 Poster: A snowHead
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A question for Snowheads - I'm thinking about an episode of The Ski Podcast, maybe a panel at a ski show about new tech innovations in ski. I'm thinking of things like Carv, apps, digital options rather than equipment.
Has anything stood out for you in the last year or so?
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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Not in the last year but Fatmap synced with a Garmin watch is a killer app for ski touring/mountaineering (especially in bad weather)!
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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@iainm, the Elan voyager folding ski?
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| GlasgowCyclops wrote: |
| @iainm, the Elan voyager folding ski? |
More than a year old I think? And haven’t their been folding skis around before, even another one by Elan for the military?
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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Fatmap is a really good one. Not new, but getting better the whole time.
re the folding ski, I like the idea, but I'm thinking more apps/digital/wearables
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Instagram is also very useful for route ideas and snow conditions updates
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@iainm, a generally useful thing, the animated precipitation forecast maps from e.g. Meteoblue or MeteoSuisse are pretty handy...
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Appreciate the OP is more interested in things 'not equipment' but it would be interesting to hear of people's experience with the BOA ski boots? Now that they've been around a whole season, there should be some interesting feedback?
Concerning the Elan Voyager, I would be interested to hear industry views on why it hasn't taken off (it doesn't seem to have done?). I was seriously considering a pair for myself as it seemed to fit my needs quite well (living in an urban area, not a car owner, need something that it is easy to get to and fro the airport without having to order an extra-large cab, avoiding ski carriage costs etc). Ultimately I decided not to go for it for a few reasons: 1) despite not needing a full blown ski bag the storage capacity of the case is relatively limited so would probably still need another hold luggage bag particularly on a two week ski trip 2) inability to demo the skis anywhere, at least not on any of my previous ski trips 3) it seems to me Elan have stopped investing in the product as I am not aware they are doing annual 'upgrades' and the advertising is all from the launch time 4) lack of long term reviews and 5) (to a lesser extent) wary comments from others and on a few reviews (although there are quite a lot of positive reviews too ). In the end, I opted for traditional skis.
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
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| BobinCH wrote: |
| Not in the last year but Fatmap synced with a Garmin watch is a killer app for ski touring/mountaineering (especially in bad weather)! |
Not arguing but why is the sync with the watch so good? Do you mean getting/creating detailed routes from Fatmap into a set of waypoints on your watch?
I sthe advantage not having to get your phone out / use phone battery.
reason I'm asking is that I have a Fenix 5 and use Fatmap for researching routes but don't really integrate the two... just haven't made the effort so looking to be persuaded!
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| jedster wrote: |
| BobinCH wrote: |
| Not in the last year but Fatmap synced with a Garmin watch is a killer app for ski touring/mountaineering (especially in bad weather)! |
Not arguing but why is the sync with the watch so good? Do you mean getting/creating detailed routes from Fatmap into a set of waypoints on your watch?
I sthe advantage not having to get your phone out / use phone battery.
reason I'm asking is that I have a Fenix 5 and use Fatmap for researching routes but don't really integrate the two... just haven't made the effort so looking to be persuaded! |
From Fatmap, select your route, scroll down and hit “Send GPX to Garmin”, open Garmin connect, goto training and planning / courses; select the “course” and hit the blue phone icon that syncs with device (watch). Open Garmin watch and hit the top right button to start an activity, scroll up to “navigate”, scroll down to courses and hey presto there is your route. Hit start and see yourself against the map of the route and an arrow showing your direction of travel. That all takes less than 1 minute.
I used this in a whiteout to follow a route up a ridge without having to get out my phone. As I climbed I could see my line of travel vs the route and could self correct. Was relatively easy to use and saved my phone battery and fingers!
Another promising one, the Apple Emergency SOS via satellite on your iPhone could be an alternative to a Garmin InReach mini when travelling in areas without mobile coverage
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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Nobody seems to be mentioning the beanie helmet! 
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And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
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| BobinCH wrote: |
| jedster wrote: |
| BobinCH wrote: |
| Not in the last year but Fatmap synced with a Garmin watch is a killer app for ski touring/mountaineering (especially in bad weather)! |
Not arguing but why is the sync with the watch so good? Do you mean getting/creating detailed routes from Fatmap into a set of waypoints on your watch?
I sthe advantage not having to get your phone out / use phone battery.
reason I'm asking is that I have a Fenix 5 and use Fatmap for researching routes but don't really integrate the two... just haven't made the effort so looking to be persuaded! |
From Fatmap, select your route, scroll down and hit “Send GPX to Garmin”, open Garmin connect, goto training and planning / courses; select the “course” and hit the blue phone icon that syncs with device (watch). Open Garmin watch and hit the top right button to start an activity, scroll up to “navigate”, scroll down to courses and hey presto there is your route. Hit start and see yourself against the map of the route and an arrow showing your direction of travel. That all takes less than 1 minute.
I used this in a whiteout to follow a route up a ridge without having to get out my phone. As I climbed I could see my line of travel vs the route and could self correct. Was relatively easy to use and saved my phone battery and fingers!
Another promising one, the Apple Emergency SOS via satellite on your iPhone could be an alternative to a Garmin InReach mini when travelling in areas without mobile coverage |
Thank you!
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| Thomasski wrote: |
| Nobody seems to be mentioning the beanie helmet! |
Having seen one up close courtesy of an obliging sH I think they are more helmet than beanie.
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You know it makes sense.
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How much easier it's become to buy lift passes and recharge them online.
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Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
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@Mike Pow, that's not really in the last year or so is it?
