BLISTER Gear Reviews, Podcasts, & Articles
Nnormal Kjerag
Positioned as Nnormal’s max-performance model, the Kjerag (pronounced: sche-rak) is already an early front-runner for standout shoe of the year. It offers an implausible amount of energy return and cushioning for how light it is, often feeling like it disappears on foot in the best way possible. After nearly 200 miles of testing, the Kjerag has exceeded the lofty expectations we set for it after our initial impressions. Check out our full review to learn more.
Flash Review — Esker Rowl
We’ve started spending time on the Esker Rowl, and its wild Orion suspension is an early standout. Check out our Flash Review for our initial impressions.
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Flash Review: 23/24 Armada Declivity 102 Ti
We’ve now spent a few days skiing (and crashing…) on Armada’s metal-laminate Declivity 102 Ti — check out our initial impressions.
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2023-2024 Line Blade Optic 114
We’ve been skiing the widest, burliest ski in the Blade Optic family for quite some time now, and it’s proven to be a bit of an outlier within its series. Check out our Full Review & Deep Dive comparisons to see why.
Deep Dive: Line Blade Optic 114
We compare the Line Blade Optic 114 to the Moment Wildcat, Black Crows Anima, DPS Foundation Koala 118, Dynastar M-Free 118, Rossignol Blackops 118, J Skis Friend, Volkl Revolt 121, Salomon QST Blank, 4FRNT Renegade, 4FRNT Inthayne, Atomic Bent Chetler 120, Line Vision 118, Season Forma, Line Outline, K2 Reckoner 112, Prior Northwest 116, Icelantic Nomad 115, Nordica Enforcer 115 Free, Head Kore 117, and Elan Ripstick 116.
Blister’s Flash Reviews and Deep Dives are accessible to those who purchase one of our paid subscriptions
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Reviewing the News w/ Cody Townsend (February 2023) (Ep.250)
Cody & Jonathan discuss the state of Warren Miller; Mikaela Shiffrin & Lebron James; Eddie Bauer dropping its team of professional athletes; the Most Canadian News; Mtn Town Advice; & more.
Trinity Gravity
Trinity MTB has been developing one of the wildest, most interesting new bikes in recent memory and now the result of their efforts is available to pre-order. Check out our First Look with all the info on the Trinity Gravity — and there’s a *lot* going on here.
Shop Talk: Skiing with Kids w/ Spokane Alpine Haus (Ep.236)
For this edition of Shop Talk, we are back with the owners of Spokane Alpine Haus to talk kids and skiing, growing the next generation of skiers and snowboarders, and the gear that helps make it possible.
Win the New Rossignol Sender Free 110
The winner of this week’s Gear Giveaway will get a pair of Rossignol’s new and long-awaited Sender Free 110!
Flash Review: 23/24 Fischer RC4 105 MV BOA & Buckle
We’ve been A/B testing Fischer’s 23/24 RC4 105 MV BOA against the buckled version. Check out our initial impressions.
Blister’s Flash Reviews and Deep Dives are accessible to those who purchase one of our paid subscriptions
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2023-2024 Fischer RC4 105 MV W BOA & Buckle
For 23/24, Fischer redesigned their entire RC4 lineup, which includes three new lasts, and arguably the biggest overhaul was to their MV series. Check out our First Look for all the details about the new RC4 collection, the women-specific RC4 105 MV BOA, and how it compares to the traditional buckled version.
Magnus Manson is Back (Ep.159)
Magnus Manson had to put his burgeoning World Cup DH career on hold while he battled cancer, and now he’s gearing back up for the upcoming season. So we sat down with Magnus to talk about his treatment & recovery; staying motivated; filming and racing throughout his treatment; and a whole lot more.
Canyon Spectral 125
The Canyon Spectral 125 is about as aggressive as ~120mm-travel Trail bikes get, and the results are pretty interesting. Check out our full review for the whole story, including comparisons to six other bikes in this rapidly growing class.
Artist Geoff McFetridge on ‘Return to Stoner Forest,’ Bigfoot, Collabs, & More (Ep.21)
The artist & designer, Geoff McFetridge came to CB to pay us a visit, and in this conversation, he & Jonathan discuss his current show in LA, Return to Stoner Forest; culture & commerce; Geoff’s approach to collaborations; the new film, ‘Geoff McFetridge: Drawing a Life,’ & more.
