Rookie tester Hayden Gardner tried splitboards everywhere from his home range, Utah’s Wasatch, to Valdez, Alaska. He’s looking for a board that can handle all conditions.
2019 Gear Test Week: An Instagram Retrospective
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.
A week in review: 2019 Gear Test Week Photo Gallery
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.
Character Closeups: Austin Johnson on Gear Test Week 2019
Each year at Gear Test Week, we incorporate some new faces into the testing mix for fresh takes on the latest gear. This year, Austin Johnson, a Carbondale, Colo. native, joined the ranks to ski powder, meet some new friends and drink a beer or two. We caught up with Johnson to hear his perspectives […]
Character Closeups: Jacob O’Connor on Gear Test Week 2019
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 […]
Splitboard Tester Quick Takes Day One: Gear Test Week 2019
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 […]
Tester Quick Takes Day Three: Gear Test Week 2018
It’s Gear Test Week 2018, and as the sun blazes down on Powder Mountain, Utah, testers charge through the latest and greatest skis, boots and bindings for this coming season. To get a preview of some of the exciting sticks and kicks for winter 2018, we will be catching up with testers slope-side to hear […]
Tester Quick Takes Day Two: Gear Test Week 2018
On day two of Gear Test Week 2018, we get the scoop on the Black Crows Camox Freebird and the DPS Cassiar 87 with testers Caitlin Mitchell and Kevin McCarthy.
Tester Quick Takes: Gear Test Week 2018
It’s Gear Test Week 2018, and as the sun blazes down on Powder Mountain, Utah, testers charge through the latest and greatest skis, boots and bindings for this coming season. To get a preview of some of the exciting sticks and kicks for winter 2018, we will be catching up with testers slope-side to hear about their daily gear selects.
2018 Gear Test Preview: Bindings
With Backcountry Magazine’s 2018 Gear Test kicking off tomorrow, we’re looking ahead to the latest in skis, boots and bindings that are rolling in to Powder Mountain today. Each year, to make sure we’re testing the most contemporary gear, we operate under a simple rule: Only first- and second-year skis, boots and bindings, or older models with construction updates, are eligible […]
