The 3rd* Annual BLISTER Awards, SIA

• The Sartor Resartus Award •

All the new outerwear tech at SIA really makes you wish that Diogenes Teufelsdröckh was there to see all the latest witchcraft and wizardry. (Thomas Carlyle shout out, Check.)

But seriously, the GORE geeks and pretty much everybody working in outerwear these days are either a rare species of super-genius nerds, or else they’ve made a deal with the devil that allows them to make impossible clothes that are both super light and warm, or fully waterproof and exceptionally breathable. Only catch is that at some SIA show down the line, the ground will open and the devil will drag them all to hell. (Marlowe & Goethe, Check.)

But till then, here are three of the most eternally damning developments we saw at the show:

1) GORE-TEX Pro

Long and short: GORE has taken their already very good GORE-TEX Pro Shell and allegedly made it more durable, more waterproof, more windproof, and 28% more breathable than the last version of GORE Pro. It’s sort of like reaching infinity +1.

Arc’teryx, The North Face, Eider, SCOTT, and a number of other manufacturers are adopting this new GORE-Tex “Pro” (you’d think that all these improvements might warrant a new name?), and it’ll be interesting to see whether these improvements feel significant or subtle on the mountain.

Arc'teryx Caden Jacket, Blister Gear Review
Arc’teryx Caden Jacket with GORE-TEX Pro.

 

2) Primaloft Thermoball Synthetic Insulation

Thermoball synthetic insulation is a new down analog insulation from Primaloft that boasts the equivalent loft of 650FP down, as seen here in The North Face Thermoball Hoodie for men.

TNF Thermoball Hoody, Blister Gear Review
TNF Thermoball Hoody

The benefits of down have always been that it is a more packable and lighter insulator than synthetics, but synthetics seem to be catching up. Plus, as you all know by now, synthetic insulators will still keep you warm when they get wet, unlike down. Geese everywhere, rejoice.

 

3) Cocona

Evidently, coconut is the new hemp. I’m seeing coconut products everywhere, even outerwear.

According to Homeschool Snowboarding, a young apparel company out of Portland, Oregon, says that “Cocona is a natural branded technology (activated carbon from coconut shells) that increases the surface area to help move moisture away from your skin and move it through the fabric laminate, increasing breathability 40-60% over the competition.”

Homeschool Snowboarding unveiled their Universe Shell for 13/14, which incorporates a 3.5L Cocona fabric. This jacket has a longer fit and a fabric derived from…broken-down coconuts.

Homeschool Universe Shell, Blister Gear Review
Homeschool Snowboarding Universe Shell

Eider, Rab, The North Face, Marmot, Norrona, Obermeyer and others are making use of Cocona, and Adidas is using a Cocona liner with a stretch Primaloft insulator called the Ndosphere Primaloft Hoodie. It utilizes a Cocona liner with Primloft stretch inserts on the interior. In other words, the inside stretches but the outside doesn’t. It’s definitely an interesting idea in synthetic insulation, that, while it’s more directly aimed at ice climbing (where you would be swinging a tool over your head) is applicable to skiing as well.

More than anything, all these technical coconut clothes really makes Tom Hanks look like a serious underachiever in Cast Away.

 

31 comments on “The 3rd* Annual BLISTER Awards, SIA”

  1. Did you guys check it out the slightly stiffer Blizzard Gunsmoke and the lighter Scout? What are your thoughts on both of them? Would the stiffer gunsmoke a contender agains the 115?

    • Hey Marcel,

      While I didn’t get the chance to take a close look at the new Gunsmoke or Scout, I will say that I don’t really see either of them as being in the same category as the 115. The Gunsmoke favors a more upright, light and centered stance (where the 115 can be skied from a more forward , aggressive position) and has more tail rocker than the 115. The new stiffer flex may make the Gunsmoke’s tails a bit more reliable, but in any case the 115 is going to feel more directional and less playful. Quest 115 = big mountain powder ski. Gunsmoke = surfy, very playful, backcountry jib ski. The Cochise (the Scout with metal laminate construction) is more big mountain oriented, but is less of a powder ski than the 115 at 108 underfoot. It has a longer turn radius, does great in light crud and chop, but wont float as well as the 115. That’s how I see the three differing. We look forward to getting on both the Scout and new Gunsmoke soon. Hope this helps!

      Will

  2. When I came across the Soul 7 footage that is already available on youtube since a couple of weeks, my immediate thought was that someone in their R&D department must have spent a significant amount of time on blister. Seriously, it just cannot be that all of Jonathan’s complaints and concerns on how much the tails of the S7/super7 sucked was not heard by someone at Rossi and this all happened by accident.

    Well, there is another possibility; some superior force said: “Well, ok Jonathan, I am going to fix your s7 super 7 problem. Yet, I’ll start messing around with the Bibby instead”.

    Can’t wait to read your first impressions on the new Rossi lineup and please when publishing pictures, choose one where Jonathan is grinning from ear to ear while skiing the new super 7…

  3. If anyone at Blister doesn’t feel like hiking up 50000 m of vert to test the new Dynafit Beast 16 AT Binding, well then I’m your man! Looks like a compelling choice for the new breed of backcountry huckers. Perfect for those who want to ride at Revelstoke Mountain Resort when the Avi is high, and then head of to Rogers Pass when things calm down a bit. It would be nice to be able to hit the big drops in the BC without worrying about premature release. Hopefully it will have some serious pre-sales testing to ensure it does release properly.

    Then again, maybe being the first to test a new kind of binding isn’t such a great idea?

