More Ski Gadgets!
The latest and greatest
innovations to improve your ski experience -
..Goggles with built-in
LCD GPS Imaging
..Solar Powered Backpack
..Digital Ski Lessons
..Gloves with built-in
GPS
..Backcountry Multi-Tool
with tools for skiers & snowboarders
..Waterproof HD All Terrain
Video Action Camera
By Chris Weiss
November. The month when our thoughts officially turn to snow-covered
mountains, first tracks and hearty après ski celebrations.
It tends to include a few of the most frustrating weeks of the
year, spent staring longingly at steadily increasing snowpack
and static lifts. It won’t be long, but it will seem like
it.
Instead of dwelling on the grueling days ahead, take a brief
reprieve from the yearning and sulking, and sneak a peek at
some of this season’s hottest ski gadgets. You may have
tuned the skis, mounted the rack and patched up the outerwear,
but chances are there’s still an empty place in your gear
closet for one of these handy gizmos. Make the Christmas list
a little early this year.
Clicking on the images below will take you
to the product websites.
Zeal
Transcend Goggles with Built-in LCD GPS Imaging
Already a leader in innovative goggle
technology, Zeal takes it a step further this season courtesy
of a new partnership with Recon Instruments. Zeal uses Recon’s
Head Mounted Display technology to create the most high-tech
pair of goggles the world has ever seen.
 Combining
the sun-blocking function of traditional ski goggles with the
GPS-based tracking function of a wristtop computer or iPhone
app, the Transcend Goggles feature built-in LCD imaging to display
information like elevation, speed and distance traveled. You’ll
also get more basic readings like time and temperature, all
displayed on the lower corner of the goggles themselves. Despite
the fact that it’s all up in your eyeball, Zeal says the
goggle display is “completely non-obtrusive for front
and peripheral vision” and compares it to the dashboard
of a car. You might want to give it a try before taking
it on S&S Couloir, though. After a successful powder day
is over, dial in to a PC or Mac and plot your tracks on Google
Maps.
The goggles come in Zeal’s SPPX (polarized and photochromic)
lenses for $499 or its SPX (polarized) lenses for $399. They
hit the market last month and are available now.
Submit a Product Review
Zeal
Reliant Solar Powered Backpack
 A
complement to the Transcend goggles and a worthy piece of gear
in its own right, the Reliant Backpack is a solar-charging pack
that is purpose-built for snow sports. The ski/snowboard-compatible
backpack includes standards like ice axe loop, hydration sleeve,
compression straps and goggle compartment. The solar panels
on the back transform the high-alpine sun into lithium-polymer-stored
electricity to charge the Transcend goggles (or any other USB-equipped
device). The 1,280 cu. in. pack costs $199 and also went on
sale in October.
Where You Can Buy This Product:
This is a very new product. Check with these
vendors who carry the Zeal line
Submit a Product Review
Moticon
SkiGo Digital Ski Lessons
In a world where ski gadgets are usually
based on tracking performance, there haven’t been a whole
lot of ski gadgets for beginners. Moticon aims to change that
with its SkiGo digital training system. The system, developed
in conjunction with professionals of the German Ski Instructor
Association, features two parts: sensor-bearing ski boot insoles
and a  digital
computer unit. The insoles monitor and wirelessly transmit data
about your ski motions and maneuverings and the computer unit
analyzes the data and then coaches you on what you need to do
to improve your form and techniques. That coaching is relayed
to you via headphones.
The SkiGo system was introduced last year and won an ISPO Brand
New Award for the Hardware Accessories category. The start-up’s
plan at the time was to put the SkiGo training system to work
at select resorts in the Alps this winter. The company didn’t
respond to an email request for a list of resorts, and there
are currently no updates on its website. Translation: We may
be waiting another season for this one.
Submit a Product Review
Zanier
Xplore.XGX Gloves with Built-in GPS
If you can’t stand the thought
of the pupil fatigue that may come from a goggle-integrated
GPS display, Zanier’s X-plore.XGX gloves are another option.
Your  SirfStar
III-based GPS info won’t be quite as accessible as with
the Transcends, but it will definitely be more accessible than
with your average performance-tracking hardware or software.
There is an LCD display built into the thumb of the gloves and
controls mounted on back so you can get to your GPS without
having to slide the gloves off. The gloves measure the standards—speed,
vert and distance—and connect to your computer via USB.
They also feature basic tracking, helping you get back to the
car in a squall. Plus, unlike a lot of gimmick-wear, the X-plores
look like a quality set of gloves outfitted with Gore-Tex
X-Trafit fabric.
The X-plores launch in Europe this season with a price of 299.95
€.
Submit a Product Review
Brooks-Range
Backcountry Multi-Tool
with tools for skiers & snowboarders
Brooks-Range’s M.O. in the market
is making gear inspired and tested by mountain guides and other
experts that consider their house a brief vacation from the
mountains. So you just know that the simply named Backcountry
Multi- Tool
was born when a few guides came back throwing expletives around
about how the standard multi-tool didn’t have all the
simple tools needed to repair skis.
Well, now it does. The ultimate gift box or stocking stuffer
for the backcountry skier, Brooks-Range’s take on the
multi-tool is built from the ground up for the skier or snowboarder.
In addition to the standards found on every other multi-tool--
pliers, bottle opener, serrated/straight blade, screwdriver
bits, etc., the Brooks-Range includes four wrench sizes specifically
for ski/snowboard bindings and a T20 Torx for Dynafit bindings.
Those are a few inclusions that you won’t find on your
average Wenger or Leatherman. The Backcountry Multi-tool launched
just in time for this season and costs $70.
Where You Can Buy This Product:
Submit a Product Review
Oregon
Scientific ATC9K Waterproof
HD All Terrain Video Action Camera
The latest action cam
to the HD market, the newly launched Oregon Scientific ATC9K
takes everything good about the venerable ATC5K, adds to it
and makes it multiple times better. You still get the same durable,
cylindrical design; 32 MB  of
onboard storage; remote control; and 1.5-inch LCD screen for
viewing your footage right on the slopes or wherever you happen
to land, but you also get a more rugged, waterproof build; 1080p
filming capability; and new “G sensor,” a motion
sensor that is capable of measuring your gravitational force.
The ATC9K is waterproof to 20 meters and films 1080p at 30 frames-per-second
and 720p at 60 frames-per-second. It includes a built-in microphone
for audio recording.
Another trick up the
ATC9K’s sleeve albeit a “sold separately”
trick is the GPS module that can be paired to the camera. You
can throw your Satski out and leave your iPhone at the lodge
because the ATC9K that you’ll be wearing on your helmet
can take care of tracking your routes and measuring your performance.
When you upload your footage, you’ll be able to get a
virtual Google Maps track that shows your location, speed and
altitude.
The ATC9K costs $300
and the GPS module costs $70.
Where You Can Buy This Product:
Submit a Product Review
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After working the 9
to 5 grind for about five years, Chris Weiss escaped to
the Rockies where he could snowboard, mountain bike and
hike without so much interference from life. A couple
of years of working in the tourist industry was enough
to inform Weiss that it was time for something more rewarding.
He combined his love of the outdoors with his love of
the written word and now freelances wherever he can. Weiss
has written for Bomb Snow, Trails.com and a variety of
other print and Web magazines dedicate to all forms of
outdoor foolishness. |
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