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Poster: A snowHead
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@BobinCH, what phone you are using?
Did you update to the last version of Garmin connect, plenty of complaints after the May 12 update
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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| Mr Blue Sky wrote: |
Concerning the Elan Voyager, I would be interested to hear industry views on why it hasn't taken off
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For most people, it's a solution to no actual problem.
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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| under a new name wrote: |
| @Mike Pow, that's not really in the last year or so is it? |
For lots of the smaller places it is
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@Mike Pow, ah,  I see where you're coming from.
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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| Chaletbeauroc wrote: |
For most people, it's a solution to no actual problem. |
I suspect that is a large part of the answer. I do think for some people it could be quite a neat / attractive product but the market for it probably isn’t sufficiently large, particularly in view of the option to just rent skis for those for whom lugging around ski bags is just too much of a faff/off-putting. The high cost of the skis (particularly when purchased with the accompanying travel bag) is most likely a further barrier compounded by the absence of sufficient reviews and difficulty in finding a pair to test - spending just over £1400 in such circumstances is quite the gamble! Also, from the limited reviews I’ve seen, whilst described as an AM ski, most reviewers seem to put it in more in the category of a piste ski in terms of how it performs which isn’t what I was after.
I’d be curious to know if Elan are still producing them/developing them further, I don’t think they are.
As I say in the end, after always renting, I opted for purchasing traditional skis (which aren’t as much of a faff to lug around as I first thought they would be!) but I could see that with a lower price tag than the RRP or buying them on sale and an opportunity to test in resort before purchase, I could have been quite close to buying these.
(Interestingly I see they are on sale in a few places. Ellis Brigham are selling the full kit: skis, hold bag, poles, for £870)
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Insta360 360 cameras.
It's not a last year gadget per se but X3 was a huge step forward from the first one I initially bought.And now an X4 is being released.
If one has the time and the inclination, the edited result with alternating display of the skier and the route he encouters is impressive.
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Yes there's one standout piece of equipment along with software that's been a game changer for the OH and I this season when ski-touring.
Also really good for setting up a shot when filming, plus skiing with the dog and telling the OH when to let him go after me.
Now we never go out without them.
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Most skitech is overhyped junk.
Solutions looking for problems.
Long list of new skitech here.
Pick a top-10 and run a SH poll.
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
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AT boots for splitboarding. Game changer.
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@hang11, what do you exactly mean by AT boots?
When I was snow-boarding back in the day, I used Approach skis with just the front Dynafit toe binding, and hard boot bindings on the board, and my boots were a very flexible two-buckle ski-touring boot, the original snow-boarding boots that came with the skis, Deluxe I think, actually had the toe inserts in the boots!
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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Thanks for those ideas. Insta360 definitely a great step forward (although believe GoPro have their own version) - the software is a step ahead of anything i've used before.
Just looking at that link from @whitegold - what do people think of the Garmin InReach Mini2 and/or Messenger? Are these breakthrough products?
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And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
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@Weathercam, would you pay full-whack for them?
What about Boa boot fastenings?
Ps why is this in Offpiste and not Equipment?
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@adithorp, more or less feckin did after testing them 
Now have a redundant pair of very nice BCA walkie-talkies.
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You know it makes sense.
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| Weathercam wrote: |
@hang11, what do you exactly mean by AT boots?
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Inreach mini 2 + Garmin watch + phone is a sweet setup.
Very little mobile reception anywhere for me, inreach just makes life so much easier and navigation on a watch with no mobile reception is really useful
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Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
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Poster: A snowHead
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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@adithorp, make me an offer, I can bring them back with me when I come back in July, though not too sure your Northern Financial Philosophy would stretch/allow to what I would want for them
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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| hang11 wrote: |
| Weathercam wrote: |
@hang11, what do you exactly mean by AT boots?
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Inreach mini 2 + Garmin watch + phone is a sweet setup.
Very little mobile reception anywhere for me, inreach just makes life so much easier and navigation on a watch with no mobile reception is really useful |
That's what I have although I'd point out that a phone can be pretty good for nav even without mobile reception if you download maps first. In complex terrain I don't find the watch display good enough alone. You can put a phone in airplane mode and just use GPS.
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
You need to Login to know who's really who.
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| Whitegold wrote: |
Most skitech is overhyped junk.
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FTFY.
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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Might be a bit too niche for you, but Scarpa have a new Telemark boot, an updated TX-Pro which is the first new tele boot in years. Also 22Designs have the Bandit, a piste-only NTN tele binding (the first) -- which IMV is very very long overdue!
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Honestly I don't think there's been any meaningful tech innovations in skiing since the Shift (pin up alpine down) and battery airbags came out, whenever that was. Sure things have been refined and improved since, but only incrementally and nothing revolutionary.
Only possible exception I can think of MAY be Boa-closure boots, but I haven't tried them so no idea if they actually make much difference.
Edit: sorry, there is one new product that's made life better for skiers, though it goes back more like 3 years than 1. These beauties: https://intuitionliners.com/product/bootie/ First made as a joke, too!
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@clarky999, not convinced about the Shift?
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| under a new name wrote: |
| @clarky999, not convinced about the Shift? |
You mean you're not convinced, or you're asking if I am?
I'm a big fan and have them on two pairs of skis, but regardless of the pros/cons you can't argue the design and concept wasn't really innovative when it was released!
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
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@clarky999, no, you can't and I was blown away by the engineering quality when they came out. That said, in my situation, I can't see the use case? i.e. I usually know if I'll be going uphill.
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FAQ