  4. I demoed a Soul 7 today. It was the first time I’ve ever skied any of the Rossi S-series skis. Unfortunately, conditions weren’t great (a few inches of dust on crust) and it was 180 cm length (I’m 6’1″/185# and would’ve preferred the 188). Those caveats aside, it felt pretty stable despite the light weight and short length. It was snappy and super easy to throw around. I’d be interested in the larger version.

  5. Any more detailed information on the El Capo? Turn Radius? Is it a short 185 or true 185 in length? That ski has me very interested as well.

    • I’ve skied the El Capo for a day in piste. It’s a big, stiff and strong ski. Felt like a big Mantra that wanted to be skied fast and aggressively. Despite this, it turned easily due to the tip rocker and could be smeared in the icy piste.

      It just jumped on top of boilet plate but that might be expexted. All in all, not my kind of ski.

      It dove for another skier during a powder day and required quite a lot of weight on the tail not to dive in the pow.

  6. Per usual a great article, but I was wondering, wouldn’t the experience 98 be better with some carbon fiber in it for its stiffness instead of the heavy titanal??? I actual was kinda waiting for an update like that…

    • I could see that, Kevin, but I personally wouldn’t want to see the titanal removed for carbon stringers. I think it would feel like a pretty different ski—lighter, yes, but almost certainly less damp. Might improve the E98’s all-mountain game, but it’s just so much fun to rip these on edge at speed over smooth or rough groomers, I wouldn’t want to tinker with the formula. Mostly, I just need to get back on this ski soon.

      • Thanks, Im studying engineering so I’m really interested in the dynamics of the skis, so that was a really helpful reply!! :)
        I just finished a fantastic week of skiing in the French alps (Paradiski, La Plagne), with about 2 foot of fresh powder, on my new Rossignol Squad 7’s, which I bought thanks to the fantastic reviews on this fantastic site ;)
        These ski’s are absolutely amazing!!! They’re perfect for the French alps, they ski well in chopped up snow in the beginning of a route, then they absolutely charge the open fresh powder, and when you arrive at the tree line they still are super!
        They also handle really good on the slopes, especially short turns. One thing though, I suddenly have the sides of my legs bruised up because of the effort it takes to put them on the edges on the slopes :) , good thing I work out up to 4 times a week!
        After skiing powder on Rossi 9s for a long time and then full camber twin tip Blizzard Titan Chronus for about the last 8 years, I notices I had to change my technique completely! No more backseat skiing! I wiped out the back about 3 times this week :) mostly on harder snow, but I like it because on the slopes I’m used to pressure the front a while lot.
        There is only one thing I really didn’t like about these skis, when on very icy slopes, when turning/slipping they would start flapping very violently!! Maybe it has to do with the edges I’ve set, at 0.75 base (which im going to change to 0.5, I think) and 2 side angle????
        but overall, I’m in love :)
        Do you guys sometimes ski in Europe??? I’d love to join if possible :)

        • Oh yeah and one more thing, those squad 7’s turn on a dime in powder, which absolutely awesome for the technical routes!! :p

  7. I am shocked the bibby pro has changed. Dear moment: no paulownia ever again. The weight savings gains you what? Nothing! We can all loose two pounds off our fat asses or stop being such massive VJJs and we will be able to rock the OG bibby pro for more vert than whatever that paulownia noodle saves us.

      • Unfortunately for me, while the new bibby might be better than the original, the 190 length is perfect. I don’t want it to be wider…but could deal with that. Longer or shorter? No thanks. I think we’ve seen enough of paulownia in skis over the past few years to know one thing: it just isn’t as damp as other core materials. Frankly I’m selfish with my infatuation with the original bibby so I just don’t care if Josh Bibby himself wanted another ski. The obvious solution is giving him a second ski AND keeping the original in the line up.

        So…I’ve gone ahead and purchased another pair of the 12/13 bibbys, knowing they’ll have to last me until they are brought back (an inevitable conclusion to this story).

  8. Looking forward to trying the new bibby. loved the 190, hopefully it hasn’t changed TOO much

    any news on the k2 boots? Blister’s thoughts on them?

  9. damn the night trains and ghost chants are gone too. now we get the ghost train. i’m not so sure moment should have tweaked three of there best skis or gotten rid of them.

  10. Didn’t get a chance on the new Bibby, but the Exit World feels just as stiff if not slightly stiffer. The ride is definitely damper than the current Bibby and perhaps some changes will be made before production. Honestly, I felt the Exit World could use more carbon fiber to add more pop. Doesn’t feel quite as lively as the Bibby.

    As far as the Ghost Train, that ski is the tits! Didn’t get it in fresh snow, but felt plenty stable on it at high speeds everywhere else.

  11. I took note of the big changes w/the Moment line up, including the ghost chant/night train mating, the more powder oriented Bibby, the reworked Belafonte and Tahoe, the newly redone Governor which was itself just redone and now the Exit World.. Many seem to have some portion of the Death Wish’s multiple sections of minicamber. As someone commented above. paulonia is great in ultralight bc skis ( I have a 5 1/2 lb ski though it is only 83cm wide and has a definite, i.e. low, speed limit and range, qualities not normally associated with Moment). What was the thinking driving these changes and when will you get your hands on these models? Thanks

  12. Any more details on the Redster Pro 120?

    After trying a variety of boots this year I have come to realize that I am one of those people who likes a bit more forward lean than current boots offer (other than when standing in line!) Given that the Redster seems to be one of the only boots that offers this feature, it is on my short list.

    Does the Pro 120 have a different boot board or other features that make it more of a ‘freeride” boot? I know Atomic offered three stiffness options in the 110/130 boot board anyway so I am curious what, if any, differences there are between the red 110/130 “race” boot and next years 120?

    As always, thanks for the great reviews of next year’s gear!!

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