Flash Review: 23/24 Line Bacon 115
For the 2023-2024 season, Line has opted to replace the previous Outline with the brand-new Bacon 115 — check out our initial impressions.
Blister’s Flash Reviews and Deep Dives are accessible to those who purchase one of our paid subscriptions
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BLISTER Reviews, Podcasts, & Articles:
Boone Mountain Sports
Boone Mountain Sports is a family-owned and operated ski and snowboard shop in Evergreen, Colorado, and they offer a whole lot more than just amazing gear, including an unforgettable customer experience, word-class bootfitting and ski services, a brewery and coffee shop, and a place to connect with community and appreciate the outdoors.
2024 Fox Float
Fox says their new Float rear shock is meant to bring a lot of the performance of the Float X to a smaller, lighter package, but have they succeeded, and what are the tradeoffs? We’ve been logging a lot of time on the two back-to-back, and we’ve got some answers.
Stuff We Like: August 2023
For August’s edition of Stuff We Like, we’ve got everything from lightweight rain jackets to duffels and daypacks, trail running shoes, coolers, bike pumps, & more. Check it out to see all the latest stuff our reviewers have been digging.
Zack Giffin on Skiing, Tiny Houses, & Big Solutions (Ep.275)
Skier Zack Giffin (host of the TV series, Tiny House Nation & co-host of the podcast, Tiny House Tales) makes a compelling case for how smaller living spaces can be a significant part of the solution to affordable housing; homelessness; climate issues, energy consumption, and creating more real, actual, healthy communities.
A Guide to Skiing in New Zealand with Outside Sports (Ep.260)
Have you ever dreamt about skiing in New Zealand? We talk with local Kiwi experts from our Blister Recommended Shop, Outside Sports, to give us the rundown on what skiing in this Southern Hemisphere destination entails and how to make the most of it.
2023 GT Sensor & Sensor ST
The GT Sensor ST is their latest take on a short-travel bike that’s meant to be efficient and sprightly on the way up, while still being a lot of fun on the way back down. And having spent much of this spring and summer on one, we’re ready to weigh in.
Chromag’s Full Suspension Bike Development (Ep.184)
Chromag is unquestionably *the* first brand that a lot of people think of when it comes to hardcore hardtails, which makes their recent foray into full-suspension bikes especially interesting. And as we uncover in this conversation with Chromag engineer Joe Swann, the path to launching the Darco and Lowdown has been a long and winding — and fascinating — one.
Chef Yia Vang on Hmong Cuisine & Culture; ‘Run & Gun’ Restauranteering; & Spreading Appreciation (Ep.34)
Yia Vang is a multi-nominated James Beard Award chef, the founder & head chef of Union Hmong Kitchen; he competed on the Netflix show, “Iron Chef: Quest for an Iron Legend”; hosts the show, ”Feral” on the Outdoors Channel; hosts another show, “Stoked” on the Food Network; and hosts the excellent podcast, “Hmonglish” which focuses on the Hmong people, their culture, and representation.
Park City Boot Room
When it comes to specialty bootfitting, particularly for those who ask a lot of their boots, spend countless days on skis, or really need to address some complex issues in order to enhance their time out on the hill, there are few places that have the breadth of experience and skills offered by Matt Schiller at Park City Boot Room.
Wolf Tooth Resolve Dropper Post and ReMote Pro Lever
There are a ton of good dropper posts on the market these days, but with their first effort at making a dropper, Wolftooth has managed to make an excellent premium option with some unique features.
Identity, Dreams, & Dislocations
In our latest Open Mic piece, Eric Booton shares a story that many of us probably need to hear.
Jason Hardrath & The Rocky Mountain Grand Slam (Ep.180)
The Rocky Mountain Grand Slam involves summiting 122 peaks and 318,000 feet of elevation gain, and Jason Hardrath recently set a new FKT by completing it in under 40 days. So we caught up with Jason to break down his most recent accomplishment, and to discuss the blurring of the lines between running, scrambling, and soloing.