Smith Variant Brim Helmet with skullcandy bluetooth

Helmet - $160 | Bluetooth kit - $200
www.smithoptics.com

There’s a lot of argument whether listening to music while skiing is a good thing. Personally, I like to listen on the lift (especially when I don’t want to talk to the person next to me). The biggest problem I have, however, is fumbling around with the spaghetti of my ear buds and the wires.

This snap-in Bluetooth kit makes it simple to tune in while on the hill. The headphones become part of the helmet, and once you enable your iPod or other MP3 player, you won’t ever have to deal with a tangle of wires again. It’s even more useful with your phone. You can take a call on the hill without having to try to shove your phone up to your ear inside your helmet.

The kit pairs with several Smith lids, but we opted for the Variant, which features 22 adjustable vents and a hybrid shell construction that keeps it light while still protecting your noggin. That light weight and all those vents make it ideal for transitions from hot, athletic skiing to sitting on a cold lift.

 

Smith Variant Brim Helmet with skullcandy bluetooth

Helmet - $160 | Bluetooth kit - $200
www.smithoptics.com

There’s a lot of argument whether listening to music while skiing is a good thing. Personally, I like to listen on the lift (especially when I don’t want to talk to the person next to me). The biggest problem I have, however, is fumbling around with the spaghetti of my ear buds and the wires.

This snap-in Bluetooth kit makes it simple to tune in while on the hill. The headphones become part of the helmet, and once you enable your iPod or other MP3 player, you won’t ever have to deal with a tangle of wires again. It’s even more useful with your phone. You can take a call on the hill without having to try to shove your phone up to your ear inside your helmet.

The kit pairs with several Smith lids, but we opted for the Variant, which features 22 adjustable vents and a hybrid shell construction that keeps it light while still protecting your noggin. That light weight and all those vents make it ideal for transitions from hot, athletic skiing to sitting on a cold lift.

 

ContourGPS Helmet Camera

Helmet Cam - $300
www.contour.com

The helmet camera has become ubiquitous on the hill for rippers who want to document each and every powder pillow and cliff drop (or maybe just a close-up view of some crossed tips). Not only does Contour's low-profile latest camera film in rich 1080p HD with a 130-degree wide-angle lens, it also will track your speed, elevation and location. You can actually go back and retrace that golden run on a topo map of the ski area.

Now, that's a fun function when you are headed down the typical groomed run, but it's essential when you are out in the trees—you can check out exactly where you were on the map to figure out how to get back to those secret lines and stashes later. And if you go on a big trip to, say, La Grave, Switzerland, you can come back and show off that fancy skiing within the ridiculous contour lines of the steep couloirs of the Alps.

Plus, Contour hosts an online community where you can directly upload and share the videos with other aspiring filmmakers in a giant collage format. Contour also hosts a bracket-style contest for the best videos shot on its camera. All of which is very cool, but when it comes down to it, the best thing about the camera is that it shoots a whopping eight hours of video on one 2GB SD card and runs on a rechargeable lithium ion battery.

Zeal Optics Transcend SPPX GPS 2.0 Goggles

Zeal Optics Transcend SPPX GPS 2.0 Goggles - $549
www.zealoptics.com

Curious about your speed, altitude, time or distance as you're bombing down the hill? Simply take a glance down at the lower right of these goggles where a display screen tracks all those vital stats (and lets you download them later to a computer). While the ability to glance down and see those stats live is thrilling, it's even better to be able to head home and analyze all that data the same way you would with a running or cycling workout.

And the goggles themselves? The polarized, photochromatic lenses will automatically change tint to adjust to bright sun or clouds. That means you won't need several pairs of goggles or deal with the pains of swapping out lenses for different days on the hill. The Transcend series, with the same display and functionality, is available in less expensive models with lesser lens technology.

