Joe G

I was finally able to get my hands on a pair of these pants in order to check out. I haven't put them to use yet, so these are just my first impressions.

LIKES:
-I LOVE the leg cuff protectors. My pants always end up getting shredded on the bottom, this looks like a great fix.

-Super lightweight Pro Shell Goretex, no explanation needed.

-The pant-to-jacket interface is sweet. Zips all the way around, then the powder skirt snaps below the belt line. One step better than Burton's interface.

DISLIKES:
-The zipper for the lower leg is placed on the inside of the foot, but rotated back towards the heel. The pull also hangs down from the bottom of the cuff, which puts it in prime position to get stepped on, especially if you wear these pants kinda baggy (like they're designed). Huge design flaw, if you ask me.

-The velcro pull on the waste doesn't have any sort of stretchiness to it so the waistband of the pant bunches up when you tighten it, which makes it impossible to zip the powder skirt of an Oakley jacket to the pant. Minor flaw, but annoying to me.

Overall they're a great pair of Goretex pants, but have a few annoying flaws. I'm undecided on whether or not these will be my pants of "choice" this season (haha see what I did there?).

I've been able to put two days on these bindings so far this season (one day on my Ride Highlife, the other on my Never Summer SL). First impressions of the binding is they are really lightweight. Not quite as light as last year's Deltas that I own, but definitely lighter than your average binding. The highback has a real nice stiffness, with a bit of lateral flex. Ankle strap is comfortable with the perfect amount of response. As always, the 3D ThinGrip toe strap is the best in the business.

The design flaws I've noticed so far aren't major, but slightly annoying. First off, the footbeds don't fit completely snug and have some side to side play. Somewhat annoying. The second flaw is the quick release adjustment on the ankle strap happens to release on its own every once in awhile. It hasn't happened while riding yet, I doubt that would be fun. I have secured the quick releases with duct tape so it shouldn't be a problem anymore.

One thing to note is I don't really agree with Backcountry's flex rating as "medium." I'd put it more along the lines of medium stiff to stiff. I would say they're comparable to the Rome Targas.

Overall, they're a great binding and probably my favorite to ride right now. Perfect for someone looking for a stiffer all-mountain binding.

One of the better base layers out there. I've had my Ninja Suit for two going on three season for a total of over 70 days or so and it has yet to lose a single seam. The only downside I have encountered is they fit some people kinda weird. The crotch/butt is a bit baggy on me so I like to wear another compression layer underneath.

Just for reference, I'm 6'1"/185lbs and wear a large Ninja Suit.

Great jacket, super warm, lightweight, and comfortable. The Techostretch panels are a neat addition that promotes movement better than most jackets.

One thing to note is Mountain Hardwear changed the sizing quite a bit between this jacket and the new jacket. I'm 6'1"/185lbs and a size large in the 2010 jacket was a perfect fit. This season's jacket is MUCH smaller. A lot shorter in the torso and the arms. I'd say the L from the 2010 season is similar to an XL for the 2011 season.

I have last year's RFL's, but this years are pretty much a carry over this year (from what I understand).

I only put 6 or 7 days on these boots late last season, but put them through enough to give a pretty good review. The first thing you'll notice about these boots is how ridiculously LIGHT they are. Super, crazy light. Not many other boots that can compare in that aspect. The second thing you'll notice is how stiff they are. If you throw out the Salomon Malamute, they're probably one of the stiffest boots on the market right out of the box. But they're not uncomfortably stiff, they do allow enough movement to not feel like you're in a hard boot. They've softened up a bit through the few days I've ridden them. Ride's Intuition liner is, as always, super comfortable and conforms to your foot after a day or two of riding. I've always had an issue with heel hold in my boots as I've got a pretty skinny heel with a fat forefoot, but these boots lock your heel in 100%, no matter the shape. The key is the Internal Deep Draw, which essentially is an interface looped around your heel that ties into the lacing system. When you tighten the laces, it pulls the loop tight around your heel to completely lock it in. This is probably my favorite feature of the boot and definitely pushes it to the 5 star mark (which is pretty rare from me).

One thing to note is if you're looking at this boot and the Ride Insanos, I'd have to say that this boot has a wider forefoot than the Insanos. I originally bought the Insanos last year, but had to return them because my foot was too wide for the narrower forefoot of the boot. So if you've got a moderately wide foot, I'd definitely recommend the RFLs over the Insanos.

At this point I'm having a hard time finding a downside to these boots. They're stiff, responsive, supportive, and super comfortable. I spent an entire day hiking the sidecountry at Stevens Pass in these boots and my feet never got sore or tired.

Bottom line is, these boots live up to their name (RFL = really freakin' light).

I wore this jacket all of last season (2010-2011) and used it everywhere from the resort park to big backcountry lines. The fit is baggy, but not "steezy" like some of those kids like to wear their outerwear. I guess I'd call it 'technical baggy,' with enough room to move around in an layer under. The Goretex is super bomber, I took a ton of trees to the jacket, and not a single tear or anything. The ALS liner really keeps your body heat in when it's cold too, which I tested at sub-zero temps in Colorado last winter. The standing collar (separate from the hood) is nice too, keeping the wind away from your neck with your hood down. The zip-to-pants feature is definitely helpful too while in deep pow.

