BLISTER Gear Reviews, Podcasts, & Articles
Ibis Exie
The Ibis Exie isn’t new, but the overseas-made version is, and it’s *much* more affordable than the US-made original that Ibis launched a couple of years back. Check out our First Look for the details.
Jeff Stern on the 2022 UltraRunners of the Year Awards, the Art of Profile Writing, & Covering the Sport as a Pro (Ep.156)
We recently talked to Salomon Athlete, Jeff Stern, about racing as an elite while simultaneously covering the trail running landscape in his role as the assistant editor of Ultra Running Magazine, a still independently owned publication that has served as “the voice of the sport” since 1981.
Flash Review: 22/23 Armada ARV 116 JJ UL
Reviewer Kara Williard is currently in Japan, and the lightweight and playful ARV 116 JJ UL is the ski she decided to bring with her. Check out her Flash Review to see her thoughts on it so far.
Blister’s Flash Reviews and Deep Dives are accessible to those who purchase one of our paid subscriptions
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Year of the BOA? Atomic’s Matt Manser on New Ski Boots, Liners, & BOA Systems (Ep.232)
Matt Manser is back to go deep on the new 23/24 Atomic Hawx Ultra XTD (and XTD BOA GW); the new Hawx Ultra XTD Mimic Professional liner; the all-new Atomic Backland XTD; and why we’re seeing the proliferation of the BOA system on ski boots.
2023-2024 Atomic Hawx Ultra XTD 130 BOA GW
Today, Atomic announced an overhauled Hawx Ultra XTD lineup of boots. Within this new lineup is a freeride touring boot that uses a BOA closure system in the place of the two lower shell buckles. Check out our First Look for details on the new Hawx XTD lineup and on the new Hawx Ultra XTD 130 BOA GW in particular.
2023-2024 Atomic Backland XTD 120
Atomic has launched a new collection of touring boots under their Backland umbrella — check out our First Look for all the info about the new Backland XTD boots.
Win Any WNDR Alpine Ski or Snowboard
The winner of this week’s Gear Giveaway will get to pick any ski or board from WNDR Alpine’s lineup!
Pivot Factory Racing’s Newest Member, Jakob Jewett (Ep.153)
Jakob Jewett’s World Cup DH career is off to a great start, so it’s wild to imagine that he was once on track to be a professional skier instead. We caught up with Jakob to hear all about his 2022 season, his approach to racing, his ongoing love of skiing, and a whole lot more.
Magura MT7 HC3 Brakes
There are a lot of good brakes on the market these days — way more than just a few years ago — and Magura’s MT7 HC3 brakes do a lot of things differently from most of their competitors. So how do they stack up in the increasingly crowded market, and who are they going to work best for?
Deep Dive: Folsom Cash 106
We compare the Cash 106 to the Folsom Primary 104, Salomon QST 106, Black Crows Atris, Line Blade Optic 104, Black Crows Corvus, Elan Ripstick 106, DPS Pagoda 106 C2, RMU Apostle 106, DPS Koala 103, Moment Deathwish 104, Rossignol Sender 104 Ti, Blizzard Rustler 10, 4FRNT Devastator, Whitedot Altum 104, 4FRNT MSP 107, Sego Big Horn 106, Nordica Enforcer 104 Free, Shaggy’s Ahmeek 105, J Skis Hotshot, Armada ARW 106 UL, & ZAG Slap 104.
Blister’s Flash Reviews and Deep Dives are accessible to those who purchase one of our paid subscriptions
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2022-2023 Folsom Cash 106
We’ve had two reviewers spending time on multiple versions of Folsom’s Cash 106 shape — check out their thoughts in our Full Review and Deep Dive comparisons.
Saucony Xodus Ultra
The Xodus Ultra debuts as a marked improvement on previous iterations of Saucony’s Xodus line. The shoe drops some much-needed weight without undermining its intended use as a maximal option for a wide variety of trail types and conditions. While it’s not without its flaws, we still think it shapes up as a great choice for beginner trail runners still getting their footing, or for folks looking to add a capable everyday trainer to their shoe quiver. Check out our full review for the whole story.
Flash Review: 23/24 Blizzard Rustler 11
Blizzard recently announced that they’re updating their longstanding Rustler series, and we just got our first day on the new Rustler 11. Check out our initial impressions.
Blister’s Flash Reviews and Deep Dives are accessible to those who purchase one of our paid subscriptions
To get our comprehensive Deep Dives and our initial, unfiltered reports on new gear, become a member and receive many other services, deals, and discounts.
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2023 Manitou Dorado
There aren’t many inverted forks left on the market, so how does one of the most famous holdouts — the Manitou Dorado — stack up against its more conventional competitors? We’ve spent a lot of time on both the Expert and Pro versions, and are ready to weigh in.
