why these map lights are not wired to a switched power source that goes off automatically, I decided to do a little hack job and fix the problem. Turns out it isn't even very hard, though it does require some skills with a voltmeter and a soldering iron.

First you have to get the dome light assembly out of the roof. Not just the cover, the whole assembly. This is achieved by getting something firm (like a putty knife, or a wide screwdriver, or a plastic pry, under the back lip, and applying pressure. Alot of pressure. Eventually, the clear plastic snap rings will pop loose. You can also pry out the front side (like I did), but this is harder, and the clear snap rings will stay in the back, and they are a pain to get out. Trust me, pry the back out.

When you the light housing out, there is a connector on it which has 4 wires. From the left, negative-maplight, positive-maplight, negative-domelight, positive-domelight. The two maplight leads head to the first maplight switch on the left, while the dome-light leads head to the middle light housing.

The first thing I did was cut all the leads, so I could put a voltmeter on them and test for polarity. After this, I soldered both the map lights and dome light into the two switched lines for the dome-lights. I plugged the connector back in to test, and voila! Now my rear seat map lights are switched with the dome light, so they can't kill the battery anymore.

This is what my assembly looked like after I was done... That's yellow electrical tape over my jenky solder welds.

Originally I was thinking I could leave the negative connected, and swap the positive maplight to the positive dome light. However, this still left the map light always on, which led me to believe the switching is in the negative lead. So I just finished the job, and moved the negative maplight lead over also. It's possible you could move only the negative maplight lead over.

Either way, be sure to over any exposed wire parts with electrical tape or heat shrink, so they don't short. You can see in the picture above that I didn't actually cover the map-light leads, which is a mistake, as if they touch the metal roof of the car, they'll short and blow a fuse. I'll have to pry it open and quickly fix that.

Skydio 2 - a drone that actually flies itself, really...

I love the endless stream of outdoor sporting porn being generated by cheap and easy to fly drones.

However, every good looking video I've seen has a dedicated drone pilot. A $700-1500 drone is cheap compared to having a skilled drone pilot follow you around and spend their time filming. 

Years ago, the airdog (which has now been eclipsed by the Staaker) hinted at the idea of a drone that would pilot itself for sports, but both of them are huge and lack obstacle avoidance -- limiting you to far-away shots and managing obstacles yourself. 

The upcoming Skydio 2 ($999 drone-only, going into production now, sold out until July) seems to be a quantum leap in active avoidance for pilot-less drone use. It's a followup to their sold-out first design, the Skydio R1 ($2500). 

Reviewers are having it follow them through dense forests of small branches, and while it sometimes struggles, it does amazingly well. 

It can do camera only-following, but it's even more impressive with the must-have $150 handheld beacon/remote, so it can follow even when the subject is occluded, and follow at up to 1.5km away. You can also use the remote to point-and-drag the drone where you want it in the sky. 

Skydio is not perfect. Here is Skydio R1 hitting a branch, and here is Skydio 2 crashing into a Manhattan bridge cross-beam when moving quickly, with low-light, in an urban environment. 

However, it's the only drone that has come close to this kind of autonomy and avoidance. If used in non-urban settings, the main risk is crashing and losing the drone, which seems acceptable (unlike using Tesla autopilot). 

In the future this will only improve. Check out this interesting UZH Zurich Robotics research in active drone avoidance.

Introducing Skydio 2 - YouTube 

 Skydio 2 Follow Drone Review Includes Features, Specs And FAQS