What do you know about Alpaca wool? And how well do you know the ins and outs of manufacturing in Peru? We talk about these things and more with the founders of Arms of Andes, which is a company that makes outdoor clothing from Royal Alpaca wool that is single-sourced and produced in Peru. We discuss the characteristics and benefits of Royal Alpaca wool; the traditional method used to collect the wool; their commitment to (and the unique challenges of) manufacturing in Peru; what they’re doing to try to be one of the most sustainable clothing brands in the world; and more.
TOPICS & TIMES: 
What is Arms of Andes? (3:38)More specifics of Alpaca Wool (13:28)Manufacturing in Peru (21:00)Types of Alpaca Wool (31:32)Arms of Andes product line (36:25)Where to Purchase (40:59)What We’re Celebrating (42:41)
 
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What You’re Wearing, Part 6: Alpaca Wool

GEAR:30 is the podcast from BLISTER that dives deep into the details of the most interesting and innovative outdoor gear. You'll hear BLISTER reviewers discuss the gear they're testing, as well as product designers, professional athletes, and some of the gear-obsessed folks from our recommended shops weigh in on gear trends and the equipment they’ve been most impressed with. If you love outdoor gear, you're going to love this podcast. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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Luke Koppa and Jonathan Ellsworth discuss some of the new skis they’ve been testing this spring RELATED LINKS: Blister Rec Shop: Powder Hound Get Yourself Covered: BLISTER+ TOPICS & TIMES: Intro & Updates (2:36) Blizzard Anomaly 88 (9:50) K2 Omen Team (20:00) Blizzard Anomaly 94 (23:32) Armada Declivity X 102 & Declivity X 108 (33:58) Moment Commander 102 (40:46) Line Pandora 99 & Pandora 106 (49:14) Black Crows Corvus (57:38) Rossignol Sender Free 118 (1:03:57) Crashes & Close Calls (1:10:07) CHECK OUT OUR OTHER PODCASTS: Blister Cinematic CRAFTED Bikes & Big Ideas Blister Podcast Off The Couch Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Whiskey, Murder, and a Bunch of New Skis

After years in the backcountry and a near-death experience, IFMGA Guide, Jeff Banks, wanted to build a tool that could simplify and improve the decision-making of any backcountry user. The result is Aspect Avy. 
Kara Williard sat down with Jeff to discuss how this app compares to and complements other backcountry tools; key features such as Adaptive Slop Shading and “No Go Zones”; how it accounts for human factors; different types of risk; the general state of tech in the backcountry; and more. RELATED LINKS: Download Aspect Avy for FREE Blister Rec Shop: Boulder Orthotics Get Covered: BLISTER+ VIDEOS: BLISTER YouTube Channel Invest in Aspect Avy TOPICS & TIMES: Jeff’s Background: IFMGA & Nordic (3:10) Jeff’s Near-Death Experience (6:15) Intro to Aspect Avy (9:18) Adaptive Slope Shading (10:31) No-Go Zones, Coaching Tool, & Runout Zones (13:21) Human Factors (19:17) Adaptive Tools (23:20) Who’s It For? (30:32) Tech & Backcountry Skiing (46:26) CHECK OUT OUR OTHER PODCASTS: Blister Cinematic CRAFTED Bikes & Big Ideas Blister Podcast Off The Couch 
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New Tech to Simplify Decision Making in the Backcountry

What’s in and what’s out in ski design? And how have U.S. ski companies been doing over the past few years? At Blister Summit 2024, we discussed this and much more with Moment Skis CEO, Luke Jacobson, and Icelantic Skis founder, Ben Anderson. We cover notable trends; why skis cost what they do; the challenges of manufacturing skis in the U.S.; whether a core-shot-proof ski is possible, and more.
And, if you’d like to check out the video of this conversation, then head over to the BLISTER YouTube channel to watch this, plus other panel sessions from all of our Blister Summits, plus new brand lineup videos, etc. RELATED LINKS: Blister Rec Shop: Lone Pine Gear Exchange Get Covered: BLISTER+ VIDEOS: BLISTER YouTube Channel TOPICS & TIMES: Introductions 3:21 Manufacturing Challenges 8:08 Ski Costs vs. Ski Prices 14:10 Exciting New Ski Materials? 26:01 Audience Questions 35:50 CHECK OUT OUR OTHER PODCASTS: Blister Cinematic CRAFTED Bikes & Big Ideas Blister Podcast Off The Couch Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Icelantic & Moment Skis on Ski Design & U.S. Ski Manufacturing

This week, Jonathan, Luke, Kara, Kristin, and JBobb were testing a bunch of skis, boots, snowboards, and apparel in Taos Ski Valley. But it was more than just a review trip, since it was also the first time back at TSV for several of us who previously spent many seasons there — which meant there were a lot of feelings.
So in this conversation, we discuss a number of the carving-oriented and narrower all-mountain skis we were on this week; Luke’s food choices; the heated debate between Taos’ Chair 2 (West Basin) vs Chair 12 (Kachina Peak); and more.  RELATED LINKS: Blister Recommended Shop: Powder Hound AK BLISTER+ Membership: Learn More & Sign Up VIDEOS: Blister YouTube Channel TOPICS & TIMES: We’re Back! (5:45) The Great Debate: Taos’ Chair 2 vs. Chair 12 (11:27) Luke’s Green-Chile Cheeseburger (25:00) Morning Groomers & Carving Skis (30:53) Afternoon Steeps & All-Mountain Skis (44:31) Crashes & Close Calls: Jonathan’s Latest (1:05:54) CHECK OUT OUR OTHER PODCASTS: Blister Cinematic CRAFTED Bikes & Big Ideas Blister Podcast Off The Couch 
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Reviewer Reports: Taos Ski Valley, Carving Skis, All-Mountain Skis, & Luke’s 3-Day-Old Cheeseburger (Ep.290)

Luke Koppa and Kara Williard talk with Trygve Sande, one of the founders of Vertical Playground (VPG), which is our Blister Recommended Shop in Oppdal, Norway, to get a read on the past, present, and future of backcountry gear. We discuss current trends; all-time pivotal pieces of gear; the most durable products; the easiest ones to use; gear that helps break down the barriers to entry; skiing in Norway; and last but not least, Trygve’s involvement and collaboration with Hoji and 4FRNT’s new concept ski.  RELATED LINKS: Vertical Playground  GEAR:30 Ep.169: Vertical Playground, Oppdal Norway  Get Covered: BLISTER+ VIDEOS: Blister YouTube Channel  TOPICS & TIMES VPG background (2:19) Current Backcountry Trends (5:20) All-Time Pivotal Gear (11:01) Frame & Tech Bindings (13:09) Most Durable Products? (20:46) Top Products: Ease of Use (24:31) Hoji Lock (25:31) Dynafit Ridge Binding (31:11) Performance-to-Weight Ratio (28:06) Best Gear for Norway (31:26) Backcountry Accessories (33:38) Backpacks (35:20) Backcountry Gear Demos (36:54) Hoji & the Raven & 4FRNT Concept Ski (41:00) Summer at VPG (47:19) CHECK OUT OUR OTHER PODCASTS: Blister Cinematic CRAFTED Bikes & Big Ideas Blister Podcast Off The Couch 
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What You’re Wearing, Part 6: Alpaca Wool

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