The High Route Gear Shed Podcast

In this episode of our Gear Shed podcast, Gavin Hess (our Gear Editor) interviews the founder of Glacier Black—Shawn Breaux. Glacier Black , at least on paper, specializes in canyoneering gear. In the past few years, as Gavin has explored technical rope options for ski mountaineering, his attention was drawn to Glacier Black and some of their rope options. This is very much a nerding-out episode....

In this episode, we’ve got Barry Wicks as our host for part two in our series on developing a free-rider ski for resort uphilling. (Talk about niche). To close the quest out, he speaks with Jonno Jacobs the founder of Ronin skis based in Chamonix, France.  At Ronin, Jacobs builds made-to-order custom planks. As you’ll hear in the podcast, what Jacobs offers is more like a surfboard shaper, inspire...

In this episode, with Gavin away guiding in Japan, we’ve got Barry Wicks as our host. Wicks is a die-hard ski tourer who brings supremely positive energy into the hills. He’s also a recovering bike racer who claims he’s sworn off Lycra. Despite his baggy clothes, he’s still fast. And he still knows gear.  Anyhow, Wicks has a playful nature on skis. And we’ve been bantering back and forth for a few...

We are back on the Gear Shed Podcast, going deep into a reader’s question. (Thanks, Slim, for sending your questions in.)  Just deciding what boot works best for you can be a can of worms. Add in skis, and the pairing dance becomes a more complicated yet finely choreographed affair. Slim’s questions begin with a query about boot pairings and ski widths and extend into the variable of ski length. A...

THR's Gear Shed podcast opens the season with a roundtable discussion about lighter-weight touring boots. The roundtable includes Adam Fabrikant, Slator Aplin, and Gear Editor Gavin Hess. In discussing this boot class, we'll set somewhat arbitrary limits and call the gram-counting confines as limited between 1000g-1250g. These boots are marginally beefier than a pure skimo race boot and a bit lean...

Jack Beighle is our guest on Episode 5 of The Gear Shed Podcast. For those who don't know Jack, here's some background. He's a CU Boulder grad, bumped to Jackson for some post-college living focused around mountains and skiing. He then left Jackson and bumped black to Boulder, where he began working for Backcountry Access. Currently, Jack is the Brand and Community Manager at Ombraz Glasses.  More...

Come one and come all for the center ring of what is definitely not a circus. In this episode, we get a front-row seat for a chat between two friends who have a problem—a gear problem. But it’s the good kind of problem where two individuals develop a way of conversing about what they like and don’t like regarding gear. In other words, our Gear Editor, Gavin Hess, and go-to tester/reviewer, Slator...

We get a few clues about the ski objective in episode 3 of the podcast. We know Adam Fabrikant and Billy Haas will head to South America. We know it’s going to be windy at times. And we know a specific post-expedition empanada stand where the two plan to offset their expected calorie deficit.  The Southern Hemi’s Spring Equinox fell late last month. And by the time this podcast drops, the packing...

The origin story of many outdoor clothing and gear companies is somewhat…part myth. There's an emphasis on deriving and marketing that myth, and then, sometimes, comes the well designed and well made gear. Some companies nail the myth and not the products. Les Houches and Salt Lake City based Blue Ice nails the products and happens to have a compelling backstory. Begun in 2008 by Giovanni Rossi in...

The podcast title, "The Skinny on Ski Mountaineering Ropes," is part play on words and a big part reality for many moving through the mountains in a light and fast manner. You'll hear this on the podcast and see it here; the ropes mentioned require a clear understanding of these skinny ropes' limitations and proper applications. The good folks breaking down these special-use-ropes are part of the...