Alpine touring rapidly ascends in popularity

The quest to create lighter gear by companies like G3 has opened up the backcountry to people who never considered venturing there before.

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      Is there anything more captivating than the sight of snow crystals sparkling in the sun? Crossing wintry slopes on skis heightens the perspective even more.

      To traverse switchback after switchback uphill and then carve a handful of downhill turns may not be everyone’s cup of cocoa. Nonetheless, alpine touring, as such an outing is known, is the biggest trend in today’s white world.

      For evidence, look no further than North Vancouver, home to Genuine Guide Gear, or G3. From modest beginnings in 1995, when founder Oliver Steffen landed a contract to supply 250 avalanche probe poles to MEC, his company now manufactures alpine-touring ski products distributed in 15 countries. At a time when snowboard and downhill-ski sales are softening, G3 is well on its way to becoming one of winter sports’ premier niche brands.

      Earlier this month, the Georgia Straight visited G3 for an insight into the vibrancy that surrounds not just Steffen’s company but the world of backcountry ski exploration at large. It turns out that the quest to produce lighter gear is influencing every sector of the recreational-equipment market, whether standup paddleboards, kayaks, mountain bikes, or even backpacks.

      Cold-weather sports are no exception. “Technology has dropped the weight of skis and related gear by 30 percent,” the 47-year-old Steffen said. “Over the past five years, the ingredient of choice has gone from fibreglass to carbon. Boots are half the weight they were 10 years ago, and they’re not cracking and breaking like they once did, either. The industry is maturing a lot, which is critical, especially as alpine touring means going uphill 80 percent of the day. That puts a lot of stress on the most crucial piece of equipment: bindings.”

      Bombproof bindings are what first garnered G3 international attention. That’s still the case. The company’s latest model, Ion, has been honoured with nine awards from reviewers in industry and consumer journals. “All the lessons we learned from the first binding, Onyx, we applied to Ion: the power to charge hard, with durability and low price,” Steffen said. “There are other people making similar products, but what I find refreshing is how imaginative our staff is at coming up with new ways to use gear like ski poles, which we decided to produce with detachable straps, a safety feature when skiing in trees and avalanche-prone terrain. We thought we’d sell a few hundred. Instead, sales are through the roof.”

      Steffen asserted that the key to G3’s success is innovation. “You can’t prosper in Canada without it. The secret is to pick one thing and get good at it, like our avalanche probe poles. We sell 7,000 a year now, along with other supporting gear like snow shovels—including one specifically made to fit in women’s backpacks—that I still believe are our best-designed product. That being said, our climbing skins are the whopper by far. You can do everything in alpine touring using standard downhill gear but only skins allow you to go uphill. You can fudge your way through on old boots or skis, but the sales of skins are the best indicator of the growth in interest in alpine touring. They represent half our business today.”

      As proof, Steffen ushered the Straight through the manufacturing section of G3’s headquarters, where boxes of brightly coloured climbing skins destined for Burton Snowboards’ new line of alpine-touring (AT) splitboards (a snowboard sliced lengthways that, when unhinged and fitted with climbing skins, performs like skis on uphill climbs) sat stacked beside a large table where an employee was programming a computer-driven cutting machine. “Think of skins as a fabric, a very special garment that’s stretched from tip to tail for climbing uphill, then removed when it’s time to carve some downhill turns.”

      Steffen pointed out that 20 years ago, alpine-touring and telemark gear was almost unheard-of except in the backcountry. “Recently, there’s been a real segmentation in the market. Our research shows that even the most hard-core AT users spend half their time inbounds. At Whistler Blackcomb, for example, they’ll check out the snow conditions in the morning on the lift-serviced runs, then in the afternoon head out on the groomed route to access the backcountry in Garibaldi Park.”

      Alpine touring is often likened to mountaineering on skis. Jayson Faulkner, head of strategic planning for the Sea to Sky Gondola near Squamish and chair of the Spearhead Hut Committee, recalled by phone that he began touring almost 50 years ago for quick access to big climbing routes. “I remember meeting Austrian Peter Haberl—who climbed Mount Everest without oxygen in 1975—when he came to Canada. He surprised me by saying that he was much more passionate about touring than climbing because it opened up the mountains in a whole new dimension. There’s no other way you can travel so efficiently. It’s a special thing to do. If you love powder snow and inspiring landscapes, there’s no finer way than on skis.”

      Perhaps that’s the motivating factor for outdoors-minded Vancouverites who have started blazing trails through fresh snow in increasing numbers. When asked to comment on mountaineer Greg Child’s quote that “somewhere between the bottom of the climb and the summit is the answer to the mystery why we climb,” backcountry athlete Zoya Lynch agreed. “I climb for the same reason,” the Revelstoke-based guide and photographer told the Straight by Skype. “Touring brings clarity to everything. It’s a peaceful way to be with your thoughts. Making decisions in the mountains brings better decision-making to life in general.”

      Lynch instructs at several resorts in the B.C. Interior with women-specific programs such as Girls Do Ski free-ski camps. She feels that one reason her sport is attracting more women is that gear is noticeably more female-friendly. “For example, women-specific backpacks now fit our hips better, plus lighter-weight equipment plays to a woman’s strength. As a woman, I’m not ashamed to take any advantage I can get. We may not be as physically strong as men but we excel
      at endurance.”

      In Whistler, Prior Snowboards & Skis’ general manager, Emilie de Crombrugghe, weighed in with her perspective. A snowboard instructor with a master’s degree in sports management, de Crombrugghe relocated to the resort from Belgium five years ago. “I started in the backcountry when I was 18 on both skis and splitboards with friends who were guides,” she recalled by phone. “I took avalanche courses. The more you come to appreciate that nature is hard to predict, the more you need to learn how to be as safe as possible in the mountains.”

      She credited Prior’s unique lightweight carbon XTC weave with improving her board-handling skills. “It allows me to go as fast as the men. Women’s participation in the backcountry has grown steadily since we came out with a women-specific splitboard fitted with women-specific bindings as well. I estimate women now make up a third of the alpine-touring crowd. For me, the biggest thing about being in nature is that it makes me realize I’m alive without having my attention captured by a million other things, like in the city.”

      Care to try alpine touring yourself? For an introduction, Faulkner recommended the Alpine Club of Canada Vancouver section’s free outings. “They may even find you some equipment,” he added. For information, visit accvancouver.org/.

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