Last month, Kim Havell found herself alongside Pete Gaston and Brian Warren atop the Otterbody, a steep, exposed route on the east side of Wyoming’s Grand Teton. The Otterbody was first skied by Coombs and Mark Newcomb in ’96, and this was Havell’s third try this the season. Secret’s out—she skied it. And her descent, the first female descent of the 2,500-foot route, capped off an impressive season of bagging peaks and classic routes in the Tetons.
With an schmorgesborg of tools, sharp things and twisty metal, a good multi-tool can be a gear nerd’s wet dream. In fact, the list of tasks that a multi-tool can effectively complete is almost endless: adjusting bindings, opening cans, clipping toenails, breaking and entering, or stabbing your enemies, a multi-tool can do it all. And in a market awash with ever-so-similar tools, The Leatherman Blast, with it’s tasty assemblage of gadgets, is among the best reasonably priced options.
Have you ever really loved a pair of goggles? Like, when they got scratched, did you mope the same as when you blew an edge? Or were you once unable to sleep, antsy with anticipation to wear them the following day? Well me neither—I’ve never really loved a pair of goggles. I merely tolerate what I have, and when they get scratched, I buy a new pair. But somehow, the Smith I/O has been slung around my helmet for the last three seasons.
After standing for just two weeks, Eric Carter and Nick Elson’s Rainier speed record has been broken. On June 5, Jason and Andy Dorais of Salt Lake City, Utah took more than 20 minutes off Carter and Elson’s top time, setting a record of three hours, 57 minutes and 55 seconds.
If you’ve ever patrolled, chances are you used leather gloves. Once you’ve had a leather glove, nothing else comes close to its fit and function. I got this sample pair of the Black Diamond Patrol back in 2006 or ’07.
Montana Highway 212 (more often called the Beartooth Highway) opens each year on Memorial Day weekend between Red Lodge and Cooke City, and is a coveted tradition for area skiers and riders. Switchbacking to just below 11,000 feet, the road provides easy spring ski access and its opening—possible only after the DOT chews through drifts as high as 30 feet—marks the true beginning of summer. Here, the quality of the terrain can only be matched by the intensity of the party that takes place on the pass and in the campgrounds at night. All in all, it’s a damn good time.
After putting all my gear away, waxing my skis with a nice summer coat and getting out the bikes, my mind was fully in summer mode. But some early reports on Saturday claimed 3-4 inches up high in Vermont’s Green Mountains, and the National Weather Service was predicting another 5-9 inches overnight. So, it was time to break out the gear once again and head to Stowe.
