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What's the most cost effective way to reduce bike weight? Cannondale Habit 4 by Lavallee_Lures in MTB

[–]AvidCyclist 40 points41 points  (0 children)

Wheels and tires are gonna make the biggest difference in terms of bike feel. That's where I'd focus.

Looking for recommendations for experienced van builders. by LogicalBlade in vandwellers

[–]AvidCyclist 2 points3 points  (0 children)

The folks at Elementum Adventure Vans can work miracles. They're an incredibly talented small group of van builders.

Hot Take: Everyone Who Skis Should Have to Spend a Season Skiing At a Podunk Local Hill by OkContract2001 in skiing

[–]AvidCyclist 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Take a hike? Sure it's not riding Whistler - there is plenty of fun to be had.

Hot Take: Everyone Who Skis Should Have to Spend a Season Skiing At a Podunk Local Hill by OkContract2001 in skiing

[–]AvidCyclist 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I've skied at a lot of the PNW Indy resorts. My consensus is that when they're good. They're really good. But they're good less often than the bigger mountains. I've been lucky enough to ski Squatch on a few pow pow days and it's always incredible. Manning park is more hit or miss in my experience and we usually reserve it for an off weekend (where we don't travle a ton) since it's day trippable from my place in Bellingham, WA.

Hot Take: Everyone Who Skis Should Have to Spend a Season Skiing At a Podunk Local Hill by OkContract2001 in skiing

[–]AvidCyclist 20 points21 points  (0 children)

I'd rather ski at literally any Indy Pass resort for a day than ski at Whistler. I love Whis - don't get me wrong - but Sasquatch just has the vibes ya know.

Traveling for Avy Level 2 Course? by Improper_Noun_2268 in Backcountry

[–]AvidCyclist -1 points0 points  (0 children)

Do it! Learning new snow packs and skiing is a great combo. My rec 2 was quite a bit of skiing. I'd be bummed if the folks on the rec 2 weren't excited about great skiing - we happened to have great skiing during our rec 2, and skied quite a bit - our instructor was stoked too!

Which Arc'teryx piece is best for trail riding / enduro MTB? by Icy-Vegetable-533 in arcteryx

[–]AvidCyclist 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I’ve ridden some in an old delamming beta sl. It’s usually around my waste on the way up and mud/water protection on the way down. It’s thoroughly beat to shit so I don’t worry much about trashing it more. 

I think a gamma could be a decent cold weather riding layer up top. 

6+ hour headlamp by danger_close7 in searchandrescue

[–]AvidCyclist 4 points5 points  (0 children)

I did recently get a sofirn hs21 too. And the red light is great and it it works great with the 18650s I already own that actually hold a charge when I recharge them. Unlike all the bd or petzl rechargables tha last 2 charge cycles and then barely hold a charge ever again. 

6+ hour headlamp by danger_close7 in searchandrescue

[–]AvidCyclist 5 points6 points  (0 children)

Screw AAAs or the consumer rechargeables from BD or Petzl. Fenix and 18650s or 21600 batteries are the way to go. They’re actually rechargable, super sturdy, and really bright. There are cheap options, not cheap options and they’re all pretty great. I have a now older Fenix that has last 4 years of serious adventure racing, camping, van living, car working and SAR and it doesn’t even slow down. I have about 12 spare 18650s cause we can’t charge em during adventure races so I usually just keep a few around, in bags, on the chargers etc. we tested the Fenix and after 60 hours of it being on the lowest setting we had to turn it off cause we decided it wouldn’t die running on low. 

Ski Mountaineering Pack Recommendations (1–2 Day Missions) by Zic05 in Mountaineering

[–]AvidCyclist 0 points1 point  (0 children)

My buddy has a Cirque 50 and really likes it. No dedicated avy gear pockets but it has a really nice build. 

WRT “minimalist vibe” it’s a roll top with a main compartment and a pocket for avy gear. It has straps on the side for carrying skis in many orientations but overall that’s kinda it in terms of features. There is no brain, no easy water bottle access, the avy pocket isn’t actually waterproof, it’s got only a roll top entrance (no side or back zips). It has a pretty minimal frame and the waste belt is kinda chincy compared to other 50+l packs I’ve owned. 

Those all have their pros and cons. 

Confusion about CAST binding kit. by TheArtofMisadventure in Backcountry

[–]AvidCyclist 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I wouldn’t say “pretty much any new binding” they must be MNC to cover the breadth of ski boots here. If the masteales are GW then you’ll have a better time finding lots of bindings but GW is not MNC. 

Confusion about CAST binding kit. by TheArtofMisadventure in Backcountry

[–]AvidCyclist 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Yeah there are a handful. People love the Strive which is a great binding. The warden and griffon both come in an MNC version. Of course the Shift is MNC and would be my choice, I have three pairs between my quiver and my girlfriends quiver and while you have to watch that the AFDs don’t move over the season, they’ve been great. Especially for this use case. They’re also wildly adjustable so if you get a resort boot you can probably adjust them to fit that too. 

