Gear:30

Our inaugural Blister Summit launches in less than two weeks! So Kristin Sinnott, our Blister Summit director, and Jonathan Ellsworth talk about the origins of the idea, why we think it’s important; why we think you should come!; and we cover a ton of the details and logistics of this first-of-its-kind event in the snowsports world.TOPICS & TIMESOrigins of the idea for the Blister Summit (5:09)Collecting feedback from Summit participants (9:35)The Summit as a “Ski Tasting” event (13:15)Don’t be intimidated about providing feedback (16:25)Interlude: Baby Ski Quivers (22:30) Backcountry portion of the Summit (23:39)Which ski brands will be there? (31:50)Why launch the Summit this year? / Health protocols (33:03)Summit Swag! (40:45) What We’re Celebrating This Week (42:03)RELATED LINKSOutdoor Gear Exchange See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Today we’ve got another Shop Talk episode for you, where we speak with folks from one of our Blister Recommended Shops to get their perspective on a mix of topics ranging from broadly applicable to all of us, to topics that help us better understand what’s going on in the local community that each shop serves.Eric Helmbrecht, owner of Powder Hound Ski & Bike Shop in Girdwood, Alaska, is back on the show to talk about this season in Girdwood; Fizz Nation; some of the gear that he and his staff are particularly high on this season; and, of course, we had to talk about Juras.TOPICS & TIMESBlister Summit (1:38)Update on the season in Girdwood (2:50)Fizz Nation (6:42)Jura coffee makers (9:48)Gear they’re liking in Girdwood (14:13)What We’re Celebrating (40:32) See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Product Manager of Atomic Ski Boots, Matt Manser, is back to talk about heel pockets and tongue volume and Luke Koppa’s feet and how plug boots are not a thing and Atomic’s new Hawx Ultra and their new “Professional” Series of Liners and Dual Straps.TOPICS & TIMES:Whiskey & Jonathan being late (4:63)Atomic’s new 21/22 Hawx Ultra (8:23)Atomic’s new Professional Series (34:08)Mimic Professional Liner (41:31)Tongue Volume (59:56)Professional Dual Strap (1:11:41)Heel Pockets (1:21:35)Plug Boots are Not a Thing (1:29:05)What We’re Celebrating This Week (1:41:05)RELATED LINKS:Blister Recommended Shop: Black Sheep SportsA Very Deep Dive on Ski Boots, Part 1: Plastics (Ep. 54)Part 2: Flex Patterns (Ep. 55)Part 3: Racers & Race Boots (Ep.60)Part 4: Liners, Ramp Angle, & Forward Lean (Ep. 88) See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

We’re talking with Megan Shenton, the head of the ski dept. at Outdoor Gear Exchange, about how this ski season is going so far in New England; the history of Outdoor Gear Exchange; some of her personal favorite gear and some of the OGE staff’s favorite products; and more.TOPICS & TIMESAbout Outdoor Gear Exchange (1:42)Burglington, VT (8:55)Backcountry Skiing & this ski season (9:56)EC skiing (20:53)Some of the OGE staff’s ‘go-to’ products (26:38)Adjustments OGE has made for COVID (41:44) See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Luke Koppa and Jonathan Ellsworth offer their initial thoughts on the new Volkl Mantra M6 & Secret 96; reviewer, Drew Kelly (aka, The Hulk), makes his GEAR:30 debut to compare the Volkl Katana 108 vs the HEAD Monster 108 vs the Blizzard Cochise 106; Luke discusses some of the Movement skis he’s been getting time on; & more.TOPICS & TIMES:Introducing: reviewer, Drew Kelly (3:09)New volkl Mantra M6 & Secret 96 (6:18)Volkl Katana 108 vs Monster 108 vs Blizzard Cochise 106 (12:05)Movement Alp Tracks 106, Go 106 Ti, & Fly Two 115 (22:19)What We’re Celebrating (26:40)RELATED LINKS:The Skier’s Sportshop See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Luke Koppa and Jonathan Ellsworth talk about some of the skis they’ve recently been testing; name some of the most surprising products of 2020 and some of the standout products of 2020; offer a few gear predictions for 2021; and end with what they’re celebrating this week.TOPICS & TIMESThe end of the Year of Ellsworth (1:15)Luke’s new diet (2:26)Renoun skis are still mind-blowing (4:36)New 4FRNT Devastator & Sego Big Horn 106 (10:50)New ski we can’t talk about yet (16:18)Elan Wingman 86 CTi (16:47)102 Wars: Ranger 102 vs. Mantra 102 vs. Stance 102 (19:15)Most Surprising Products of 2020 (28:05)Standout Products of 2020 (35:12)Gear Predictions for 2021 (39:18)What We’re Celebrating (50:36) See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

