DPS Wailer 112 RPC review...aka "DPS Lotus 115"

Happy man on a DPS RPC

 

 

Product:  DPS 112 RPC (Pure Carbon construction)

 

Length Tested: 192cm

Turn Radius: 20-23m  
side cut: 144mm-115mm-127mm

Tip rocker: 480mm
Tail rocker: 384mm
Running length: 1510mm
Weight: per skis: 4lb. 5oz. 

Binding: Dynfit Radical Speed

Mount point: +1cm forward of suggested
Ski weight with bindings: 5lb. 2oz. per ski

Environment & Conditions:

Location of Test: Crystal Mountain Washington

Number of Runs: 5 full days over a 10 day late spring storm cycle

Snow Conditions: from hard packed, rain ice, to 3 feet of new mid winter snow

Demo or Own: own

Tester Info:

Height/Weight: 6'1" 190lb

Ski Days/Season: 30+

Years Skiing: 30+
Aggressiveness: Moderate 

Current Quiver: Huascaran, Aspect,  GTR, Lo5, Hi5, 112RP, 138, Broad Peak, 112RP, 138.

Home Area: Silver Mtn Idaho, Crystal Mtn and Alpental WA.

Preferred Terrain: off-piste, trees, steeps

DPS sez: The RPC shape gives up some of the Wailer 112RP's hard snow carving performance and versatility in exchange for enhanced crud and powder velocity. 

 1 (worst)  to 5 (best) star ratings

Value: ***** (hard to believe on a $1250 ski but there it is!)

Durability: unknown at this point but they still look good

Edge Grip: considering the 115mm under foot *****

Maneuverability:******

Performance:******

Up front. I have not been a big fan of the 112RP.  Some seem to think it is the *magic ski*.   I liked the 112RP enough to have kept a pair for a season.  Almost everyone from professional mtn guides to timid intermediates seem to rave about the 112RP.  To me it is a quiver ski.  And not one currently in my quiver.  And not one to be replaced.  Not nearly versatile enough to be my only skis. Not to say it is a bad ski.   Just not the ski to end my search for the perfect ski.   I am glad I had a chance to spend a season on them. But not unhappy when I sold them either.

Like everyone else reading this review specifically for 112 RPC hands on info, likely most of you have read the less than stellar review on the RPC, Blister had posted previous. (It is linked below) That review (and more recently a second on the 2014 RPC) and my dislike for the 112PC kept me off the RPC for most of this season. In retrospect that was a big, BIG mistake on my part.  I get sucked in on the Internet reviews just as easily as the next guy.  Damn it!

What I like about the RPC compared to the RP?  Less rocker in the tip and tail as a start.  And a stiffer over all ski flex.  The ski is best described as "a sidecut version of the lotus 138, than similar to the wailer 112RP".  Same shape used, with slight variation, on the Lotus 120, 112RP, the 112RPC and the 99, and is exceptional technology imo.    

I am blessed by good fortune to get on a lot of skis.   A dozen or so this season alone.  Not a professional ski tester by any means but more skis than I have ever dreamt of skiing in any one season previous.  Best of all I own the skis..so nothing owed to the manufacture here past an honest appraisal of the skis..  All of which just keeps me searching for the next "best ski".   
 

A good many friends (most active outdoor ski professionals) have decided that the 100mm under foot is *the* magic number for their every day skis. I need to keep looking for that 100mm ski.   And I have most of the 100mm ski my buddies have suggested.   From my own search the 112mm/115mm seems to be my magic number.  I am typically a strong skier (physically) and able to ski any terrain given reasonable snow conditions.  And now with a modern 115mm under foot ski, even what I use to think as "unreasonable" conditions I can generally ski with little effort. 

One of my most fun and agile pair of all around skis right now is a  short 177cm, and 112mm under foot, skis.  But I prefer something longer when riding lift served terrain.  Something more like 190cm+.   FWIW I generally like a light weight 167/168cm skis in the BC if I am looking at covering an sort of distance.

I am using a tech or Dynafit style binding on all my skis these days. Even the skis reserved just for lift skiing. The RPC is going to be a lift served ski 90% of the time for me.   I commented on the 112s earlier.  From DPS's original comments  the 112RP seems like a much better powder ski than a resort/powder skis to me.  I've not skied the newest Rossi 7 Series but hopefully will shortly.   I have skied similar skis to the DPS RPC from BD, La Sportiva, DPS in 100 and 115 formats. I like the newest light weight skis and the lightest Dynafit style bindings.   A mountaineering back ground has me looking in that direction..instead of back at my old school Rossi and K2 roots. Just the weight when picking up a 115mm under foot from Rossignol or K2 stops me from looking any further.   The huge tail rocker on any of those skis would,  if weight did not. Even though I know some of those skis will ski very, very well.

Below are a few questions from a different forum that were asked when I mentioned I really didn't like the 112RP. 

"Were you on the 190cm RP's?  Interesting that DPS describes the RP to be more capable on hard than the RPC, and more versatile, but you found just the opposite to be true for you."

Here is the video I found most enlightening from DPS. This is what convinced me to give the "112" another try even if it is a 115 version :)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hq2VAjV8bJo

Yes, I was on the 190cm version of the PURE 112RP. And a 192 on the PURE 138 Lotus. (Zero4 and One boots) But one of my all time favorite skis is the Dynafit Huascaran in a 177cm (TLT boots) as a playful, fun ski in most any conditions and unsurpassed *for me* in tight trees. I like a stiff tail and little or no rocker in the tail on a shorter ski. The rocker up front I don't want flapping around at speed and the ability to carve bullet proof ice with some acuity important as well.

As much as I did like them both I thought both the 138 and the 112RP too much of a quiver ski instead of a all around ski (duh! that is obvious on the 138 and not nearly the versatility of the 112 everyone else describes ).

I bought 196cm Huascarans and the 192 RPC at the same time. Expecting GREAT things from the longer Hauscaran and not much from the the RPC. Knowing that the 177cm Huascaran is one of my all time favourite sets on any terrain using the TLT Mtn boot.   It turned out the other way around on ski likes and dislikes. I was making the comparison on two hour intervals during a 3 day dump of new powder over a hard ice (west coast standards) base that was rained on before freezing up solid. Add two feet of fluff to that while you are still skiing the ice as the base was interesting for the first day and a half.

Every time the place got skied out and I thought the conditions just sucked I went back to the RPC and found it was the ski lacking and not the conditions. Harsh reality and eventual glowing accolades for the RPC (much to my surprise!)