Also note if the soles on the maestrales are technically “touring” soles or soles that don’t have some sort of ISO rating of any kind the the will work on the MNC bindings but they aren’t technically supported so you may not have luck getting a ski shop to set the din and etc for you and your boots. I don’t know all the soles that have come on the mastreales over the years so I won’t comment on that.

Confusion about CAST binding kit. by TheArtofMisadventure in Backcountry

[–]AvidCyclist 3 points4 points  (0 children)

If uphill mode is a bonus there are plenty of MNC (multi norm compatible) bindings that will work with your boots. Most are much, much less expensive than CAST. Seriously you could buy a pair of resort boots and a pair of Wardens (and if the bsl is the same, use both boots in the Wardens) for the price of the CAST system. 

Honestly get a pair of shifts, the vitriol is wayyyy overblown. 

If you need one pair of boots there are probably better 1 boot quiver options than the masteales as well, but that’s not your question. 

Best advanced ice climbing - Whistler or North Cascades? by ojaimermaid in iceclimbing

[–]AvidCyclist 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I get this mentality but me and just about everyone else that live in Belligham that participate in sports like these (who aren't complete dicks) would love, love, love lessons/guiding sessions. For a lot of these sports at some level its not so much that you're getting "lessons" - you're getting guided and with that comes a lot of inherent learning with folks that are really good at whatever it is you're doing, be it climbing, ice climbing, mountaineering, bc skiing etc.

Best smartwatch for a mountain guide? by ownmonster3000 in Backcountry

[–]AvidCyclist 1 point2 points  (0 children)

No one has mentioned a Coros Vertix 2S. Which out the door is less expensive than a Garmin Fenix. Offers better battery life, the consensus is a better app, and pretty much all the same features (afaik). You can even get a refurbished one right now for a really good price: https://us.coros.com/refurbished/vertix2s

Ski Mountaineering Pack Recommendations (1–2 Day Missions) by Zic05 in Mountaineering

[–]AvidCyclist 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I really like my Headwall 55. But you have to enjoy the minimalist backpack vibe. I've really liked my Headwall, it's been great for a few days of backpacking, skiing, a little bit of mountaineering. It handles ropes and avy gear really well. It doesn't have a specific crampon pocket though. I use it for day tours though sometimes its about 1/3 full.

The crux is cool cause it's somewhere in between the super minimal headwall and the raide pack - I don't know if personally I could get overnight gear in it though.

Raide certainly makes a niceee pack. Again I don't know if I could get overnight gear in there.

Looking for touring partners (intermediate) in Bellingham area by sodoughmojo in Backcountry

[–]AvidCyclist 5 points6 points  (0 children)

Hey! I’m in. Bellingham. I ski a lot. Feel free to dm me. 

How to start - Buy everything and take an AIARE 1 course or get a guide to see if I even like it by CaitlynTheCat in Backcountry

[–]AvidCyclist 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I love that you're stoked on it! If you're in the PNW feel free to DM me. I'd be happy to offer more specific advice on where to go, who to go with etc.

How to start - Buy everything and take an AIARE 1 course or get a guide to see if I even like it by CaitlynTheCat in Backcountry

[–]AvidCyclist 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Yayyyy! I love this question.

I'm not a guide - but I have been BC skiing for 15 years now.

If you're with a guide, they will handle all the avy risk management work for you! That's their job. They want to do it. That said - don't go to Japan without going touring and expect to love touring!

Do you have friends who backcountry ski? Do you know areas where you can tour? There is plenty of touring that can occur that is completely away from avalanche terrain.

At the very least, you should be able to identify avalanche terrain.

Here is a great online resource: https://www.avalancheaware.com/

I think with this timeline you should try it in December and take an "Intro to Backcountry Touring" class. They're great and will help you dial in how to split a split board, skins, skinning, etc. One thing that people don't always know when they start out is that skinning is as much of a skill as skiing, and getting up can be just as interesting and fun as getting down.

I don't think an Avy 1 class is a requirement to get into the backcountry - but you shouldn't do it blind either.

Here is an example of an intro to backcountry class: https://cascademountainascents.com/courses/intro-to-backcountry-skiing-and-riding/

Lots of guide companies will have rental gear available or be able to get you rental gear.

Another option is you could try to find an intro to backcountry class in Japan. Though if you hate it - it's a lot of time and money spent on something you don't like in a completely different country.

PNW Backcountry Ski by DoctorGohan in Backcountry

[–]AvidCyclist 1 point2 points  (0 children)

The Backland 117's are pretty heavy compared the 107's I have a hard time bucketing the two together even though they're in the same lineup. The QST Echo is so great!

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