Abby Hall on Desert Chronicles, UFO Encounters, & Going All In (Ep.155)
We talked to adidas TERREX pro, Abby Hall, about how some of the major life changes she’s made since the last time she appeared on the show back in 2020 have helped fuel her recent success on the international racing scene; the role creativity plays in her life; UFO encounters; and much more.
BLISTER Reviews, Podcasts, & Articles:
Gear of the Year (So Far) (Ep.178)
We’ve been testing a huge range of bikes and gear this summer, so we sat down to chat about some of the things that have impressed us most so far, including bikes across the travel spectrum, SRAM’s new GX Transmission, and a whole lot more.
Assessing Greatness: The Art & Craft of Tennis, Great Sports Writing, & Top 5 Lists (Ep.31)
Today’s conversation explores the broader question of how to assess greatness? To get there, Jonathan and Troy Russ discuss the art & craft of tennis (and whether it is the greatest of all sports?); the art & craft of great sports writing (and whether David Foster Wallace’s essay, Roger Federer as Religious Experience is the pinnacle of the form). Then we discuss Troy’s Top 5 all-time tennis players, which serves to help us assess greatness in any sport.
Five Ten Kestrel Boa
Five Ten cut its teeth in the bike world by making gravity-oriented shoes, and they’re still best known for those offerings. But the new Kestrel Boa is a much more XC-oriented shoe than we’ve seen from Five Ten before, and it’s meant to add a little bit of their gravity shoe know-how to an XC shoe form factor.
Flash Review — SRAM GX Eagle Transmission
We’ve been spending time on the new SRAM GX Transmission. Check out our impressions so far.
Blister’s Flash Reviews and Deep Dives are accessible to those who purchase one of our paid subscriptions
To get our comprehensive Deep Dives and our initial, unfiltered reports on new gear, become a member and receive many other services, deals, and discounts.
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SRAM GX Transmission & Bronze Stealth Brakes
SRAM’s new T-Type groupsets launched just a few months ago with high-end XX SL, XX, and X0 tiers, and now there’s a new, more affordable GX version. While the high-level details closely mirror those of the higher-end variants, SRAM has done a lot more than just make a less-expensive, heavier version of the Transmission. Check out our First Look for all the details.
OpenSnow’s Joel Gratz on Smoke Forecasting, Wildfire Tracking, Common Mistakes, & Best Practices for Adventuring Outdoors (Ep.268)
Before you head out to bike, hike, run, camp, or climb, wildfire, lightning, and smoke exposure are factors that need to be well understood. OpenSnow founder and meteorologist, Joel Gratz explains the science of smoke forecasting and wildfire tracking, and shares some of the most common mistakes and best practices for adventuring outdoors.
23/24 WNDR Alpine Skis & Snowboards | Blister Summit 2023 Brand Lineup Video
At Blister Summit 2023, we sat down with WNDR Alpine founder, Matt Sterbenz, to get a state of the union on the brand and discuss their 2023-2024 ski and snowboard lineup. We cover the brand-new Nocturne 88 skis; Shepherd snowboard and splitboard; revised Vital 98; the evolution of their “Algal Tech” and “Spiral Made” construction techniques; and much more.
Blister Labs: Wheelset Testing — Updates & Initial Results (Ep.253)
Today we’re providing some updates and discussing the implications of the initial results of our Blister Labs wheelset testing with Greg Vanderbeek and Travis Hainsworth.
Win a Pack from RMU
The winner of our Gear Giveaway this week will get the Core Pack 15L from RMU!
Deviate Cycles on High-Pivot Bikes, Onshoring Production, & the Lowlander Prototype (Ep.177)
High-pivot Trail bikes are becoming increasingly common, but Deviate Cycles was a pioneer of that trend, and we sat down with Deviate co-founder Ben Jones to talk about why they went that direction when few companies were; gearboxes & mass adoption of new ideas; onshoring production & their wild Lowlander 3D-printed titanium and carbon fiber prototype; & a whole lot more.
2023 Specialized P.Series
Specialized has overhauled its longstanding P.Series line of Dirt-Jump bikes, and the lineup now includes versions for the whole family, with wheel sizes ranging from 20’’ to 27.5’’.
Flash Review – Liv Intrigue LT Advanced Pro 0
The Liv Intrigue LT Advanced Pro 0 is an ultra high-end women-specific Enduro bike that we’ve been spending time on — Blister Members can now read our initial on-trail impressions.
Blister’s Flash Reviews and Deep Dives are accessible to those who purchase one of our paid subscriptions
To get our comprehensive Deep Dives and our initial, unfiltered reports on new gear, become a member and receive many other services, deals, and discounts.
If you’re already an active member, please log in.
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