Columbia Circuit Breaker Softshell

Columbia Circuit Breaker Softshell - $850
www.columbia.com

For me, one of the most difficult parts of getting ready for a day on the hill is figuring out how to dress. Skiing is athletic—despite cold temps you burn a lot of energy and sweat. But it's also often cold enough to freeze the snot in your nostrils when you stop, especially when you get stuck on one of those creaky old lifts. The answer to this temperature dilemma has traditionally been to dress in layers, but that requires a lot of futzing as temps change as well as the problem of where to put that puffy you just shed. Pit zips and other venting mechanisms do some good, but ultimately not enough when you are really working hard. The truth is no ski jacket can adjust to the rapid temperature changes of the sport.

The Circuit Breaker solves that problem with a built-in, electronic heating system. Simply, press a button and you can turn the heat on at three different settings—low, medium or high. Since it's a soft shell, it's athletic enough for the work and sweat of hard skiing but don't be scared off by the term "softshell"—it will still shuck off precipitation. And you won't have to worry about the bulk of layering. Two strategically placed battery packs take up a bit of space in the chest, but otherwise it functions like any other storm-ready softshell. Earlier versions of the same heated shell technology had some bugs, but Columbia got it right in this versatile jacket.

Outdoor Research Ambit Gloves

Outdoor Research Ambit Gloves - $99
www.OutdoorResearch.com

The smart phone has become mandatory equipment on the lift—for everything from shooting video to tracking your fantasy football league. The only problem? You need to remove your gloves to operate the touch screen. But these insulated, waterproof/ breathable gloves include TouchTec leather, which has been treated with nanotechnology—which put simply consists of microscopic "robots" that give the leather the feel of bare skin—so that it can operate that screen while on your hand. It even works on an ATM screen when you need to grab some cash to pay for that third round at après.

Backcountry Access Float 18

Backcountry Access Float 18 - $685
www.backcountryaccess.com

I was caught in a slide in Switzerland two years ago. I was lucky. Even though I got bounced over a cliff band, I was not buried or seriously injured. The slide was a surprise—it hit us while we were traversing through our supposed safe zone. And one thing it made me realize was that all the training in the world won't help you if you do get caught—and avi beacons and other recovery devices won't protect you from the pure violence of sliding snow. But an avalanche air bag just might.

Just a few years ago avalanche air bags were only found on the backs of Swiss mountain guides. The drawstring-operated bags have been deployed and documented over 220 times in slides in Europe over the past decade, with only three fatalities. The technology—which makes a trapped skier instantly buoyant, rocketing them to the top of the snow—is just catching on here in North America and BCA's 6.5-pound,18-liter backpack armed with a 150-liter airbag could save the life of a sidecountry skier who hops out of bounds for freshies and gets caught in a slide. One heli guide I know who deployed his bag when he was caught in a big slide described it as feeling as if "the hand of God" reached down into the maelstrom of snowy death and pulled him right to the top, and life. I'll put it this way—now that I have one, I will never ski in slide terrain without it.

Fischer Soma Vacuum 130

Fischer Soma Vacuum 130 - $895
www.FischerSkis.com

Forget custom insoles, Fischer's new Vacuum series of boots actually allow you to custom-mold the plastic boot shells to your foot. Buy your boots at a participating retailer and they will heat them up in a special oven at 80 degrees Celsius. Stand in them for 20 minutes as they cool to fit your foot shape and set the forward lean between 14 and 17 degrees. It's a godsend if you have odd shaped feet that don't like to conform to the limitations of a pre-cast shell, but it's not just for weird feet. The special plastic, which Fischer calls Vacu-Plast, is just as supportive and responsive as any other ski boot shell, but, since it has been custom cast to your individual foot, it is not as heavy. You now have light, responsive boot that's literally an extension of your foot. Oh, and you can still pimp it out with custom liners and insoles for even more exact performance.