We’re talking with Chris Gerston, founder of Backcountry Essentials, talking about Bellingham; starting Backcountry Essentials; and some of the gear that he thinks works really well for skiing at Mt Baker and for volcano skiing.TOPICS & TIMESGear & Beer (4:14)Bellingham, Washington (6:20)If Mt Baker were a beer… (7:14)Starting Backcountry Essentials (8:29)Quiver Killers & Tele & Disco (15:40)Favorite products for Mt Baker & volcano skiing (19:27)RELATED LINKSSurvivor Endurance phone case Jonathan’s experience with the Survivor Endurance See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Luke Koppa and Jonathan Ellsworth discuss several listener questions about ski quivers; 1-boot quivers; some game-changing news in the ski boot world; a number of skis, apparel pieces, and ski masks we’ve been testing; & what we’re celebrating this week.TOPICS & TIMESWatch the YouTube Video of this EpisodeMood Enhancers: Skiing & Georgetown Beer (2:45)Listener Questions: ski quivers (6:35)1-Boot Quiver (14:55)Game-Changing Ski Boot News (22:50)Skis we’ve been testing (28:00)Apparel we’ve been testing (45:54)Masks we’ve been testing (59:00)What We’re Celebrating This Week (1:05:10)RELATED LINKSSurvivor Endurance phone case Jonathan’s experience with the Survivor Endurance See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

We’ve got another edition of Shop Talk for you, where we talk with folks from one of our Blister Recommended Shops to get their perspective on a mix of topics that range from broadly applicable to all of us, to topics that help us better understand what’s going on in the local community that each shop serves.Today, we’ve got Eric Gerrmann & George Michaelsen, two friends who started The Ski Monster. You can stop by their very cool shop located at 60 Canal St in Boston, Massachusetts, or you can check them out online at theskimonster.com.We talk about how George and Eric met; how getting fired - twice! - turned out to be a very positive development; the diverse customer base they serve; why ski shops ought to work to elevate the experience of purchasing all of this expensive gear; and more.TOPICS & TIMES:How George & Eric met (8:06)Origins story of The Ski Monster (16:19)Avoiding the “race to the bottom” (39:34)Handling negative feedback (48:33)GEAR (54:23)Serving new skiers (58:52)Testing the prod

We talk to Blister reviewers Sascha Anastas & Paul Forward about their ski quivers; binding preferences; coffee in AK; your questions; and more.TOPICS & TIMES:Sascha’s quiver selections (10:17)Sascha’s general take on bindings (23:45)Paul’s 18-month-old son’s ski quiver (30:51)Shocking coffee revelations about Girdwood, AK (33:24)Best pow ski, regardless of place? (39:43)Blister member questions (44:01)Paul’s 3-ski quiver (51:13)DPS Lotus 124 vs DPS Koala 119 (58:21)Bindings (another shocking revelation) (1:02:21)Paul’s 2-ski quiver (1:06:07)Paul’s 1-ski quiver (1:10:15)RELATED LINKS:blister.getspot.comBlister Recommended Shop: Gear WestBlister Alpine Bindings GuideBlister Lightweight Touring Bindings Shootout See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Luke Koppa and Jonathan Ellsworth discuss the opening day of the ski season; approaches to building ski quivers; our specific selections; Luke’s latest rant; What we’re Celebrating; & more.TOPICS & TIMES:Buttered Noodles & Air Fresheners (3:31)Opening Day! (11:04)Frontside Skis We’re Now Testing (17:21)*Our* Quiver Selections (19:26)Approaches to Building a Quiver (23:11)Luke’s 3-ski quiver (33:36)Jonathan’s 3-ski quiver (36:04)Rossignol Black Ops Sender Ti (38:12)K2 Mindbender 108 Ti (40:16)Luke’s Rant (42:42)What We’re Celebrating (45:39)RELATED LINKS:Our featured Shop: PowderhoundGEAR:30 Ep. 41: Eric Helmbrecht, PowderhoundOur 20/21 Winter Buyer’s GuideBecome a Blister Member See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Today we’re talking with one of our Blister Recommended Shops to get their perspective on a mix of topics that range from broadly applicable to all of us, to topics that help us better understand what’s going on in the specific local community that each particular shop serves.Earlier this week I sat down in Blister headquarters with Tyson Stellrecht, the founder of Boise Gear Collective, to talk about the selling of both used gear and brand new gear; how it’s going with backcountry.com one year later; why Tyson isn’t moving into e-commerce; gear snobs; predictions for the upcoming season; and more.TOPICS & TIMESThe outdoor scene around Boise (5:12)backcountry.com - one year later (8:09)Tyson’s backstory & starting a used gear shop (14:16)The value of offering used gear & new & service (21:45)Why Tyson isn’t moving into e-commerce (24:40)Starting to sell new gear alongside used (33:17)Gear snobs (42:00)Predictions for the upcoming winter (50:34)What We’re Celebrating (59:40)RELATED LINKS:Bliste