In all my Internet surfing I found two guys describing the RPC as a *115 Lotus* on another forum...which I found intriguing. Marshal Olson and Stephen Drake of DPS were saying the 112RP was a combo of the 138 and the Cassiar 80.   All those comments and the newest technology from DPS built into the RPC had me intrigued. My bet is the RPC was the ski DPS was really trying to make when they came out with the 112RP. 

DPS sez:

• “The RPC is designed to ski more in the fall line with a shallower turn shape. It’s for the charging, directional skier …who wants to put less emphasis on the RP’s hard snow performance and more on its abilities in crud and soft snow.”

***I found the RPC better at fall line/faster mach 1 type GS turns, ski with no lack of hard snow (or ice for their 115mm under foot) performance. I also found them easy to do slow, super tight turns on steep or even really moderate terrain with ease. Little difference in the 112RP and the RPS here it is only a matter of a little (very little) effort.

• “The RPC gives up some of the 112 RP’s hard snow-carving performance and versatility in exchange for enhanced crud busting and speed through powder.”

*** I didn't find that to be the case.  I think the RPC has some serious added attributes and literally giving away nothing to the 112RP....other than a more skilled/stronger skier will be happier on the RPC by comparison. Blister's review hints at this btw.

• “The RPC will allow skiers to surf powder in the morning, then charge leftovers all day as they sniff out stashes.”

***this I found spot on.....

Blister sez:

"the RPC is absolutely a Wailer 112RP at heart, as it shares some of the same characteristics that helped put the original RP on the map".

***Not IMO....I think the RPC is best described as a "115 Lotus" Forget all that nonsense about it's connection to the 112 RP. Bad marketing on DPS's part IMO.

"I’m not sure I knew what “torsionally rigid” really meant until laying down some blisteringly fast, high-energy carves out the bottom of Alta’s Collin’s face on the RPC. In this respect, DPS’s engineering and construction of the ski is seriously impressive."

I mention Rossi 4G 207s below.  It is a torsionally rigid ski is.  I had the chance to ski some of the best made for several decades.   The 138s and the 112RP are good examples of torsionally rigid skis. The RPC even more so I think.  If you want to ski ice...serious ice... get a torsionally rigid ski.  Make the ski rigid enough and you can even ski ice on a soft boot and 115 under foot.

Blisters' review here:
http://blistergearreview.com/gear-reviews/2012-2013-dps-wailer-112rpc-2#comment-16640

Follow up:
To prep my RPCs I simply ironed in a thick coat of some spring wax on the Hauscaran and the RPC and took them to the hill.   No detune on either and I wouldn't call either ski hooky or even anything close to hooky.

Easy to describe the 112RP as the ski for the guy that doesn't know how to ski powder.....and you'll never have to learn on the 112RP.  The ski will simply give you a majority of the skill required.  The 112RP is a super easy ski to ski...any where but hard snow.  But for me it is a "beginners" ski. I come from old school Rossi and K2 SL/GS 203 and 207 race skis if that helps. The newest (rockered and 5 point shaped) skis have made me a much, much better skier with less effort involved.

Bottom line?

I can rip groomers on the RPC with literally no speed limit.  Big super fast GS turns if I like (and I DO like!) or quick turns straight down the fall line at Mach 1. Easy.    Pow? If it is on this ski things are easy. Not as easy or as playful as a 177cm Huascaran but just as playful as the RP in my opinion.  Looking for those last tiny powder stashes at your favorite resort? The 4 to 6 turn pockets of the last remaining stash? The RPC will make that patch and if you work at it add an extra turn in there as well. Yes they are a tiny bit more work than the 112RP.   And I do mean TINY!  But the advantages the rest of the day are immense.   Even if it is just getting between stashes at Mach 1 with a huge smile on your face.   Slow speed tight trees or just tight turns? Easy enough...so easy....enough.   I am still amazed at just how versatile this ski is. Some of my skis will do most of what I have described.  The RPC finally seems like the one "full meal deal".  

I am a little stuck on a skied named a "112"  when it is actually 115mm under foot.  And I think it is much more ski than the 112RP.  More than the 3mm implies.
 

This is no 112RP.  It really is a Lotus 115. Big Mountain? All mountain?  The RPC will do both easy enough.  "My bet is the RPC was the ski DPS was really trying to design when they came out with the 112RP".   The limitations of the 112RP is obvious for the skilled practitioner. I've not noted any limitation on the RPC. And I really don't consider myself a very "skilled" practitioner. I just get to ski a lot of skis.

Heli ski? You bet.  I'd  be OK with leaving the 138s at home.

FWIW I am skiing the RPC with a Dynafit One boot or the Scarpa Maestrale RS.  And I am very pleased with the combinations.  More so with the RS and this ski.   Makes me think I might be leaving some on the table here.   Which makes me think Lange and down hill bindings.

The RPC isn't my all time favorite ski...but it is damn close.    For a resort ski on any sort of soft snow?  It might well be my favorite ski ever.  Either way hard not to get a smile on your face with these guys on your feet.  If I am earning my own turns on any sort of soft snow, corn to pow?  This ski (even in my 192s) is light enough to consider for any mid winter snow pack, boot or skin mission.   You  earn the turns might as well savor them.

Testing">http://vimeo.com/55557586">Testing my new DPS RPC 192

from Windbroproductionhttp://vimeo.com/user6712744">Windbroproduction> on Vimeo.https://vimeo.com">Vimeo.>

 

The skinny on the up coming CT ski reviews?

Heli turns bitd

 

If someone had told me I would have the interest in writing a ski review on Cold Thistle a couple of years ago I'd have laughed.  "No way in hell!"

A couple of reasons for that.  I really don't have that much interest in skis or ski gear.  The other is I don't have the technical knowledge  to do  as good of job at it as I would like.

But...just as my original hunt for a good "climbing down jacket"  ended up starting this blog and the gear reviews.  My hunt for a decent ski  for my own use has convinced me to write down what I have been learning over the past few seasons about skis (boots and bindings as well) and go back to the base of knowledge I gained in the early '70s through mid '80s on ski technology working in shops as a mechanic and boot fitter.  I am not trying to apply the old knowledge base to the current technology  and crop of skis.

