Day 29: Dust on crust.
Skidog and I spent the day tooling around with Dean Cummings, his PR rep Lee Hart from Revelstoke, Craig Dostie, Rob Story, and two Vermont writers, one from Backcountry magazine and the other a freelancer. We were there to privately demo Dean's H2O Gear line of skis and check out his new pack line for next winter.
Dean's still got a place here in Utah, but he's pretty much living full-time in Valdez now that his kids are in school and that was the family vote. He of course runs H2O Guides heli-skiing in Valdez, and is taking a shot at getting his gear line jump started. The skis are made in Praxis' factory at Lake Tahoe, and the craftsmanship is second to none. Sidewalls are electronically fused to the core material, bases are bomber and edges are full wrap-around. They're gorgeous.
We started out with the breakfast buffet at Rustler Lodge. I honestly never knew that existed, and it's open to the public for $20 a head. Omelets and eggs made to order, beautiful fresh fruit and more. Highly recommended.
We got a chance to fondle the skis in the lobby as they fitted the skis for our boots downstairs. When we headed out shortly after opening it was bloody cold, still well below zero. But at least the wind was merely moderate and the sun was shining. I kept giving Dostie a hard time for spending a day in bondage bindings, something I never thought I'd ever see. It was also good to finally meet Rob Story -- he's a great guy and a great skier.
Conditions today left a bit to be desired, but that's of course been the case for nearly every day this season. At least today we had an inch or two of new snow atop the ungroomed, more in gullies and other places where the wind had blown more sift in.
I skied two of the three models today, the Tazlina and the Karen'cito. Knowing the firm conditions I opted to start with the Tazlina, 137- 108- 124, in a 184cm length with a 25m turning radius.
The ski was nimble and fun in these conditions. It held a death grip on the firm snow, and once I learned to really pressure the shovel to initiate a turn it rocketed to life. Getting in the back seat, even momentarily, gave the ski a mind of its own so I learned quickly to stop doing that.
After a few runs I switched up to the Karen'cito, which at 165-133-149 is easily the fattest ski I've ever been on.
In a 191cm length it had a turning radius of 26m. I'm used to being on a higher platform with rail-type AT bindings, so being flat on the ski made it feel even wider. It was a rock stable ski, even at speed on firm, uneven surfaces. Absolutely nothing made this ski nervous. I frankly loved it, and I'm looking forward to an opportunity in the near future to try it on something deeper. Our first major winter storm is moving in, and by the weekend new snow will be measured in feet rather than in inches. Our winter will finally start, more than halfway through January.
I'm kind of sorry that I never got on the Kodiak, which at 151-120-132.5 (27.5m radius in a 191cm) would've been a nice compromise between the two models I skied.
We ended with lunch at Collins Grill, upstairs at Watson Shelter mid-mountain, joined by Alta's Connie Marshall. We started out with an exceptional butternut squash soup with bits of gorgonzola cheeese and a pleasant little kick to it. The entree was seared salmon served over a bed of baby spinach and a gorgonzola vinaigrette (a chicken option was also available), with chocolate mousse for dessert. Dean walked through the features of the new pack line after lunch, then all of us split save for Skidog, Dean and Lee, who skied together for the rest of the afternoon. I had a lot of work to do ahead of the Outdoor Retailer trade show which opens on Thursday.
Watch for a review of the skis and packs to appear in FTO's equipment features shortly. I'd also like to do a story on Cummings and his Alaska operation, perhaps that will be in the cards.
Skidog and I spent the day tooling around with Dean Cummings, his PR rep Lee Hart from Revelstoke, Craig Dostie, Rob Story, and two Vermont writers, one from Backcountry magazine and the other a freelancer. We were there to privately demo Dean's H2O Gear line of skis and check out his new pack line for next winter.
Dean's still got a place here in Utah, but he's pretty much living full-time in Valdez now that his kids are in school and that was the family vote. He of course runs H2O Guides heli-skiing in Valdez, and is taking a shot at getting his gear line jump started. The skis are made in Praxis' factory at Lake Tahoe, and the craftsmanship is second to none. Sidewalls are electronically fused to the core material, bases are bomber and edges are full wrap-around. They're gorgeous.
We started out with the breakfast buffet at Rustler Lodge. I honestly never knew that existed, and it's open to the public for $20 a head. Omelets and eggs made to order, beautiful fresh fruit and more. Highly recommended.
We got a chance to fondle the skis in the lobby as they fitted the skis for our boots downstairs. When we headed out shortly after opening it was bloody cold, still well below zero. But at least the wind was merely moderate and the sun was shining. I kept giving Dostie a hard time for spending a day in bondage bindings, something I never thought I'd ever see. It was also good to finally meet Rob Story -- he's a great guy and a great skier.
Conditions today left a bit to be desired, but that's of course been the case for nearly every day this season. At least today we had an inch or two of new snow atop the ungroomed, more in gullies and other places where the wind had blown more sift in.
I skied two of the three models today, the Tazlina and the Karen'cito. Knowing the firm conditions I opted to start with the Tazlina, 137- 108- 124, in a 184cm length with a 25m turning radius.
The ski was nimble and fun in these conditions. It held a death grip on the firm snow, and once I learned to really pressure the shovel to initiate a turn it rocketed to life. Getting in the back seat, even momentarily, gave the ski a mind of its own so I learned quickly to stop doing that.
After a few runs I switched up to the Karen'cito, which at 165-133-149 is easily the fattest ski I've ever been on.
In a 191cm length it had a turning radius of 26m. I'm used to being on a higher platform with rail-type AT bindings, so being flat on the ski made it feel even wider. It was a rock stable ski, even at speed on firm, uneven surfaces. Absolutely nothing made this ski nervous. I frankly loved it, and I'm looking forward to an opportunity in the near future to try it on something deeper. Our first major winter storm is moving in, and by the weekend new snow will be measured in feet rather than in inches. Our winter will finally start, more than halfway through January.
I'm kind of sorry that I never got on the Kodiak, which at 151-120-132.5 (27.5m radius in a 191cm) would've been a nice compromise between the two models I skied.
We ended with lunch at Collins Grill, upstairs at Watson Shelter mid-mountain, joined by Alta's Connie Marshall. We started out with an exceptional butternut squash soup with bits of gorgonzola cheeese and a pleasant little kick to it. The entree was seared salmon served over a bed of baby spinach and a gorgonzola vinaigrette (a chicken option was also available), with chocolate mousse for dessert. Dean walked through the features of the new pack line after lunch, then all of us split save for Skidog, Dean and Lee, who skied together for the rest of the afternoon. I had a lot of work to do ahead of the Outdoor Retailer trade show which opens on Thursday.
Watch for a review of the skis and packs to appear in FTO's equipment features shortly. I'd also like to do a story on Cummings and his Alaska operation, perhaps that will be in the cards.