Wagner Custom Skis with vLink

Wagner Custom Skis with vLink - Cost varies
www.WagnerCustomSkis.com

Tell Wagner Custom Skis exactly how you want your skis built—give them everything from your favorite terrain to a hand-painted top sheet design—and they will build your dream set of boards. Like to hit the bumps and trees? Ski with an old-school swivel? Want your t-shirt company's logo on your boards? Done. Done. And done. But the process takes into account more than how you say you ski. The key to designing truly custom boards is when Wagner ships you a pair of test skis with vLink computers attached that record every move you make on the X, Y and Z axes at 6,500 frames per second so that Wagner can further dial in your custom boards according to your exact style on the mountain.

Smart Phone Apps

Smart phones are only as good as the apps you have downloaded to them and there are a few that can seriously enhance your ski experience. Start with the SkiReport.com app, which tracks weather and snow conditions at your favorite resorts, including video and comments from folks who are on the mountain. You can also set it up to give you alerts when your favorite ski areas get a dump and you can check and see what resorts in North America got the most snow each day.

ContourGPS Helmet Camera

Helmet Cam - $300
www.contour.com

The helmet camera has become ubiquitous on the hill for rippers who want to document each and every powder pillow and cliff drop (or maybe just a close-up view of some crossed tips). Not only does Contour's low-profile latest camera film in rich 1080p HD with a 130-degree wide-angle lens, it also will track your speed, elevation and location. You can actually go back and retrace that golden run on a topo map of the ski area.

Now, that's a fun function when you are headed down the typical groomed run, but it's essential when you are out in the trees—you can check out exactly where you were on the map to figure out how to get back to those secret lines and stashes later. And if you go on a big trip to, say, La Grave, Switzerland, you can come back and show off that fancy skiing within the ridiculous contour lines of the steep couloirs of the Alps.

Plus, Contour hosts an online community where you can directly upload and share the videos with other aspiring filmmakers in a giant collage format. Contour also hosts a bracket-style contest for the best videos shot on its camera. All of which is very cool, but when it comes down to it, the best thing about the camera is that it shoots a whopping eight hours of video on one 2GB SD card and runs on a rechargeable lithium ion battery.

Zeal Optics Transcend SPPX GPS 2.0 Goggles

Zeal Optics Transcend SPPX GPS 2.0 Goggles - $549
www.zealoptics.com

Curious about your speed, altitude, time or distance as you're bombing down the hill? Simply take a glance down at the lower right of these goggles where a display screen tracks all those vital stats (and lets you download them later to a computer). While the ability to glance down and see those stats live is thrilling, it's even better to be able to head home and analyze all that data the same way you would with a running or cycling workout.

And the goggles themselves? The polarized, photochromatic lenses will automatically change tint to adjust to bright sun or clouds. That means you won't need several pairs of goggles or deal with the pains of swapping out lenses for different days on the hill. The Transcend series, with the same display and functionality, is available in less expensive models with lesser lens technology.

Columbia Circuit Breaker Softshell

Columbia Circuit Breaker Softshell - $850
www.columbia.com

For me, one of the most difficult parts of getting ready for a day on the hill is figuring out how to dress. Skiing is athletic—despite cold temps you burn a lot of energy and sweat. But it's also often cold enough to freeze the snot in your nostrils when you stop, especially when you get stuck on one of those creaky old lifts. The answer to this temperature dilemma has traditionally been to dress in layers, but that requires a lot of futzing as temps change as well as the problem of where to put that puffy you just shed. Pit zips and other venting mechanisms do some good, but ultimately not enough when you are really working hard. The truth is no ski jacket can adjust to the rapid temperature changes of the sport.

The Circuit Breaker solves that problem with a built-in, electronic heating system. Simply, press a button and you can turn the heat on at three different settings—low, medium or high. Since it's a soft shell, it's athletic enough for the work and sweat of hard skiing but don't be scared off by the term "softshell"—it will still shuck off precipitation. And you won't have to worry about the bulk of layering. Two strategically placed battery packs take up a bit of space in the chest, but otherwise it functions like any other storm-ready softshell. Earlier versions of the same heated shell technology had some bugs, but Columbia got it right in this versatile jacket.