Now for the downsides. First off, I felt that the sleeves were way too short. I'm 6'-1" and moderately long arms and the large just didn't have enough length. Whenever I would be pushing myself out of the snow, the sleeves would pull back and let snow in. Also, the velcro on the sleeves does not work once it gets snow in them. At all. Not a good feature when out in the backcountry if you ask me. So maybe if the jacket had slightly longer sleeves, wrist gaitors, and better velcro, I'd probably still be using it for the upcoming season.

Nobody can beat Bern in helmet fitment in my opinion. The Watts fits lower and more snug than any other helmet I've tried on. The carbon fiber variant of the Watts shaves a few ounces off the regular Watts (I own both) and looks pretty darn cool to boot. Is it a huge difference? It's definitely noticeable while wearing, but is it worth twice as much as the regular Watts? I'm not too sure, you'll have to be the judge yourself (thankfully I was able to get one on the cheap).

After having burned through four pairs of Dakine Cobras through a bit short of two seasons, I figured it was time to step up my glove selection. The fit of the glove is nice and slim and very comfortable. Small enough to give you hand good dexterity and fits well under your jacket. Very lightweight as well.

There are a few downsides in my book though. The leather does not come with waterproofing pre-applied. I learned this the hard way and my hands were pretty wet by the end of the day. Make sure you apply the waterproofing that comes with the gloves BEFORE you head out into the snow. Also, the pattern on the palm and fingers can leave streaks on your goggles, so be careful when you've got your hands near your face. Lastly, I've had issues with the fleece liner pulling out of the fingers of the glove when pulling the glove off. Not the easiest to get back in sometimes too.

I bought this pack as my new side & backcountry pack for this upcoming season. Last season I used an older Heli Pro and Dakine Blade, but wasn't extremely happy with either. The Heli Pro wasn't comfortable enough with minimal padding on the straps and back, while the Blade was comfortable, but too big and heavy for sidecountry hiking. This pack was the perfect combination of both packs. Super comfortable straps and back panel, perfect size, and all the amenities you'd want in a day pack. Easy access to your avy gear too. Also a very versatile pack for everyday use.

One gripe I have with the pack though is there isn't a small pocket to organize tools. Only the main compartment, shovel/avy pocket, and goggle pocket. I'd like one smaller pocket somewhere for my multi tool. But it is what it is and that's why this pack won't get 5 stars from me.

If you're thinking about going with the Heli Pro instead of the Heli Pro DLX, do yourself a favor and spend the extra $20 for the DLX. The DLX has upgraded fabric, way better straps, padded back panel, insulated hydration sleeve, and a few other features that really make it worth the extra $20.

Over the past two seasons, I've owned and destroyed three pairs of Dakine Cobras. The first two (2010 models) blew out finger seams in roughly in 15-20 days. Big props to Dakine's warranty department for taking care of me with these issues though. After I destroyed my last pair, I received this year's model as a replacement. This year, instead of dealing with a quality issue, the problem is the design (which eventually lead to a gear failure). The previous year's Cobras used a velcro hook and loop closure, which I never had a problem with. This year the closure has been changed to a zipper (contrary to Dogfunk's specs seen on the right hand of this page). The problem with this zippered closure is how tight the wrist section is of the glove. I don't have extremely large wrists/hands, but even with a size large the wrist section of the glove is way too tight and makes it difficult to pull the zipper closed. After about 10 days of wrestling with the zipper to get it closed, the metal fatigued enough for the zipper pull to break off on one of the gloves. The pull on the other glove is noticeably bent from struggling with it as well. So now after going through three seperate pairs of Cobras in two seasons (none of which made it more than 20 days) I've officially given up on them, despite being one of the more comfortable gloves I've used.

I started last season without this stick in my quiver. After a few days alternating between my Never Summer SL and Ride Slackcountry, I decided I needed something to bridge the gap between the two boards. Little did I know, this bridge would end up being my favorite go-to board in my entire quiver. I used this thing everywhere: deep pow, cliffs, slackcountry hiking, variable days, groomers, ice, and everything in between. EVERYTHING. The board is so smooth, so damp (without killing feel), and just plain FAST. Despite only having a little bit of rocker in the nose, it stays up in the pow just as good as my Ride Slackcountry. The flat tail gives a lot better landing feel when dropping cliffs or airing lips too, which was one of the drawbacks from the Slackcountry. This board even handled some great park laps at Breck this season too. Yes, it's that versatile. Easily the best board I've ever ridden and will continue to ride. Well done, Ride.

While Ride advertises this as strict pow board, don't be fooled. The HighRize rocker gives unbelievable float in the deep stuff, but this thing can really rail a turn on groomers. I own the 2009 model, but it doesn't differ too much from the 2010 model, or even the 2011 model, other than HempBrain topsheet and a few other small items. First off, this thing was made to absolutely slay the deep stuff. Float is effortless and turn initiation in pow is so easy. Once you hit the groomer or packed run out, you'll still be able to lay down an edge with confidence, unlike some super rockered pow boards. Another great thing this has over most pow boards is the ease of riding switch. The board has a twin shape and rocker profile that will allow you to easily ride switch without getting kinda funky like a tapered pow board or something with directional rocker. My one knock on this board is how it feels like driving a semi truck towards the end of the day, but that's partially my fault for buying the 164, where I could have gotten away with the 161 easily (I'm 6'1, 185lbs). I'd recommend sizing down a bit from your traditional size pow board. Overall, it's a wonderful, versatile pow board.