This year, Backountry’s annual Gear Test Week brought in more than 200 skis, bindings and boots and some 50 testers, all eager to test the latest technology in backcountry gear. With numbers like these, it takes a village to ensure that each and every piece of gear gets the testing it deserves.
Photo Gallery: Gear Test Week
Gear Test Week 2014 was a blur of 200-plus skis, boots and bindings, plastic flamingos and one family-friendly talent show. For a week last March at Powder Mountain, Utah, Backcountry’s editors and more than 50 testers evaluated some 200 hardgoods, highlighted in the 2015 Gear Guide. Testing it all is quite hard work, but we manage to have a little fun on the side.
Video: A Family Affair
Backcountry’s annual Gear Test Week brings together more than 50 testers from around the country, many of whom have been returning year after year for as long as they can remember. As a result, the annual event has become a family reunion of sorts. Here’s a look at what it means to be part of the Gear Test Week family.
Video: The Big Picture
In March, a crew of some 50 testers joined Backcountry’s editors for a week on snow at Powder Mountain, Utah to test more than 200 new hardgoods. But what does Gear Test Week really look like? Find out here.
2015 Editors’ Choice Awards: Boots
From a crop of more than 50 backcountry boots tested in March at Powder Mountain, Utah, we’ve selected the best six models for 2015 based on overwhelming tester feedback and cutting-edge innovation. Looking for the lightest, auto-locking touring boot or the most versatile, in- and-out-of-bounds option? You’ll find it among these six standout backcountry boots….
2015 Editors’ Choice Awards: Splitboards
From a crop of nearly 40 splitboards tested in March at Crested Butte, Colo., we’ve selected the best eight models for 2015 based on overwhelming tester feedback and groundbreaking innovation. Looking for the lightest, carbon board or the most versatile, all-mountain split? You’ll find it among these eight standouts….
2015 Editors’ Choice Awards: Skis
From a crop of nearly 200 skis tested in March at Powder Mountain, Utah, we’ve selected the best 12 models for 2015 based on overwhelming tester feedback and groundbreaking innovation. Looking for the lightest, carbon-infused powder ski or the most versatile front-and-backside ski? You’ll find it among these 12 standout skis….
2015 Editors’ Choice Awards: Bindings
This March at Powder Mountain, Utah, we tested every backcountry binding available, and, based on overwhelming tester feedback and groundbreaking innovation, we’ve selected the best bindings of 2015. Looking for the most affordable tech binding or the stoutest, do-it-all touring option? You’ll find it among these three Editors’ Choice bindings.
2015 Gear Guide Takes Off
Mattias Fredriksson says that landing a cover shot is always a defining moment in his career. And while he’s had more than 400 of his images make it on the front of magazines, our 2015 Gear Guide is his first Backcountry cover….
The Quiver
Whoever said “a quiver of one” anyway? These days, everybody knows your quiver needs at least a few arrows. But how many skis is too many skis?