Outdoor Research Ambit Gloves

Outdoor Research Ambit Gloves - $99
www.OutdoorResearch.com

The smart phone has become mandatory equipment on the lift—for everything from shooting video to tracking your fantasy football league. The only problem? You need to remove your gloves to operate the touch screen. But these insulated, waterproof/ breathable gloves include TouchTec leather, which has been treated with nanotechnology—which put simply consists of microscopic "robots" that give the leather the feel of bare skin—so that it can operate that screen while on your hand. It even works on an ATM screen when you need to grab some cash to pay for that third round at après.

Backcountry Access Float 18

Backcountry Access Float 18 - $685
www.backcountryaccess.com

I was caught in a slide in Switzerland two years ago. I was lucky. Even though I got bounced over a cliff band, I was not buried or seriously injured. The slide was a surprise—it hit us while we were traversing through our supposed safe zone. And one thing it made me realize was that all the training in the world won't help you if you do get caught—and avi beacons and other recovery devices won't protect you from the pure violence of sliding snow. But an avalanche air bag just might.

Just a few years ago avalanche air bags were only found on the backs of Swiss mountain guides. The drawstring-operated bags have been deployed and documented over 220 times in slides in Europe over the past decade, with only three fatalities. The technology—which makes a trapped skier instantly buoyant, rocketing them to the top of the snow—is just catching on here in North America and BCA's 6.5-pound,18-liter backpack armed with a 150-liter airbag could save the life of a sidecountry skier who hops out of bounds for freshies and gets caught in a slide. One heli guide I know who deployed his bag when he was caught in a big slide described it as feeling as if "the hand of God" reached down into the maelstrom of snowy death and pulled him right to the top, and life. I'll put it this way—now that I have one, I will never ski in slide terrain without it.

Fischer Soma Vacuum 130

Fischer Soma Vacuum 130 - $895
www.FischerSkis.com

Forget custom insoles, Fischer's new Vacuum series of boots actually allow you to custom-mold the plastic boot shells to your foot. Buy your boots at a participating retailer and they will heat them up in a special oven at 80 degrees Celsius. Stand in them for 20 minutes as they cool to fit your foot shape and set the forward lean between 14 and 17 degrees. It's a godsend if you have odd shaped feet that don't like to conform to the limitations of a pre-cast shell, but it's not just for weird feet. The special plastic, which Fischer calls Vacu-Plast, is just as supportive and responsive as any other ski boot shell, but, since it has been custom cast to your individual foot, it is not as heavy. You now have light, responsive boot that's literally an extension of your foot. Oh, and you can still pimp it out with custom liners and insoles for even more exact performance.

Wagner Custom Skis with vLink

Wagner Custom Skis with vLink - Cost varies
www.WagnerCustomSkis.com

Tell Wagner Custom Skis exactly how you want your skis built—give them everything from your favorite terrain to a hand-painted top sheet design—and they will build your dream set of boards. Like to hit the bumps and trees? Ski with an old-school swivel? Want your t-shirt company's logo on your boards? Done. Done. And done. But the process takes into account more than how you say you ski. The key to designing truly custom boards is when Wagner ships you a pair of test skis with vLink computers attached that record every move you make on the X, Y and Z axes at 6,500 frames per second so that Wagner can further dial in your custom boards according to your exact style on the mountain.

Smart Phone Apps

Smart phones are only as good as the apps you have downloaded to them and there are a few that can seriously enhance your ski experience. Start with the SkiReport.com app, which tracks weather and snow conditions at your favorite resorts, including video and comments from folks who are on the mountain. You can also set it up to give you alerts when your favorite ski areas get a dump and you can check and see what resorts in North America got the most snow each day.