My typical answer when questioned about skis in the last decade or so has been, "they are fine..they turn left and they turn right".  Some thought I was actually joking,,,I wasn't.  Skis are simply tools to me.  It helps to know the tool you need and to be able to choose the right tool as required.   But it is a poor craftsman that blames failure on his tools.  A couple of winters ago I got an awakening that my unused ski skills had degraded to an embarrassing level as had my ability to judge what really was "good ski gear" for my own use.

Pulling off an ill fitting ski boot high on the Vallee Blanche.

 

 

Funny now that I think back on the time I spent skiing.  All  the info here on Cold Thistle about climbing boots?  The foundation of that info is based on what I learned and know about ski boots.  Early on my skinny feet were ridiculously hard to fit  in a ski boot.   I had simply forgotten where it all started for me about how important a good boot fit really was until recently.  That in itself surprises and inspires me. 

My first three pair of plastic ski boots from the late 60's and early '70s.  The ones prior were leather!

Lange Pro

Lange Comp

 

Lange Comp

 

My last pair of Langes, The Banshee,1973

I first saw a pair of Dynafit TLT Performance boots at the OR show several years ago.  Then again as they first became available in the Chamonix shops.  I scoffed at the $1000 price tag at OR and again in Chamonix.  By that spring I was desperate to own a pair.  Now?  The TLT and the second generation boots (Dynafit One) that came from the original TLT idea are my favorite boots for more than just skiing.  As a crossover for ski mountaineering and ice climbing they are exceptional boots for the amount of  control you can have while  skiing in them.  In a lot of ways the TLT reminds me of the old Scott Superlight series of boots actually.  I had a buddy that added a Vibram sole to his and climbed in them as well.

Jeff on steep ice with a TLT.

 

 

And I would eventually find all sorts of uses for my own TLTs.

 

What I didn't realise at the time is just how import the skis would/had become and just how different the skis designs were now.  If I am going to be an advocate of ski mountaineering and the use of ski boots to climb technical ground with, I had better square away a few thoughts on skis as well.

I found a few of us out here looking for the same things or very close to it in skis.  If you have a mountaineering back ground the current rando race gear is going to have some appeal.  If you learned to ski (as most do) at a lifted served ski area you are likely looking at good down hill performance as well.  I want a good skis on a groomed slope as well as off piste when in really bad snow conditions.
All that is possible btw.

My bet is with a similar back ground we have all been looking at similar skis.  To that point I'll eventually be writing up reviews on the skis I have been on in the last couple of seasons.

Most importantly the choice in ski is as individual or may be even more so than a well fitting pair of climbing boots.  What works for me you might hate.   Or the other way around...which is what got me started looking for a "better" ski in the first place.

How a ski performs depends on so many things, your ability, your own boots and the snow conditions.  So you will see a lot of back ground info and details on each ski test (mine and others).

The idea here is to get you into a ski you will enjoy for your own purposes not sell you any particular ski.   If you happen to have the similar gear,  physical attributes and skill set as Dave Searle, Jerry Johnson  or myself, lucky you!  If not hopefully you'll be able to glean enough info from the reviews  to at least get started in the right direction on a decent ski choice for your own use.

But I can tell you quite clearly the gear available now will enable a decent skier to easily..as in really easily...ski terrain and snow conditions that even a decade or two ago was unrealistic for anyone but an expert, very experienced skier.  There are some down sides to that fact...like the need for more snow, avalanche and forecasting knowledge.  The knowledge is now required because the newest skis have opened up so much more terrain to less experienced skiers.  It is a double edged sword.  You can ski more places easily.  But you can also get yourself killed a lot quicker as well by making a bad choice in the wrong snow conditions.

Oh, and you poor bastards on snow boards?  If you want to climb and explore the back country?  Get a pair of skis :-)  You'll go farther, faster and with less effort in places you simply can't go on a snow board.  Same places you would also be hard pressed on a split board.  More on that subject at some point as well. 

Patagonia Micro D 1/4 Zip Synchilla

11K on Denali

When I get really confused as to what is available on the market for clothing today I generally think back to a specific piece of gear I want to duplicate with what is available now.  If nothing else I am a creature of habit.  Earlier this year went looking for a upper layering shirt/sweater weight upper that I had owned twice in the past.  It was a really simple mid weight pile jacket that wasn't very durable but it was very warm and breathed exceptionally well.  That one I have yet to replace but I might be close.  Likely one or the other is a modern, Patagonia Men's R2® Jacket or the Better Sweater?  But I am open to suggestions.

The usual suspects in the same sweater/jacket

But this blog isn't about that sweater.  The sweater and how much I liked and used it got me thinking about what was under that sweater I used and liked so much.  That was an expedition weight 1/4 zip T-neck.  That one I also liked a lot and didn't have in my closet any longer.  Thankfully because iirc it got pretty rank in the end.

This is actually the first in a series on current Patagonia Alpine clothing.  In the last few decades I have not been a big fan of Patagonia.  But as you can see I have been in the distant past.   I don't generally write about gear I don't use and like.  A series on Patagonia surprises me....but my experience this winter showed me it was well deserved.

When I finally started counting, Patagonia clothing made up a shockingly large percentage of the clothing I used in the alpine.  Even more so this winter.

So to the topic at hand?  That 1/4 zip expedition weight fleece?  More than one Patagonia advocate tried to convince me the Capilene 3 and 4 were a good choice.  I have several R1 hoodies and pullovers.  I didn't want the typical grid patterns in any form.  But I wasn't quite sure why.  I guess it was because I didn't really like it as insulation or wind protection.  R1 and the Caps are good at keeping you dry but not really what I as looking for.  I guess what I really wanted was something more old school.  Better wind resistance, more creature comfort if you weren't working hard (read soft next to the skin) and more warmth from the garment.

I have to admit...none of this would have ever happened if the Cap 4 didn't retail for $99.   The Micro D 1/4 zip retails for $59.00

Patagonia sez:

A lightweight, warm, and fast-drying u-zip microfleece that works as either insulation or an outer layer. 

Key Features of the Patagonia Micro D 1/4 Zip Fleece:

• Ultrasoft, quick-dry, microdenier fleece
• Zip-through stand-up collar; u-front zip
• Clean-finished hem and cuffs
• Hip length
• Regular fit
• (8.4 oz) 238 g
• Fabric: 4.7-oz 100% microdenier polyester (85% recycled) fleece

What I say?

