Backcountry skiers are obsessed with saving weight.
Ive written plenty in the past about how I go about saving weight in my backcountry setup.
And plenty of other folks have chimed in with their good, or not so good, ideas.
We missed the point.
We tried to make small marginal changes in weight distribution, instead of looking for a paradigm shift.
I offered a Joe Biden solution to a problem that needed a Liz Warren.
Most weight-saving strategies save you less weight than taking a big dump before you go skiing would do.
Were milking the last drops out of traditional ski touring gear.
Ive seen the light.
If you really care about the weight of your backcountry setup, you should be touring on ski blades.
Context
In the past, Ive toured on ski blades a few times.
I owned a pair mounted with Silvretta frame bindings.
But I stuck to skinning the resort before it opened, or skiing short patches of glacial summer snow.
We were dealing with very thin snow in the Tetons.
Dry trails on the valley floor transition to maybe a foot and a half of snow 3500 feet higher.
And that coverage is very aspect dependent.
Why Shift the Paradigm?
And thats in a 170 cm length.
My current ski blades are original Line Mike Nick Pros.
They are 98 cm long and 100 mm underfoot.
They were ostensibly made to compete in freestyle competitions in the X Games, not walk up mountains.
But again, 850 grams each.
It weighs about 1550 grams a ski.
By switching to ski blades I saved a whopping 700 grams.
What else weighs 700 grams?
Two cans of soup, two and a half human hearts, or an average house kitten.
Imagine any one of those things strapped to each of your feet on a tour.
Would you want to shave that weight?
I could wear my ski blades, and carry anextra skiand be carrying the same load.
And we drill holes in the handles of our sporks instead.
And thats just the skis weight.
My skins also weigh half of what my regular skins do.
And they pack up twice as small.
The weight on your feet is being lifted and pushed with every step you take.
Cut those grams at the source.
Length
Long skis truck, short skis suck.
Ive seen and heard that quote all over the place.
Does it make me uncomfortable that my significant other can also ski 184s just fine?
Nope, she wears my sweatshirts too, and theyre way cuter on her.
A couple of reviewers touched on this in the original piece.
They talk about going a few cm shorter for their touring skis.
But, what if you went more than a few cm shorter?
What if you cut that length in half and then made them fatter?
They are more agile and nimble on the way up.
Its scary and dangerous.
And if youve got to side slip through a four-foot wide pinch in a no-fall zone, good luck.
Ski blades excel in steep terrain.
They initiate turns like the US initiates wars in the Middle East: swiftly, and without remorse.
The only place they lose out is on those few big fast turns on the apron after the line.
And honestly, in that situation, youre like 15 seconds behind the guy on light touring skis.
The logic is theyd rather blow a knee than lose a ski and fall to their death.
That makes sense, but why even have to make that choice?
I ran my ski blades with the Salomon MTN binding, without brakes, and its perfect.
Its light, simple, safe, and bombproof.
Lock your toes, fear no snows.
Skiability
I think most ultralight skis ride like a microwaved turd.
I know, you use a 1200 g ski inbounds and love it.
But my ski blades ride better than any sub-1600 gram ski Ive ever ridden.
And again, they weigh half that.
I have also skied lightweight touring skis inbounds quite a bit.
It takes about half a day to get used to the centered stance they require.
Once youve done that, theyre fast and intuitive.
Again, people might think Im being facetious.
I think you will too.
Durability
Cheap, light, durable: pick two.
It goes for bikes, skis, and just about any other toy youre spending money on.
Except for ski blades.
Ultralight skis have a tendency to break at awkward times.
Youre eking every gram of material out of the ski, while also trying to maintain a normal-sized footprint.
Of course, durability will be compromised.
And they still weigh less than any real ski on the market.
And they are incredibly durable.
I have cased the biggest jumps in the terrain park on them.
I have skied over rocks, bushes, and trees.
I have walked through asphalt parking lots.
I stuck them all the way into icy snow trying to beat Kai Jones in a best trick comp.
I have beaten on them harder than any gear I own.
And they keep on ticking with nary a whimper.
Can you say that about your $1500 vapor-carbon-unicorn-milk skis?
Contrary to what your ski-mo-bro friend says, reliability is more important than low weight in the backcountry.
Why not have both with ski blades?
Why isnt everyone doing this?
So, if ski blades are so much better, why arent there more backcountry bladers out there?
I think there are a few reasons.
One: The ski industry is notoriously stuck in its ways and resistant to change.
We still dont allow snowboarders at Alta for crying out loud.
And two, ski blading has been relegated to a weird niche.
Its only acceptable in costume when youre not taking yourself seriously.
Ive been guilty of this.
Ive backcountry bladed in my taco costume and hucked my meat in a neon onesey.
Its fun, and its great.
But ski blading can be so much more.
you could ski blade in performance outerwear, with nice bindings and real boots.
To be clear, Im not the first person preaching this message.
Plenty of other folks have taken ski blades into the backcountry and done great things.
But not enough people evangelize for the blade lifestyle.
What can we do to change this?
Well, first off, put some touring bindings on some ski blades and go for a walk.
Free yourself from the false paradigm.
Secondly, push the industry to make more backcountry-ready ski blades.
Line, your Mike Nick Pros are awesome.
They are also ancient.
Make a Half Sick Day Because I Bailed at Lunch to Get a Head Start on my Weekend Trip.
J Skis sells the Bladezzz.
And JLev is a pioneer of the sport.
But man, his current ski blades suck hard.
They feel cheap and fragile, and the ride quality is subpar.
Until then, youre the father of this damn sport; stop putting your name on a mediocre product.
Moment makes the Frankenblade.
Its the best inbounds ski blade on the market.
But Im not just an inbounds blader.
I need something wider with a little more tip splay to really use in the backcountry.
More of a Wildcat Blade.
Finally, there are a few weird ski blade-only companies that sell a variety of options.
Is that too much to ask for?
I dont think it is.
Ive got some Sego Wizard .5s on the way.
Fully rockered, stiff, swallow-tailed, and nice and wide.
Ive seen the light.
Now I just need my blades to show up.
