GEAR:30

Latest Episodes:

GEAR THERAPY: A Guitarist's Ski Gear Questions Jul 28, 2023

Show notes

When it comes to gear, we’ve all been there: loads of questions, crippling confusion, severe analysis paralysis. You need some help! So in this inaugural edition of GEAR THERAPY, Jason Verlinde — a self-described “average / normal / non-industry / non-pro Blister member” — poses some gear questions and conundrums to Jonathan Ellsworth & Luke Koppa, and “gets to confess my ignorance and state my real-world situation, with the experts weighing in, straightening me out, and steering me toward some products I might love.” Enjoy!

TOPICS & TIMES:

Gear Therapy Explained (3:36)

Why It’s Hard Out There for a GearHead (10:05)

Meet the Patient: Jason Verlinde (12:10)

Jason’s Ski Quiver (14:33)

Putting On Cold Ski Boots & Liners (20:35)

The Blister Approach to Reviews (33:00)

Line Blade & Steep Terrain (44:10)

"Loose and Surfy"? (52:55)

Crashes & Close Calls (1:00:08)

What We're Celebrating (1:07:28)

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Episode Sponsor: OpenSnow.com

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CRAFTED: Jason Verlinde on Guitar Making

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Magnus Granér & Peyben on 1000 Skis & Moving the Culture Forward Jul 21, 2023

Show notes

Two years ago, a group of pro skiers, photographers, filmmakers, and friends launched 1000 Skis. They did this because they wanted to “move the culture forward,” make skis they weren’t seeing on the market, and because they just flat-out love skiing.

Magnus Graner and Pär “Peyben” Hägglund were two of those founding members, and Luke Koppa sat down with them for a wide-ranging conversation that covers everything from the origins of the brand to their prototyping process; how they’ve prioritized — and acted on — sustainability from the start; the challenges and rewards of the unique ways in which they’ve been filming The Bunch’s upcoming film; why they like what’s currently happening in freesking; what they hope to see from the industry in the future, and more. We also touch on why Peyben had to break into a French villa to record this conversation…

As is illustrated by their wide-ranging personal careers in the snowsports world, Magnus and Peyben are thinking a LOT about all sorts of this world’s different elements and aspects, so it was really fun to get their thoughts on a whole bunch of them.

TOPICS & TIMES:

Intros & 1000 Skis Background (2:35)

Design Philosophy & Brand Values (6:15)

Making Skis for Yourselves & for Consumers (10:23)

Prototyping Process (14:14)

Life Cycle Analysis & Sustainability Efforts (22:28)

Why the All-Red Graphics? (34:27)

The 1000 Skis Lineup (42:23)

Mount Points (47:50)

The Bunch & Media Recs (53:30)

Current State & Future of Freesking (1:05:26)

Crashes & Close Calls (1:12:18)

What We’re Celebrating (1:14:55)

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23/24 Blister Winter Buyer’s Guide Pre-Order

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Happy Hour (for Blister Members)

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SCARPA CEO, Kim Miller, on Their ‘Green Manifesto’ & B Corp Status Jul 14, 2023

Show notes

For this week’s edition of GEAR:30, Scarpa North America’s CEO, Kim Miller, is back to talk about Scarpa’s Green Manifesto and their pathway to B Corp certification. Kim and Kara Williard discuss what measuring and accounting for progress looks like; the tricky balance of sustainably innovating without compromising performance; the process of recycling products and materials; assessing the life cycle of various products; and some of the gear that best exemplifies Scarpa’s commitment to these values (starting with a tele boot back in 2009!).

TOPICS & TIMES

Kim’s Career & Values (4:03)

Scarpa’s Business Culture (12:14)

Transparency & Accountability (13:18)

Measurements & Metrics (16:59)

Life Cycle Analysis of Gear (33:52)

Service vs. Profit (38:23)

Working Together as an Industry (44:21)

Gear & the Green Manifesto (45:33)

A Sense of Urgency (51:40)

All Pillars of Sustainability (55:49)

Scarpa as a B Corp (1:02:25)

Leading with Passion (1:13:16)

Kim’s Crashes & Close Calls Story (1:18:16)

What We’re Celebrating (1:21:33)

GEAR:30 Ep. 84: SCARPA CEO Kim Miller on the F1 LT & More

Scarpa’s Green Manifesto

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Blister Labs: Wheelset Testing — Updates & Initial Results Jul 07, 2023

Show notes

Today we’re providing some updates and discussing the implications of the initial results of our Blister Labs wheelset testing with Greg Vanderbeek (assistant professor of mechanical engineering at CU Boulder & the Western Colorado University / CU Boulder partnership program here in Gunnison, CO) and Travis Hainsworth (associate director of the Western-CU Boulder Computer Science Program).