I don't own another piece of clothing that is as warm for the weight or as comfortable next to the skin as the Micro D.  I generally wear a thin base layer under it for skiing.  But nothing warmer in that application that I own.  Too warm for back country skiing I think and it doesn't breath well or get rid of the moisture as fast as I would like.  No question it is not an R1 layer.  But then it is more wind proof and warmer I think as well.  It has limitations if you want to  move quickly and know you will be sweating.  I haven't bothered yet to see how it does next to the skin.  Although I did use something similar in the distant past as a base layer.  I might try that again knowing full well the limitations of this pile fabric.  Knowing that it dry fast is a big help.  The more I think of it the more places I think about using the Micro D in the mountains.

Some times it is just figuring out how to use a fabric to best effect.  This is a pile that I really like but it took me most of the winter to find a place in my own "clothing system" for it to be the most effective.  Now I have a hard time going skiing, on lift or side country when I don't take the Micro D.  I bought the first one on a lark....choking on the Cap 4 price.  I figured what the heck. "Patagonia has a stellar return policy..I can't loose here".

The other day all my ski clothes badly needed cleaning.  But it was cold in the house and I was tired but needed to be working.  I wanted something warm and soft to wear around the office.  Jeans, flips and a Micro D made my day!  Just as the Mirco D did in the last big storm cycle on the mountain.  At that point I knew I'd better buy another.  And at $59. it was an easy decision.

 
My vote is for the brighter colors!

Bingo!

The Bingo Pillar from chris Alstrin on Vimeo.

For some reason it seems to be a Julbo week.   Fun stuff with Glenn Plake here and a nice video skiing in Chamonix just a few weeks ago.  As good as the skiing has been in the PNW recently....the truth is the comparison to skiing in  Chamonix is like comparing your local climbing gym to the experience in Yosemite.  Enjoy!


Julbo team in Chamonix - Skiing with Glen Plake from Tom Runcie on Vimeo.

Skis reviews at Cold Thistle?

The way Cold Thistle started was me going on the hunt for a decent down jacket.  I learned a few things in the process.  Mostly what I wanted, wasn't want most people bought. 

Skiing has been important in my life off and on.  Not really all that important now but I still don't want what most people buy.  A lot of reasons for that and likely not all of them good or relevant to you.  But I am finding some issues I might consider serious flaws, if only I knew more about the subject.  So what you'll get is some opinion.  Not all based in fact,  just my experience. 

Not the first time I have gotten to this point, when what I would have thought were reliable resources I have been reading on the Internet come up with totally difference conclusions than I do.

But no matter :-)  I'll be writing some ski reviews shortly.  Boots and bindings as well at some point.

Here is a teaser as to what skis you will have a chance to read in depth reviews on.

A quick shot of what will be reviewed should look like this:
Black Diamond
Aspect

La Sportiva
Lo5
Hi5
GTR

More on La sportiva skis..
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7fbinjGpIvI

Dynafit
SevenSummit
Broad Peak
Huascaran @177cm and 196cm

more here on the Huascaran
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P6Bf35O81GU


DPS
Wailer 99 Pure
Wailer 112 RP Pure
Wailer 112 RPC Pure
Lotus 138,  Pure, 3.2 rocker version

more here on the 112s
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hq2VAjV8bJo


Rossi Series for 2013/14
Soul 7
Squad 7
Super 7

More here on the 7s.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wA4OM4Wzbyo

Avalanche!

Photo courtesy of  Tunc Findik and the Mirror

 

A couple of years ago on our first day of the season in Chamonix two buddies and I took the tram up to the top of the Grand  Montets for some fresh air, to stretch our legs from the travel and to get a feel for the place.

Like ANY mountain environment it is a BIG place!

A few minutes later both of my friends were swept away in an slab avalanche.   They took a 1/3 of a mile  ride and both were totally buried at some point.  Thankfully both survived with only minor physical injuries.  Mentally I hope that neither will ever be the same.  I hope that experience haunts them both forever.  Hopefully they will always be more considerate of the terrain and snow conditions now.  Then worry about what they want to be doing.

That isn't my only nightmare about snow.  I intentionally try to remember them all every time I go into the mountains again.  And the friends that are no longer around for a simple mistake.

Every year several people die in avalanches very close to where I live.  It is a maritime snow pack here.  Lots of snow here and rapidly changing conditions.  But not all that different really from any other mountains I have lived in.  The Rockies or Selkirks are not all that much different.  Most of the year they are our play grounds.  Part of the year they are death traps.

Knowing the difference is like playing ball at the school yard or playing ball in the middle of a busy freeway.  Sounds just like alpine climbing doesn't it?  Two people died over the weekend within miles of my house.  Others were injured.  I drove an extra hour to spent the weekend skiing in the relative comfort of a ski area and several thousand feet higher in elevation.  Skiing in what was likely the last big winter storm cycle of the year.  Even inside a controlled and skier packed ski area the conditions were rapidly changing and iffy IMO on certain aspects at different times during the day.  Pays to notice such things.  No one owes you a freebie...even the ski area or their Ski Patrol.

Early in that storm we were skiing 2 feet or more of lwt powder laid on a rain layer that had frozen solid prior to the newest snow fall.  Imagine that potential on even moderate slopes.  The lower you went on the mountain, the higher the moisture in the new snow pack.  And the higher a chance of a dangerious slide.  The elevation where I got on the lift became a death  zone with a bigger dump of snow in such a short time.  The higher you got, the less problematic the conditions were...that day...where i was.  And that was just a few air miles away from the fatal slides.

Miles Smart, an American Alpine guide living in Chamonix posted this on Facebook today with a good photo selection, "One of today's many avalanches. It was a good day to have a beer in the sun wearing flip flops."

You don't have to be a UIAGM mountain guide to know when it is best to stay out of the mountains or find a better place to enjoy them.   Being in a developed American ski area doesn't eliminate all risk.  Nothing does.  And it isn't wilderness.  But better to be around people for a day in the snow than found buried in it.

Trust no one.  Make your own decisions.  In the case of snow conditions?  Always error on the side of caution.  It is only luck that gives you "overs" in an avalanche.

Below, is the  the run out, at the scene of the crime, in 2011.  Literally a 5 minute walk or less from the lift.

Kinda looks like a giant head stone doesn't it?

Three Nomics are buried there now.  Luckily no Americans ..this time.

    

Steck on training

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4gMIUb4fb04

Best climb of 2012 IMO?

Shiva - Piolets d'Or 2013 from Planetmountain.com on Vimeo.

Ski and mountaineering Goggles?

