Paul Forward 
Climbing skins often receive less attention than skis, boots, & bindings, but the skins you stick to your skis can make or break your days in the backcountry. So in this guide, we go through the qualities to look for in a pair of skins, then directly compare 13 different skins from 5 different brands.
Check out Paul Forward’s initial impressions of the new Majesty Havoc.
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The category of lightweight (~300 g) touring bindings has been expanding & improving over the last few years, and the Fritschi Xenic 10 is the most recent addition. Check out our full review to see how it compares to the competition.
This year we spent time in the Dynafit Hoji Free, the stiffest boot in the Hoji series, and think its blend of uphill mobility and downhill power may be unrivaled. But there’s more to it than that — check out our Full Review & Deep Dive comparisons.
We directly compare several 130-flex alpine touring boots, including the Atomic Hawx Ultra XTD 130, Atomic Hawx Prime XTD 130, Tecnica Zero G Tour Pro, Dynafit Hoji Free, Scarpa Maestrale XT, Lange XT3 130, K2 Mindbender 130, Fischer Ranger Free 130, Dalbello Lupo Factory, & Dalbello Lupo Pro HD.
Blister’s Flash Reviews and Deep Dives are produced for Blister members.
To get our comprehensive deep dives and our initial, unfiltered reports on new gear without waiting for our full reviews, become a Blister Member and receive many other services, deals, and discounts.
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Reviewer Paul Forward has been spending some time on Shane McConkey’s revolutionary idea, the Volant Spatula. Check out his initial thoughts.
Blister’s Flash Reviews and Deep Dives are produced for Blister members.
To get our comprehensive deep dives and our initial, unfiltered reports on new gear without waiting for our full reviews, become a Blister Member and receive many other services, deals, and discounts.
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Blister reviewer Paul Forward has used a *lot* of different avalanche airbag systems, and the electric Alpride / Scott E1 system is his current favorite. Check out our review of the Scott Patrol E1 30 pack for his take on both the backpack itself and the E1 airbag system.
We’ve had a few reviewers putting a lot of time on DPS’s recently revised Wailer A106 C2, and you can now check out our full review for our take on the ski and how it compares to the previous Wailer A106.
We’ve been getting time in Alaska on the super-fat Armada ARG II, and you can now check out our review.
Reviewer Paul Forward has spent this season touring in the overhauled Atomic Backland Carbon, and you can now check out his full review of this lightweight AT boot.
Summer in the Northern Hemisphere officially ends tomorrow, and just in case that’s got you down, we thought we’d get you dreaming of skiing deep pow on super-fat skis. So check out our full review of the 140mm-wide Liberty Genome.
Mammut recently updated their Barryvox avalanche beacons, and after using it for over a year, we think the new Barryvox S is an excellent option for both professional and recreational users alike. Check out our review.
Our reviewer is calling the Lange RX 130 LV the best alpine boot he’s ever used when it comes to downhill performance. Check out our full review to find out why.
This year Fischer released a brand-new AT boot, and we’ve now updated our full review after getting more time and reviewers in the Ranger Free 130.
We compare the Genome to other big pow skis, including the Moment Comi, Volkl Bash 135 / Three, Volkl Kuro, DPS Spoon, DPS Lotus 138, and DPS Alchemist Lotus 124.
Blister’s Flash Reviews and Deep Dives are produced for Blister members.
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We gave Scarpa’s Alien RS a “Best Of” award in our 18/19 Winter Buyer’s Guide, saying its performance almost created a new class of boot. Now you can check out our full review for more info on how it compares to several other lightweight touring boots.
The previous Lange XT 130 Freetour was one of the best tech-binding-compatible AT ski boots we’ve used in terms of downhill performance, and Lange updated it this year. So how similar or different is the new Lange XT Free 130?
The Black Diamond Helio 116 has become one of our all-time favorite powder touring skis. Check out our review to find out why.
We compare several powder-oriented touring skis, including the Moment Wildcat Tour (aka Bibby Tour), Head Kore 117, Volkl BMT 122, DPS Tour1 Lotus 124, Black Diamond Helio 116 Carbon, and more…
Blister’s Flash Reviews and Deep Dives are produced for Blister members.
To get our comprehensive deep dives and our initial, unfiltered reports on new gear without waiting for our full reviews, become a Blister Member and receive many other services, deals, and discounts.
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After skiing it in Japan and Alaska, you can now check out our full review of Faction’s powder touring ski, the Prime 4.0.