If you are a true gear head, you are going to love this conversation. And if you aren’t a full-on gear nerd but you’d like to better understand what “waterproof” really means, and when you should and shouldn’t worry about a 10k or 20k rating on the jacket or pants you are thinking of buying, then you also ought to listen to this conversation.Luke Koppa and I spoke this week with Michael Cattanach, who is the Product Design Director at Polartec. Polartec is a very interesting company with a hundred years of history behind it. But you might not be too familiar with them, since Polartec makes the textiles and fabrics that a lot of your favorite outerwear and apparel are made of, but they don’t make or sell the end products. In other words, Polartec makes the ingredients used to make your favorite apparel. And so today, we’re going to dive deep into the details about ingredients and textiles and fabrics, and Polartec’s history, and what Polartec is up to today.Now as we said, we do get into the weeds quite a bit

Luke Koppa and Jonathan Ellsworth discuss some of the highlights and big takeaways from our new Winter Buyer’s Guide. We’ll talk about some of our Best Of award winners; whether or not the 20/21 crop of ski gear represents a step forward; and more. Then we answer a lot of the questions you submitted.TOPICS & TIMES:Luke’s soap (2:49)Our 20/21 BLISTER Buyer’s Guide (5:47)“Rounded” Flex pattern (8:50)Volkl Mantra 102 & Katana 108 (15:24)Majesty Superwolf (21:35)Salomon QST 99 (22:35)Dynastar Menace 98 (27:00)Your questions (33:49)Where did the name Blister come from? (44:59)What do I need to do to work for Blister? (50:28)Coffee makers! (1:00:45)What We’re Celebrating (1:20:33)RELATED LINKS:Watch on our YouTube channelOur featured Shop: Backcountry EssentialsOur 20/21 Winter Buyer’s GuideBecome a Blister Member See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Today we’ve got another edition of Blister Shop Talk, where we check in with one of our Blister Recommended Shops to get their perspective on topics that range from universally applicable, to topics that help us better understand what’s going on the particular, local communities that they serve.Bentgate is an outstanding shop located in Golden, Colorado, and our guest today is John Weir. John and I talk about fitting AT boots; the rise of splitboarding; John’s (really good) predictions for this upcoming season; some of the precautions and protocols that Bentgate is taking and putting in place this winter; a lasting (positive) effect that COVID may have on the bootfitting process; and more.TOPICS & TIMESBackground on Bentgate (4:58)Backcountry boots: “Comfort Performance” fit?? (6:59)Prediction #1: upcoming season (10:38)The rise of splitboarding (14:59)Prediction #2: avy courses (19:39)Prediction #3: snow dynamics (29:33)What’s Bentgate doing different this season? (37:35)What We’re Celebrating (44:51)REL