My buddy Dave and I were talking goggles the other day.  Both of us have more gear than any one person should ever own.   So it is always a fun conversation when we get together a few times each year.   I consider myself,  "one who is interested in the details".  Last I saw of Dave's gear room, "hoarder" came to mind a little too quickly :)   Dave might see it all differently!

He mentioned he had so many pairs of goggles he can't keep track.  And none he cared to comment on.  Until recently I still used 2 pair of goggles that are well over 20 years old.  A pair of Smith Cariboo OTG and a pair of Bolle Irex 100s.   See, I really do try to take care of my kit ;)  And I know exactly how many pairs of goggles I have...or had.

When I decided to spend a winter climbing in Chamonix I didn't want to take any of my "good" goggles. So I dropped by the local REI and picked up some Smith medium frame dbl lens goggles on sale.  Hadn't had new goggles in like ...20 plus years!  So I was thrilled with the results.  I ended up giving them away at the end of my stay.  Less than $20 on sale.  They were great goggles worth passing on.  And handy on the Midi arete in stormy weather!

I noticed Dave was using a pair of Oakley's last time we were out.  And that Dave and Sam had really wanted goggles (any goggles)  in that bit of spindrift on the Ben.   Sometimes simply being able to see is a good thing.  Goggles can help.

A nice day for goggles, if you have them.

Last fall I went through something like 2 dozen pair of sun glasses wanting to add a educated review of just a few styles that were available.  The more I looked at sun glasses the more detailed and interesting the info became.  Problem was, I really didn't care.  I just wanted a good pair of  sun glasses.  Having owned and used some of the best sunglasses available in the last few decades kept me from looking too far or spending  a lot of money.  And you could spend a LOT of money on sunglasses at close to $200 a pop for some of the best known brands.  Thankfully folks like Optic Nerve are at least offering some better alternatives for price.  But if you look deep enough the prices for the best available sunglasses are justified, if you understand the consequences of a lifetime of exposure to bright sunlight on your eyes.

Two part look at glasses last Fall :

http://coldthistle.blogspot.com/2012/09/sun-glasses-part-one.html

http://coldthistle.blogspot.com/2012/11/sunglasses-part-2.html

The best of the "new" glasses I found were all photochromic or light sensitive.  I've found the best glasses for my own use are all photochromic.   As I have aged I don't need the really dark lens,  Better yet what I can really use is a lens that will change to a very light shade at dusk and dawn and darken mid day when I really need the protection.  I found the Zebra lens from Julbo to do everything I needed in the mountains as a sun glass. I've mentioned that before and will again soon.

I leave a pair of the photochromic Optic Nerve glasses in my wifes' car fro when I am an impromptu  passenger.   As I finished the sun glass review I sent a link to Julbo letting the know my excitement about the Trek and Bivouac sunglasses

Julbo seemed pleased and asked if I was interested in seeing some of the new Julbo ski goggles.  At the time the last thing I wanted to do was another commentary and the research required for a blog post on ski goggles.   As my buddy Dave said, " I have a bunch of them and they all work".  I mean really, how different can a goggle be?

Earlier this winter I had spent a rather trying day skiing the last day of a big storm cycle in Idaho.  The snow was deep and soft and really wet and cold.  I wasn't having the best day.  I had gotten wet and cold early on by choosing the wrong clothing.  Imagine how foolish one feels when you make that kind of mistake with two spare bedrooms full of high tech clothing and gear sitting at home.  At the end of the day I was out of energy and desire.  One last powder run was almost too much.  My goggles had fogged up on last boot pack and got worse on the next chair ride up.  I was ready to pack it in...when my partner that day chuckled and said.."it is just your goggles fogged up."  In reality it was my goggles and my brain that were fogged.  I was toasted and ready to be put on the plate.  It was a bit embarrassing actually.  I should have known my goggles were fogged.  I stopped, wiped them out and  made that last boot pack up the ridge line.  And was rewarded with a final and amazing powder run down as the skis cleared for the first time that day.  But I was also glad the day was over.

The goggles were new Smith Cariboos.  A goggle style that had never failed me skiing.  But when I got home I did make the effort and hunted up a pair of Smith Turbos.  I didn't fog the next time we skied power or boot packed into some powder shots.  But a fan?  Come on?!  I thought the "turbo fan" was a little over the top 30 years ago.  I still do.  All in a nice way of course ;)

All of which got me thinking about looking at some other goggle brands.  I'm not a big fan of gimmicks.  And I still think a electric fan on a pair of goggles is a gimmick. One that works of course and that I like...but still a gimmick.

The Smith Phenom Turbo Fan goggle.  They work...but there are simplier answers to be had.

And that earlier conversation with Julbo came to mind. As much as I liked the Zebra sun glasses, I had to wonder just how bad could the Julbo *Zebra lens* goggles be.  I ordered three pair.

First I have used the Zebra goggles was last week.  As I said generally a Smith fan and in the right snow and temps a turbo fan. In bright sun, an older pair of  Bolle Irex 100s.  We are talking old school there..with the Bolle Irex 100.

I packed up a pair of new Smith goggles...that I really like. Should be, as I have been  using the same basic goggle for 30 years!  The Cariboo model btw.

The last run for a pair of 30 year Smiths...the top and side foam disintegrated in the wind that day.  And a clear lens on a sunny day?  What was I thinking?  The answer to my own stupidity and inability to pay attention?  PHOTOCHROMIC lens!  It only takes one day of skiing to drive that lesson home.  

Then at the last minute I stashed the pair of med framed Julbo Revolution google in the go-bag as well.  And I really don't like medium framed goggles.  I prefer a wider field of visibility.  I like seeing the yahoos screaming in from behind me on the local pistes.   But the Julbo Revolution is pretty good on that issue as a medium frame.  These are the only medium frame I own btw.  And when these are gone I'll get another.  It is a good frame.

Putting on my boots in the parking lot.  It is snowing...2 minutes later the sun comes out...this happens 1/2 dozen times before I even get full kitted up and headed for the gondola.  Obvious what goggles I want to use -AGAIN-today...Zebra lens Julbo.

I'd always thought Smith was good on the anti fog...but then I "had" to buy a pair of Turbos this winter.  Because if I was working hard enough in the new snow I was fogging up on occasion.  More snow here and working harder yet.   And the Julbos haven't fogged to date...not once!  Not when coming in hot to the gondola and 7 sweaty passengers stuffed in the cabin with me...not on the boot
packs and sweating like a pig for the freshies.  Same boot pack I was stripping my shell to hike in but not needing to remove my Julbos! The hydrophobic and anti fog coatings really do work on these double lens goggles.  The coatings and anti fog effects work a lot better than my newest Smiths and Scott goggles as comparison examples.