TOPICS & TIMES:

Project Overview (4:19)

Carbon vs Aluminum = Complicated (7:13)

Preliminary Data / Fancy Squishing Machines (8:42)

Lacing Patterns, Impact Loading, & Dynamic Loading (12:12)

Marketing Wheelsets (14:43)

Challenges (18:58)

Next Steps (24:23)

Variables (26:38)

Learn More (38:32)

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Video: Blister Labs Wheelset Testing

Learn More about Blister Labs

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Athletes & Product Design Jun 30, 2023

Show notes

When it comes to gear, how do you balance the specific needs of world-class athletes with those of average skiers and riders?

In this conversation from Blister Summit 2023, McKenna Petersen (K2 athlete), Drew Peterson (Salomon athlete), Tyler Curle (Moment athlete & ski builder), and Jed Yeiser (K2 engineer) discuss the product development process; the roles that athletes, designers, and product managers play; the weirdest prototypes they’ve tried; what “evolutionary” and “revolutionary” changes we should expect in the future; which discontinued products they’d like to bring back, and more.

TOPICS & TIMES:

Intros & Backgrounds (2:48)

Balancing Needs of Pro Athletes vs the Public (7:31)

Are We in an Evolutionary or Revolutionary Stage of Ski Design? (25:15)

Weirdest Prototype You’ve Tried? (34:17)

How Have Your Responsibilities Evolved? (42:59)

Changing Popular Products (47:13)

What Product Would You Bring Back? (52:46)

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Blister Summit 2024 Registration

Blister YouTube Channel

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Happy Hour (for Blister Members)

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Rethinking Apparel: WNDR Alpine & Beyond Surface Technologies Jun 23, 2023

Show notes

Odds are that just about every piece of clothing you own has been applied with some sort of surface treatment, and those (typically petroleum-based) treatments contribute to a significant portion of the apparel industry’s already massive carbon footprint. With their recent collaboration, Beyond Surface Technologies and WNDR Alpine are changing that.

So Luke Koppa got the whole story from BST’s CEO, Matthias Foessel, and WNDR Alpine’s Matt Sterbenz, including the details of WNDR Alpine’s Phase Series apparel collection; how BST’s “miDori bioWick” treatment actually works; how it differs from existing plant-seed-based treatments; why it’s important to take a holistic approach when developing alternative processes and treatments, and more.

TOPICS & TIMES:

Matthias’ Background (2:53)

Fabric Surface Treatments: Background (5:31)

Surface Treatments: Environmental Impact (11:15)

WNDR Alpine, Beyond Surface Technologies, & Checkerspot (14:42)

What does miDori bioWick do? (18:52)

WNDR Alpine Phase Series (25:15)

Algal Oils vs Plant Seed Oils (29:05)

What’s Next? (36:12)

Holistic Approach to Surface Treatments (40:59)

What We’re Celebrating & Crashes & Close Calls (46:26)

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23/24 Blister Winter Buyer’s Guide Pre-Order

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Kästle Ski Boots: Origins, Design, & 23/24 Lineup Jun 16, 2023

Show notes

For decades,Kästle has been making high-end skis for everything from racing to Nordic and skimo. But what sparked their recent launch into the ski boot category? It’s far from a simple process, so Kara Williard talked with Alessandro Speranzoni, Kästle’s global ski boot product engineer, and Alex Pritzlaff, their U.S. product manager, to discuss the origins of the project; the design details of their boots, including their mysterious “Secret Mix” plastic composition; the 23/24 Kästle boot lineup; some new projects they have in the works, and more.

