Category: Racing
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The validity of health
Sometimes it all makes sense. Sudden news this morning: Niels Albert is retiring, at the age of 28. Why would you care? Albert has been, for the past 3 or 4 years, the second best cyclocross racer on earth. Cross is rather like speed skating, in that it’s popularity (and by extension $$) in one…
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Paradox Unaweep by the numbers
Disclaimer: as an ambassador for Seek Outside I got this pack for free. A few months ago I was chatting with Seek Outside/Paradox Pack’s Kevin Timm about, among other things, becoming an ambassador and working with them on product development. Kevin mentioned that they were thinking about making a pack which would integrate the Paradox…
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The penultimate pack
Just like with beer or coffee, every one is the penultimate. I wanted to do a couple things with this one. First, experiment with 5.3 oz/yard hybrid cuben fiber. Second, fix the mistakes/things I didn’t like about this pack. To whit; a too-short torso length (you’d think I would know better), less than ideal shoulder…
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The bearable weight of backpack features
A backpack should be a sturdy bag to hold your stuff, with a suitable suspension system, and just enough straps and/or exterior accoutrements to not impede efficiency. Efficiency in the backcountry has more to do with knowledge and experience than equipment, which makes the question simple: how little exterior stuff on your pack can you…
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La Sals ski traverse
This doesn’t get done very often, and even less often in a day, with what looks like as close to ideal conditions as that very windy mountain range ever gets. Another account here.
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RIT die for synthetic garments
I have issues with hats. This is mostly a performance thing. While the scientific robustness of the old claim that you loose an outsize amount of heat through your head is coming into question, the fact that temperature regulation via hats is fast and easy remains unassailable. As readers will know, I have a brain…
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’13-’14 ski stuff review
Big Mountain summit @ 3pm on a Saturday, with -40 windchill. It’s been a great winter for snow sports. In addition to my fatbike, I’ve been using two separate ski rigs since things got going in earnest after Christmas. All the modes of transit have been used a lot, often competing for attention, and almost…
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The Black Diamond Alpine Start Hoody
Surely, the windshirt quest will never stop. Finding an ideal active layer for days which are neither warm nor arctic, neither calm nor storming fiercely, involves delicate balancing of contradictory attributes. The shirt must be significantly wind resistant, but quite breathable. It must be light, but tough, especially given that a windshirt will be used…
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Functional remoteness
Most analyses of remoteness in the lower 48 are misleading. They ignore on the ground factors, though for the understandable reason of accessible numbers to crunch. There is the famous claim that the place furthest from any road in the lower 48 is a bit east of the Thorofare valley in Yellowstone. However, 19/20s of…
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Anorak conversions for blown main zippers
It is to be expected that a heavily used jacket with a #3 main zip, like the 2.1 year old Rab Xenon pictured here, will have zipper failure within the useful life of the garment. While manufacturers continue to use these zips on weekly-use pieces, for reasons of weight, cost, and pliability, repairs will be…
Bedrock & Paradox 
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