Also worth noting how well the Julbo goggle frames are designed to work with a helmet.  I skied with a GOPro for the 2nd time the other day.  I was impressed at just how well the goggles fit my helmet.  It has nto always been that way.

Good example of the "extended outrigger" on the Julbo Orbiter's XL frame.  It makes for an exceptionally good fit with a helmet.

I can still see in some pretty flat light and bright sun...as the lens QUICKLY (changes in less than 30 seconds light to dark or dark to light)  when, or as, required.   With sun protection from Category 2 to 4.  There is still an environment where the light is flat and it is hard to see.  But that light condition happens in a smaller  percentage of time with the Zebra lens imo.

Add a sticky silicon strap and a double, full ventilated lens with several hydrophobic and anti fog treatment coatings and you have an exceptional piece of high tech gear here.  Gear that works...and you will never notice.  It is only the very best gear that you never notice.

Turns out I should have taken up that suggestion of a goggle review early on.   I don't find goggles nearly so boring now.  And now, seriously,  the Zebra goggles are one of my most prized ski  possessions.  Funny..I have two new pair of goggles.  Likely  two pair I'll never wear again unless of course I loose the Julbos.   I mean really. how much difference is there between goggles?  Turns out there is a LOT of difference if you bother to take a look

Kick'in the boot pack for some extra turns!  Hot and sweaty work and still able to keep my Julbo medium frame goggles on with no fogging.  Almost impossible with a XL frame and never actually experienced by me with a medium framed goggle.   Outstanding preformance by Julbo!  

 

Imagine what these would be like if you were using them for climbing...if you actually needed a goggle for climbing :)

 

 

Skimo in Chamonix by Dave Searle

Courtes North East Slope and more…

by Dave Searle

 

4/13/13

This last few weeks has been crazy. So many good ski days with good friends in cool places. This week I managed to get a cheeky lap of the Bec de Rosses NF in Verbier. It is an iconic face due to its looming presence over the Verbier Ski resort and its fame from the Freeride World Tour finals. I was surprised how unsuitable it is for skiing with weaving no-fall couloirs, hidden sharks (rocks under the snow) and massive exposure at the top, yet they still hold one of the most prestigious freeride events there and everyone goes oh so fast. Scary.
Today, however was something else. It feels like a while since I have had a big day out (except for my last big day off the midi). I’d seen some photo’s of the NE slope of the Courtes looking in primo conditions and knew that it could be my first real chance to ski it in good snow. I had a feeling that it was going to be busy and I had mentally prepared myself for a race…. With the growing popularity of skiing steep lines in Cham the key is speed from the word go, unless you want to be behind someone on a snowy face where you could easily get knocked of by a sluff from above. I knew this and in my mind I was ready to go as fast as I could to get to the top first. I set out with Davide de Masi, Liz Daley, Drew Tabke and Tom Grant but, for a number of reasons I ended up being the only one to ski that line. I was pretty lit for it and only the sight of two guys halfway up the face who had started from the hut (cheaters) gave me the slightest doubt as to whether it was the wrong thing to do. I charged up their boot pack and arrived at the col 10 mins after they had started skiing. They sent a sizable sluff of the face which nearly took out a couple of my friends who were starting up the bottom third. When they passed me I warned them, as politely as I could, that they should exercise caution as there were people below who they could hit with there sluff. They exploded at me and a minor argument fired up which I thought was pretty peculiar given the situation. I think they were just jacked up on skiing a big line like this in good snow and had little to no respect for others because of it. I got to the top and waited for the next guy behind me, Niki, to get to the col. I had been monitoring the other teams on the face and decided it was a good time to ski. Everyone below was in safe spots and I could weave a line around them and not drown them in my sluff. The snow was incredible and the line lived up to my expectations and more. Perfect skiing angle and face. Truly a skiers dream and something I have wanted to ski for a long time. 15 minutes (at 12.20) later I arrived at the flat glacier at the bottom to find Tom, Liz and Dave soaking up some rays.
I was keen for some more so we quickly decided to go up for a look at the Col Des Cristaux. We started up with caution knowing that there were 6 people above us who could drop in and sluff us. I had to break a different track up the first third to stay out of the way of the teams above, which was a tough few hundred meters of deep faceted snow. On the way up we watched some of the people dropping into the already crusty snow at the top and quickly made the decision to turn around when it stopped being good. We stopped a few hundred meters short of the col. The snow was once again incredible and we all arrived at the bottom within a few minutes of each other. Skiing back to the car my legs were about ready to give up on me.
Such a fun, long day which really challenged my fitness and provided 1500m of awesome skiing in what still is one of the best skiing areas of the world. Thanks all who were involved (except the rude, arrogant guys on the courtes, you nearly ruined my day).

The North East Slope of the Courtes

Looking down from the col waiting for Niki to top out.

Happy times back at the bottom, Still psyched on my La Sportiva Lo5′s.

Pornography?

You know when you see it....

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2012/may/30/everest-mountaineer-crowding-hobby-tragedy

Wings on ice!

Scottish Wings from Hans Hornberger on Vimeo.

Petzl's newest crampon......on a fruit boot

Robert Jasper - Ritter der Kokosnuss from Hans Hornberger on Vimeo.

Steck again

Congrads!

Freeride World Tour Champions 2013
Ski Men: Drew Tabke USA

"The battle for the overall title kept the fans on suspense till the very last rider out of the gate, Reine Barkered (SWE). The solid Swede and 2012 Champion took second with an outstanding run on the “Bec” but it was not enough to hold on to the title. Drew Tabke (USA), finishing an exceptional season with a sixth place at Verbier, was crowned the new Freeride World Tour Champion.
Tabke, a veteran in freeride competitions, won the season’s first competition in Revelstoke (CAN) and never let go of the top spot on the overall standings. Tabke’s style of riding could be described as a benchmark for the 2013 season; a very talented skier, capable of mixing freestyle tricks and big mountain skills on the same run, with solid, hard charging and still very fluid skiing."

Morrison?

All mountain skis? The Dynafit Huascaran.

