GEAR:30

What new thoughts and ideas emerge when you bring together in conversation makers of hybrid ski bindings and AT bindings and snowboard bindings and splitboard bindings? Well you’re about to find out, because at Blister Summit 2025, Jonathan Ellsworth led a conversation along these lines with Will Ritter of Spark R&D; Royal White, from Burton; Andy Merriman, from ATK Bindings; and Steven Waal, from the very new company, AlpenFlow Design. Enjoy, this is a great one.

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TOPICS & TIMES:

Exploring the Evolution of Bindings (3:11)

Customer Feedback in Product Development (5:47)

Design Principles of New Companies (08:50)

The Importance of User Experience (12:13)

Evolution of ATK Bindings (15:00)

The Future of Snowboard Bindings (18:02)

Challenges in Binding Production (21:02)

User Errors / Misuse of Bindings (23:58)

Understanding Binding Mechanics & Maintenance (34:03)

The Importance of Familiarity with Gear (37:10)

The Shift towards Lightweight Ski Gear (41:18)

Ethical Considerations in Product Development (46:54)

Bindings Compatibility (50:00)

The Cost of Backcountry Bindings Explained (54:03)

The Future of Binding Standards in Skiing (57:15)

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If you think all goggles are the same, well, think again. At our Blister Summit 2025, Jonathan Ellsworth spoke with Steven Kennedy (Giro), Ted Ligety (Shred Optics), Stefan Stahl (Glade Optics), and Gabriel Lobbi (Provuu) about some different approaches — and solutions — to the problem of seeing well on snow.

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TOPICS & TIMES:

Introductions (4:15)

Different Approaches to the Problem (7:00)

Photochromic & VLT (11:34)

High-Contrast Lenses (17:08)

Lens Shapes (19:53)

Goggles & Helmet Fit (24:11)

Flat-Light Optimization (28:48)

What's the Best Question I Haven’t Asked? (32:05)

Audience Questions (33:45)

Goggle Care (40:58)

Materials (42:11)

Shield Helmets & Corrective Lenses (50:27)

Fogging (53:23)

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Bikes & Big Ideas

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In this episode, Luke Koppa sits down with Kara Williard, Jonathan Ellsworth, and the strikingly handsome Justin Bobb to talk about the many skis Jonathan and I opted to take out during closing weekend at CBMR; Kara’s powder-filled winter trips, and the two skis and single boot she used throughout; and Justin’s latest, crazy biking / skinning / snowboarding adventure + some of the boards and boots he’s been testing. Finally, we dive into some ski-touring boots discussions, and Jonathan tells us about his surprise visit from Cody Townsend.

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TOPICS & TIMES:

Jonathan & Cody’s Surprise Coffee Date (2:49)

Colby MunicipalBoundaryLine (6:07)

Kara’s Trip Report (8:45)

Justin’s Trip Report (14:43)

Salomon QST X (16:23)

Luke’s Closing-Day Skis (24:02)

New Snowboards & Boots (26:32)

Jonathan’s Closing-Day Skis (35:46)

Black Crows Anima Birdie (47:06)

Atomic Hawx Ultra 115 XTD (49:25)

La Sportiva Sender (53:26)

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Today we are sharing the first of our Blister Summit 2025 panel sessions, and we’ve got a great one to kick things off. We’re asking the pros — Hoji, Ted, Anne, and Jess — how they go about assessing and testing ski and snowboard gear, and what advice they have for the rest of us? Plus you’ll hear Ted share one of his favorite (but questionable??) ways of testing skis.

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BLISTER YouTube Channel

TOPICS & TIMES:

BLISTER+ Updates (00:00)

Intros (5:34)

Evaluating Prototypes (8:21)

Assessing Gear for Yourself (11:35)

Going in Blind vs Getting Info First (18:05)

Gear You Liked but Didn’t Expect to? (23:29)

Advice on How to Evaluate (28:41)

Trickiest Variables when Testing? (34:10)

Ted’s Favorite Testing Method (38:55)

Audience Q&A:

Evaluating Pow Skis Outside of Pow? (46:26)

Intuitive Products vs. Adapting to Them (49:27)

Personal Preference vs. Objective Performance (54:00)

How to Rule Out a Bad Tune? (55:29)

How Many Runs Should You Take? (56:48)

What Notes Do You Take? (1:00:16)

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Kara Williard catches up with Christoph Lentz, Fischer’s Global Product Manager for Alpine Boots, to discuss what they’ve been up to since the launch of their RC4 Lineup two seasons ago; how this lineup has expanded and evolved, including the new models for the 25/26 season; why Fischer has invested so much time and energy into “inner boots,” including using D3O padding in their latest liners; their all-new touring boot; the process for Vacuum molding plastics; Christoph’s favorite part of his job; and a whole lot more. 

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Our Blister Recommended Shops

Get Yourself Covered: BLISTER+ 

BOA & the Death of Buckles? 2024 Ski Boot Design | Blister Summit Panel

TOPICS & TIMES:

Christoph’s Role & How it Came to Be (4:05)

Reflecting on the RC4 Pro (10:20)

25/26 RC4 Lineup / New Models (20:11)

RC4 Pro for Women (25:03)

Inner Boots, aka Liners (27:24)

D3O in Liners (29:52)

Vacuum Plastics & Molding Process (37:01)

The New Traverse (43:06)

Current Trends in the Ski Industry (51:17)

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As part of the 5850 Fest at the World Cup Finals in Sun Valley, Jonathan talked with Ted Ligety about the tricky conditions and the very challenging course here in Sun Valley for the Super G and GS races, and the incredibly demanding business of going fast.

