Day 1-Outdoor Retailer W07

Pretty productive day down here in SLC.

Started off at the Ortovox booth with Marcus Petersen and sounds like there is still hope for the S1 avalanche transceiver to be available this season. They have some nice backpacks, and some different shovel designs. One interesting item was a beacon receiver built into the tip of a probe. The closer you get, the louder the beep! Maybe good for SAR! Next up was Mammut, who also has some packs with features that I like and the Raptor Shovel was a super tech, ‘plastic’ shovel w/ a re-enforced edge. I think I will go back a look at some of their clothing today.

The Movement skis were very pretty, and they have quite a comprehensive line. Hip graphics too! These skis are very sweet. They also had some very interesting test results comparing different types of skins…mohair, synthetic, combi. Remind me later about it. Atomic also stepped it up graphic-wise and I liked the bold logos. The Janak Bro looked like a good Jackson ski. I’ve been a fan of Atomic skis in the past…more bounce for the ounce! Hooked up with Bret Fishman from La Sportiva for quick view of some trail runners for this summer. The Dakine line was pretty….Dakine. Saw Jackson’s Jeff Burke who gave me a copy of the ‘Hidden Couloir’ issue (ha,ha)…nice pedal turns Reeders! Make ya ……..!!!! In between appointments I cruised by Arcteryx to see some packs…nice. Mountain Hardwear also had some that might make it onto the wall. Stared at and flexed the BD skis for a good bit. Lots to say about these skis. High-points are…cool up-turned tips, beefy and lightweight options, and the fattys.

I did some freelancing…for TetonAT. Handing out info sheets and just letting people know about the website. His royal blogness, Lou Dawson, appeared in the vicinity of Dynafit….surprise, surprise. Thanks for all the info and I know we will talk more. Everyone is so nice in the blogeshpere. I didn’t see Chris Figenshau here, but I sure saw his photos…some of Randosteve too! A couple from New Zealand at Mountain Hardwear, and representing Jackson at Dynafit. Nice! Had a great talk with the whole Dynafit crew…Beni, Reiner, and Tim. More on the product line at tomorrow’s session. Quickly chatted with Mark Twight and I was surprised he didn’t know about TetonAT.
The day wrapped up with a yummy dinner with one of our ski accounts. Thanks Peter and Chad! Skinny Skis is a Fisher Nordic Race Center. Which means we are able to offer the best service possible to our customers in relation to Fisher Skis. I was cashed, by the time I got to bed (around midnight) and not ready to wake up at 6am today. C’est la vie!