 

 

 

I've been lucky enough to ski a dozen new skis in the last couple of weeks. All of them hand picked for possible inclusion in my personal "ultimate" quiver. No ski to date more of a surprise or more impressive as a true "all mountain ski", than... the new Dynafit Hauscaran. This is truly one amazing ski. Helped to have 2+' (yes 2+ feet) of new, untracked hero snow today to play on.  It is the Cascades after all so anything you can actually ski here that is 2' deep IS, almost unbelievable, hero snow.  And it was snowing hard enough to fill it in all day long.  Did I mention it was almost untracked from 9AM to 4PM because it kept snowing so hard?  Just one of THOSE days :)     But literally, from water ice, to cut up crud and a hard rain crust to some amazing POW;  the Hauscaran will rip fast GS turns or dance in the deep and steep stuff amid tight trees. Effortless in either situation, even for me!  An amazing ski.  And now I know why so many decide to wear a helmet.

 

Even more impressive to me knowing that I was doing all this while skiing a pair of light weight TLT 5 Performance boots and the new TLT Speed Superlite RACE Binding (185g).  The same boot the original designer said it was "stupid to ski them off the lifts".  They are that light.  But they do ski well ;)    Turns out, for no special reason, it was a Dynafit day.  I hadn't planned it that way.  This set up was to be my "lwt fat" ski for longer mid winter touring days.  The Hauscaran is all that and a bag of chips!  But I am rethinking what might be its other uses now and what it would do with a "real" ski boot bolted on.  Something like the Mercury or Vulcan.  may be even the One.  I know my Zero4 Carbons are way, way too much boot for this ski,  in a 177.  No need for that much power! 
 

These are short @ 177cm.  Taking advantage of the size/weight of the binding these (ski & binding)  weigh in at 8# 10oz. First time I have ever thought about buying a 2nd pair of the same ski...the next one in a 196cm. Two sizes, two different boots to drive them and two totally different uses for the ski.

 

The 178cm is 134-112-123 and 1780g weights in at .  The 196cm is 136-115-125 and weights in at 1940g. And yes, it was snowing :)  

In the next few weeks hopefully I'll get the time to write up all the skis I've been riding recently.  And my ideas behind the "ultimate quiver".    Along with some old and new boots and some of the accessories I've found really useful this winter for skiing in bounds and out.

But as I mentioned this ski was a total surprise.  I wasn't expecting much from such a big skis.  And what the Hauscaran delivered was pretty impressive in my limited experience.  Enough so that I wanted to do an early heads up on it tonight.   'Cuz it is snowing like crazy at the house right now and  likely a huge dump up on the hill for tomorrow!

Looking Back is Moving Forward

This is a guest blog by Ben Clark that I am happy to reproduce here.

 

Ben Clark on 24,688' Annapurna IV's North Ridge. Clark and Josh Butson were the first to lay ski tracks on this notoriously unstable route. Photo credit: Josh Butson

Carving one last wet, heavy mid afternoon turn into camp last May, I stopped, clicked out of my ski bindings and took a step back from 10 years of working alpine routes in the Himalayas. I began this 10-year career with an Everest summit on my second expedition and then attempted 13 more peaks in the Himalayas. My partners and I would dispatch routes in a bold style that, depending on whether you read the NY Times or the Adventure Journal, either brought us closer to death or closer to life in this humbling and crushing mountain range. I have a biased assessment on the position of life or death. I made it through physically unscathed and can reflect on experiences “in the field” with great partners, good memories and only “some” bad luck. But a lot of my friends, and some of my mentors did not fare as well: some died, some quit, others didn’t know when to stop. It is with that disclosure that I begin to wax sublime on some of my more memorable moments and a couple of caveats to explore if you think this is an interesting topic:
1. All I wanted to do was see the world. From the age of 20 until 32 that manifested into mountaineering and channeling all my efforts, extra money and time into the Himalayas.
2. This was not a hobby for me. It was an obsession that drove almost every decision I made during that time. It had to or I would not have survived what I was doing. No mountain was worth giving up the chance to explore another one for, so I had rules that I followed and when I committed to climbing a peak, made it happen despite a real job.
3. I love this sport whole-heartedly and it makes me hurt deep down in the pit of my stomach when I think about never doing it again. But not as bad as the thought of making a fatal mistake and hurting the people I love.
So here you go, a snapshot of what I have to contribute on life, death, risk… and why I personally chose to take time this year to consider what I was doing.
It was a chilly October and my right butt cheek was smeared against a frigid corner of bare granite, knee grinding into the opposing wall over a single toothy crampon point that held my weight while a heel sloped downward and my achilles fought for reprieve. In this precarious position 90′ above Josh, my partner on the wall and belayer, I had a left leg flagged out into space pressing away from the corner. It was desperate, my quivering right arm clutched an ice tool hooking an 1/8″ nub of bare rock while my left arm extended into a steel pick scratching a surface of thin decomposing snow and ice. In the still air at 17,000′ I yelled down to Josh to untie from the rope between us, “Josh, take me off!” He responded: “What???” I repeated what I knew he had to do: “Take me off, I will kill us both if I fall.” At that moment, severely exposed and wildly wrong about adequate protection (I had placed none) in the vertical corner I was inching upward in, “26 year old me” knew if I made one error I would die from a fatal 1200′ fall and violently rip Josh off as well, the two of us tumbling to death six days from a road that led to a town where people spoke only Mandarin, in a Chinese valley where no one knew we were. This was difficult terrain to be soloing but I knew I could execute the moves to safety because I never allowed my emotions free reign to seize and paralyze me in the moments where my life, death and the future was suspended in balance like this. I had nothing to lose, which helped. After all, I would leave nothing behind but about $700 in my bank account, no debt and an e-mail to my parents from a smoky bar in Rilong — a forgotten relic of a town in the far Eastern Himalaya that crumbled in an earthquake in 2008.
But I didn’t fall that day in 2006. And we still had an epic time getting off that mountain in the dark, in a major storm with two ropes and barely any protection for adequate anchors in the featureless compact granite. We took risk and we executed, death was an option, just never acceptable for us. But I want to phrase that carefully; I did not see this as cheating death, I was cheating odds, which is a different game and mindset. Even though I love nature and alpine environments, luck was the most prevalent explanation for living and also the most seductive element of adventure granting clouds and snow, sun and summits and fate or failure. When we got home to Telluride, Co. from that trip, all I wanted to do was have a conversation with my local mentors Charlie Fowler and Chris Boskoff about how awesome the trip had been, how confident I now felt putting up a new route in the Himalayas. They too were in China on an expedition, but they never came home, an avalanche swept over them a few weeks after the storm we had survived. They died doing what they loved.