TOPICS & TIMES:

Alessandro & Alex’s Background (3:22)

Kästle’s heritage (6:49)

The “Ski Boot Challenge” (10:02)

Prototyping & Design (13:41)

Key Blend / “Secret Mix” Plastics (21:04)

Fit & Liners (31:44)

Stance & Boot Boards (37:34)

“K Release” Buckles (40:08)

23/24 Lineup (41:53)

Women-Specific Boot & Ski Project (52:25)

Crashes & Close Calls (1:05:32)

What We’re Celebrating (1:07:15)

RELATED LINKS:

BLISTER+ Membership

23/24 Blister Winter Buyer’s Guide

Blister Summit Registration

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New Binding Tech: Tyrolia Protector Bindings with Full Heel Release Jun 09, 2023

Show notes

Tyrolia’s Protector bindings with “Full Heel Release” is something that every skier ought to know about. Tyrolia calls it “the safest binding we have ever made,” and exactly how it works and how it’s supposed to reduce knee injuries is the topic of this conversation with Andrew Couperthwait, VP of Winter Sports for HEAD / Tyrolia.

TOPICS & TIMES:

Overview of Protector Bindings (4:10)

How Traditional Alpine Bindings Release (5:51)

Protector Technology (8:19)

Backwards Twisting Falls (10:57)

Two Distinct Movements (16:12)

Why 7mm? (20:22)

Retention (25:24)

Knee Bindings vs. Protector Bindings (32:17)

ISO Norms & Boot Soles (36:07)

Look Pivot vs Protector Bindings (40:44)

Priorities: Release or Retention? (46:49)

Development of Protector Technology (49:22)

Product Evolution (52:24)

Where to Find Protector Bindings (58:56)

Crashes & Close Calls (1:00:59)

What We're Celebrating (1:12:37)

RELATED LINKS:

BLISTER+ Membership

23/24 Blister Winter Buyer’s Guide

Blister Summit Registration

Video: Blister Summit Bindings Panel

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Ferreol Skis: Reenvisioning Ski Construction Jun 02, 2023

Show notes

Ferreol is a relatively new company that designs and builds skis in Quebec, and they are working hard to push beyond conventional ski materials and construction. They created their own “Innovation Lab” to not only test skis but also develop new materials — and they’re not keeping it to themselves. Instead, they’re collaborating with other brands in order to move things forward at a greater scale.

So Luke Koppa sat down with Ferreol co-founder, Jonathan Audet, to discuss all of that, including the development of their own alternative to titanal alloy; fully replacing fiberglass with natural flax fibers; their 23/24 ski lineup, and more.

TOPICS & TIMES:

Origins of Ferreol (3:38)

Blindspots in the Market (7:00)

Replacing Fiberglass w/ Flax (8:45)

Life Cycle Analysis (11:24)

Ferreol’s 23/24 Lineup: (19:18)

Surfer 112 (19:18)

Pioneer 104 (23:19)

Explo 96 (28:26)

ZigZag 92 (30:43)

Ferreol Innovation Lab: Background (34:01)

Developing an Alternative to Titanal (36:49)

Ski Design App (50:13)

Ferreol Skis: Who Should Get Them? (51:45)

What We’re Celebrating / Crashes & Close Calls (59:37)

RELATED LINKS:

BLISTER+ Membership

23/24 Blister Winter Buyer’s Guide

Blister Summit Registration

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Bikes vs. Skis, 4th Edition (2023): Part 3 May 26, 2023

Show notes

Ok, you know the drill. Which ski company is most similar to which bike company? What’s the latest incendiary thing that will come out of Dylan Wood’s mouth? This final installment of our 4th edition of Bikes vs Skis is definitely another fun one.

TOPICS & TIMES:

Yeti (5:53)
Black Crows vs Revel (9:36)
Line Skis (12:10)
Propain Bikes vs. Line Skis (18:54)
Season Skis & Snowboards (20:08)
DPS (22:11)
Ibis (28:07)
Commencal (35:22)
Kids Gear (40:11)
Elan (41:51)
Icelantic (43:50)
Evil (49:45)
4FRNT (52:03)
RMU (54:00)
Rocky Mountain Bikes (59:10)
Norco (1:01:20)
Scott (1:04:49)
Orbea (1:06:51)
Heritage Lab Skis (1:07:33)
Crashes & Close Calls (1:15:15)
What We're Celebrating (1:19:41)

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