We sat down in Blister HQ with Cody Townsend to talk about coffee makers, bindings, beacons, terrain management, mortality, movies, and more.TOPICS & TIMES:Coffee Makers (9:29)SHIFT binding (14:40)Bindings in general (27:02)Movies (38:17)Tech bindings (46:33)Beacons (56:12)Terrain management & avalanche education (1:06:55)Topics for future conversations (1:20:18)What We’re Celebrating This Week (1:23:53)RELATED LINKS:Blister Podcast: Cody Townsend, Blister Speaker SeriesOff The Couch Podcast: Cody Townsend See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

What do you know about Alpaca wool? And how well do you know the ins and outs of manufacturing in Peru? We talk about these things and more with the founders of Arms of Andes, which is a company that makes outdoor clothing from Royal Alpaca wool that is single-sourced and produced in Peru. We discuss the characteristics and benefits of Royal Alpaca wool; the traditional method used to collect the wool; their commitment to (and the unique challenges of) manufacturing in Peru; what they’re doing to try to be one of the most sustainable clothing brands in the world; and more.TOPICS & TIMES:What is Arms of Andes? (3:38)More specifics of Alpaca Wool (13:28)Manufacturing in Peru (21:00)Types of Alpaca Wool (31:32)Arms of Andes product line (36:25)Where to Purchase (40:59)What We’re Celebrating (42:41) See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

We’ve got Folsom Skis CEO, Mike McCabe, back on the show to catch us up on what’s been going on at Folsom; the PPE equipment they’ve been making; their lineup for the 20/21 season; and more. Mike also flips the script and asks me how things have been at Blister, and we wrap with what we’re celebrating this week. I also provide a quick update on the status of our 20/21 Winter Buyer’s Guide. TOPICS & TIMESUpdate on our Buyer’s Guide (1:52)Update on Folsom (5:53)PPE (6:57)Folsom’s Pop-Up Shop in Aspen (17:31)Who is the Folsom customer now? (22:33)Spar 88 (27:45)Spar 78 (37:15)Spar Turbo (43:21)“Favorable” Rocker (47:54)Primary 104 (51:40)Touring Constructions (55:36)Mike’s question for Jonathan (58:37)What Mike’s celebrating this week (1:00:56)What Jonathan’s celebrating this week (1:03:42)RELATED LINKS:icelab.co - Come live & work in the Gunnison Valley!GEAR:30 ep. 66: Folsom Skis & the new Blister Pro 104GEAR:30 ep. 19: Dialing in "The Hammer" + other new Folsom SkisBlister Podcast ep. 33: Rou

Black Sheep Sports is a freeride shop in Munich, Germany, and we talk to its founder, Sebastian Steinbach, about this past ski season; his predictions for the upcoming ski season in Europe — and whether we’ll see a backcountry boom in Europe? We then talk about the critical art of customer service; why friends shouldn’t tell friends to just “Go buy this boot”; and more. Order our 20/21 Winter Buyer’s GuideTOPICS & TIMES:Black Sheep Sports: Background (7:25)Last Season Recap / Pandemic (11:28)Predictions for the upcoming European season? (17:35)The crucial art of customer service (31:57)“Local shops” vs “Great local shops” (47:29)What We’re Celebrating (1:10:34)Check out our other GEAR:30 conversation with Sebastian See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

For some time now, Faction has been one of the hottest brands in skiing. But how much do you actually know about the company? This week we are talking about the history of the brand, some key moments in the company, and some big recent changes; you’ll hear what it’s like to go skiing with and design skis for Candide Thovex; and we go over Faction’s lineup for the upcoming season. We’re joined by Faction engineer, Daniel Tanzer; product manager, Josh Cohen; and North American marketing manager and mono ski advocate, Hank Lampert.TOPICS & TIMESHow do you describe Faction? (3:05)Introductions: Hank, Josh, Daniel (4:32)Changing factories and turning points in Faction’s history (11:21)Designing skis with Candide  (19:38)20/21 Lineup: Dictator series (33:03)Agent Series (47:06)Prodigy and Candide series (51:40)Le Mono (55:01)Le Machine (57:45)Le Mogul (1:00:33)Final Thoughts (1:05:54)What We’re Celebrating (1:07:25)CHECK OUT: blister.getspot.com See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out informatio