This year’s Gear Test Week has come to an end, and all 40 testers have hopped into planes, cars and a few dilapidated minivans to head home for the end of the season. At Backcountry Magazine, the work is just beginning for our team of editors who compile tester comments and reviews to create the 2019 Gear Guide, out this fall.

Last week, more than 40 testers flocked to Powder Mountain, Utah for 2019 Gear Test Week, spending five days on snow testing next year’s backcountry skis, splitboards, boots and bindings. Matt Kiedaisch, resident Gear Test Week photographer, documented each day, from caffeinated breakfasts to party-filled nights—and all the corn, corduroy and powder in between.

A coating of fresh snow has graced the final days of Gear Test Week 2019 at Powder Mountain, so testers have been hitting the slopes hard to find their favorite gear for this coming winter. And part of what makes our test informative is the variety of ski and snowboard style our testers bring to […]

New this year, we’re combining forces with the annual splitboard test to make our Gear Test, held for the 11th year at Powder Mountain, a bigger, more comprehensive event. As splitboard testers get familiar with the newest boards, boots and bindings during their first test day at Pow Mow, we catch up with a handful […]