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Our Blister Recommended Shops

Get Yourself Covered: BLISTER+ 

GEAR:30 Ep. 326: DPS Carbon Pisteworks 79

Blister Podcast Ep. 332: Ted Ligety 24/25 World Cup Preview

TOPICS & TIMES:

Unique Course & Unique Challenges (5:32)

Course Sets & Resets (10:54)

Brignone Coming To Win (15:21)

Lara Gut-Behrami (20:17)

Best Super G's Women's Run (23:41)

Lindsey Vonn (25:32)

Men's Super G (29:29)

Ski Tuning (36:22)

GS Races (41:01)

Slalom Races (44:24)

What's Next for Ted? (45:48)

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Luke Koppa talks with several of our reviewers about some of the latest gear they’ve been testing. Paul Forward discusses a bunch of the lightweight powder touring skis he’s been on, as well as some new models from Heritage Lab. Then, Kristin Sinnott and Sascha Anastas cover some new all-mountain skis and apparel that they’ve been using, and we round things out with a conversation with Dylan Wood about some very interesting new big-mountain skis, including the Dynastar M-Free 112, how it compares to the Rossignol Sender Free 110, the Head Kore 112 Ti, and more.

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Ep. 226 w/ Heritage Lab Skis

TOPICS & TIMES:

Paul Forward’s Recent Touring (1:42)

Black Diamond Helio 115 (5:37)

La Sportiva Capo (13:27)

ON3P Billy Goat 118 Tour (16:29)

Faction La Machines (18:46)

Heritage Lab Models (22:37)

Kristin Sinnott & New Head Kores (41:44)

RMU Valhalla 97 (43:49)

New Apparel (45:13)

Sascha Anastas & DPS Wailers (48:33)

Buttnski Down Pants (51:51)

Rossignol Apres Slippers (54:04)

Dylan Wood & 190 cm Moment Wildcat (56:27)

Dynastar M-Free 112 vs. Rossignol Sender Free 110 (1:01:00)

Head Kore 112 Ti (1:09:30)

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Kara Williard is back with Eric Helmbrecht of Powder Hound, our Blister Recommended Shop in Girdwood, Alaska to discuss a the ups and downs of their season up in Alaska; our tips and tricks on how to make the most of any season, including some of our favorite gear for low-tide skiing; 25/26 gear including the new Salomon QST Lineup, Dual BOA, boot trends, aftermarket liners; and more.

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Blister Rec. Shop: Powder Hound 

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TOPICS & TIMES:

Ski Season in Girdwood (3:25)

25/26 Salomon QST Lineup (5:49)

Skiing at Palisades (10:44)

Dual BOA (12:09)

Boot Trends (17:25)

Realistic Expectations for Ski Boots (21:54)

Aftermarket Liners (27:18)

Making the Most of a Low-Tide Season (34:32)

Narrow All-Mountain Skis (43:56)

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Blister reviewers Jonathan Ellsworth, Luke Koppa, Sascha Anastas, Kristin Sinnott, and the strikingly handsome Justin Bobb discuss a bunch of new ski and snowboard gear they spent time on at last week’s Blister Summit. They also talk about several prototypes they got on at the Summit, so if you want to get a little glimpse into the future, you’re in luck.

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Taos Ski Valley

Blister Rec Shop: Willi’s Ski & Board Shop

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TOPICS & TIMES:

Chile Rant / Taos Ski Valley (0:59)

Deals from Willi’s Ski Shop (1:53)

Story from a BLISTER+ Member (3:11)

Prototypes at the Summit (7:54)

Giro Meetups (10:21) 

Icelantic Pioneer Prototype (10:55) 

J Skis Hotshot Prototype (15:45) 

Romp Zorro 100 Prototype (17:06)

Salomon Addikt Pro 66 (18:35)

Kaestle Marble 84 (21:17)

Majesty HNX Ti (23:05)

New Salomon QST Skis (25:55)

DPS Carbon Pisteworks 79 (30:10)

Mito Skis (34:59)

ON3P Woodsman 100 (38:02)

Liberty Radian 100 (41:09)

Snowboard Gear (42:58)

J Skis Escalator (46:00)

Patagonia Powslayer & Nano-Air Ultralight Freeride (50:08)

Apparel (54:37)

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Crested Butte Mountain Resort recently got 40+ inches of new snow in just a few days, so it was time to break out the big skis. Jonathan and Luke discuss the very new (and very different) Head Kore 118Ti and Kore 112Ti; the latest iteration of the ON3P Billy Goat 118; Tyrolia’s Attack Hybrid binding; Salomon’s revised QST Blank and QST 106, and more.

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Blister Rec. Shop: Mountain Ops

Join us @ Blister Summit 2025

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TOPICS & TIMES:

Mountain Ops  (1:21)

Blister Summit (2:26)

Head Kore 118Ti & 112Ti (3:20)

Tyrolia Attack Hybrid (14:40)

ON3P Billy Goat 118 (21:00)

Rossignol Sender Free 118 (25:03)

Salomon QST Blank (27:35)

Salomon QST 106 (32:50)

Summit (38:35)

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