Jon Miller belays Josh Butson as the team reached the site of a 5 night stay at 21,600' in a fierce Himalayan maelstrom on Baruntse. Photo credit: Ben Clark

In 2009, with three more aggressive years to hone my experience and an appetite for dangerous runouts, I was in the lead on a new route on the NE face of 23,390′ Baruntse in the Nepali Himalayas. Josh, Jon and I had committed to what we thought was a six-day alpine style push with the bare amount of equipment to climb the mountain by a new route, summit and then ski down the other side. This was my dream climb and the route I would say had the most influence on me than any other route I ever touched. I wanted to traverse it more than any ground on earth. But on that day as I led, ice climbing on a shiny spine of ice cleaving a wide open face capped by dangerous icefall on either side, I peered across valley to the 8000′ south face of 27,940′ Lhotse to watch the jet stream explode against it in a 3000′ tall mushroom cloud framed by an eerie alpenglow. I scarily uttered through chattering lips with 2000′ of air nipping at my heels: “Living people do not see things like this.” That night, on a ledge we chopped out and sat on for five days, I hunched over with my frost nipped feet warming on Jon’s stomach holding his hands so he could lean forward and puke into a Ziploc bag. Josh melted water in a stove almost hanging in space on the edge of the tent. We settled into an uneasy realization of what we all knew may be true — this could be it if the storm built steam and blew our tent to pieces. We had reached a point of too far, not yet no return, and would have nothing but time to worry about our fate as Jon’s stomach ailment deteriorated into a serious condition.

21,600' camp on the NE face of Baruntse, aka "the good times clubhouse." Josh Butson, Jon Miller and Ben Clark spent five nights here in a storm that everyone down below thought killed them.

But the storm built only so much steam and we lived. After 10 days on the mountain we rappelled the route rescuing Jon and in three months I was in Salt Lake City, Utah at the Outdoor Retailer show talking to an athlete manager of a company that supported me as an athlete. Recounting this tale and then discussing the fate of a new friend I had made that year who had reached out to me for advice before my trip — Micah Dash, we remembered Micah’s adventurous spark, which was extinguished with two others by an avalanche in Sichuan while we were on our climb. The last e-mail I got on day six of our approach to Baruntse was about Mt Edgar; “Did I know anything about it?” The news of why he hadn’t responded to my last e-mail hit me just one week after returning home from Baruntse and somehow the stock sentiment made me pale this time. He died doing what he loved.
In May 2012, with my wife at home pregnant with our son, I broke trail in 3′ of snow up a large valley on 21,506′ Chulu West with Jon, Chris and Gavin. We climbed three awkward pitches of rock the day before to get into position to be the first people to ever ski this valley and were hit by a major electrical storm that delayed our start and lay fresh snow over some dangerous terrain up high. At just after noon that day we stood looking at the last steep pitch leading to the summit ridge, the sun was intense, heat was picking up and large chunks of cornices had crashed into the slope and triggered a couple of sizeable avalanches. At that moment, my mind drifted to where it always had, where I knew that there was a good chance that if we set foot on the slope it would avalanche, but I wanted to go anyway because I have tempted fate many more times than just what is above and it has worked out. That is what it takes to make it to the top.
But this time it didn’t work out, we did not “succeed” and tag the summit. We talked about it. We talked ourselves out of it. Why? Because I don’t want to die a suffocating oppressive death after being ripped to pieces and then buried beneath a ton of snow. We would not settle for eight more ski turns and a stale eulogy. I did not want to be someone who “died doing what they loved” because if that were the case, then I would die hanging out with my family, sleeping, eating ice cream, pizza, editing a film, listening to a great song — just sayin’. Luckily, by committee, everyone elected that we should “just ski”… novel right? We didn’t actually have to increase our risk of death to pull that off and have fun. My God, why did it take me so long to learn that? Just skiing there was “extreme” enough and I was so engrossed, so used to laying it out there that I could not even see that was an accomplishment. It had become routine to pioneer, dangerously so.

With occasional views like this, why wouldn't you at least be curious to explore the Himalayan high Country? I snapped this photo right before skiing off the summit of 20,201' Thorung peak.

In 15 peak attempts in the Himalayas from Dhaulagiri in Western Nepal, the summit of Everest in Tibet and the far reaching slopes of The Savage Sister in eastern Sichuan, I had come close or had completely risked it all every time, every time except this one. I have broken an ankle, rescued a friend, run out of oxygen on summit day, been in an avalanche scenario and watched friends fall in crevasses, lose feeling on the right side of their body and cry, cry in the anguish of physical and emotional defeat. I have given up myself in the dark hours of a stormy night and understood the process that leads one to freezing to death alone and undisturbed by that choice. This time everything went right, including my attitude toward it all… so I quit, the moment I finally got “a head.”
Situations and tolerances vary for everyone and across latitudes and longitudes. Education is the best backup to support your judgment when taking risk. There will still be moments after you have gained that medical and snow science knowledge when you are in the mountains and your tolerance will negate what you have learned or the situation will fall outside what you were taught. If you proceed at that time you must knowingly commit and pursue your present goal with little more than faith that the consequences you are anticipating are truly manageable within the system of variables you are engaging with. That is adventure; it is in that space I loved so dearly, where I learned to be present on the line between here and now and tomorrow or never. Don’t forget though, that the system you are engaging is greater than the slopes around you and you may have to speak to someone’s mother, father, wife or brother about the mistake you don’t think you are about to make, even though most of the time you won’t. But if you do, if something goes wrong, if you nearly cost someone his or her life or are there when something out of your control goes completely wrong, I can only tell you that in my experience, it is a far lower low than any altitude high you may ever reach.
Every now and then, it makes sense to press pause. On our iPod, during a movie, in a heated debate… sometimes we just need a break to process all the excitement and the stimulation. There is little room for pause in real life or the types of scenarios above. There is no skill that will comfortably guarantee survival either, for that there is only luck. I think that is why they call it risk and nothing else. I think that is why I always encourage others to go if that curiosity drives you. Considering what I have survived, I would go forward in some instances where others may have stayed home because I felt it was necessary to explore boundaries. I don’t regret that I did, but I’m not continuing onward today. I have already gone and I have come back. And on this side of things, I am enjoying a state of pause, reflection and peace with my decisions.

"Of course it is worth it"- Ben Clark skiing powder on the North Slopes of 20,201' Thorung peak with 21,506' Chulu West behind him. Photo credit: Hari Mix

 

 

More here:

 

http://www.goduproductions.com/about/crew/