Freeride

For the first time, the BigLePowSki tour made a stop in Scandinavia from April 13 to 15, 2012. The Dude also had the right nose for this fourth and final event of the winter in Sogndal (Norway), as the temperatures dropped to wintry degrees again just in time and it snowed the finest powder snow that you wouldn't expect even in Norway in April. The BigLePowSki-Happening is organized by Black Diamond and Arc?teryx and is supported by Fritschi, FreerideMap, Pieps and Polartec.

After a few days of earn-your-turn from the motorhome on the various famous passes of Southwest Alaska, the first heli day of our Dreamline trip had given us a taste for more!

Not so long ago, people still went skiing and touring in the tried and tested woolen undershirts and pants. Nowadays, it's normal for ski underwear to be made from dozens of different textiles and adapted to the body's different requirements in terms of breathability and heat capacity. We put the Arc?teryx Phase SV Comp LS functional shirt under the microscope and subjected it to extensive wear tests during ski tours and freeriding.

The fourth and final BigLePowSki freeski happening of the 2012 season will take place in Norway. For the first time, the Dude is heading north from the European Alps and will be making a guest appearance in idyllic Sogndal from April 13 to 15, 2012! Once again, a series of workshops, testing opportunities and of course the legendary Dude Party await all participants. This time there will also be a photo contest under the care of PowderGuide photographer Baschi Bender. The BigLePowSki event series is presented by Black Diamond, Arc?teryx, Diamir Fritschi, FreerideMap, Polartec and Pieps.

It seems like worlds have passed since my last visit to the Kitzbühel Alps a few weeks ago and the weekend just gone. From the depths of winter straight into midsummer. To my great surprise, I discovered one thing: the conditions between Hahnenkamm and Pass Thurn are still perfect. No powder, but "perfect spring snow".

The request in the fall came out of the blue: "Do you want to go to Georgia? I was there in the summer, the mountains look promising." Georgia, hmmm. Check the rusty geography in my brain. It should be somewhere in the east, close to Russia. Oh yes, there was a conflict over an autonomous region between Georgia and Russia in 2008. That's it for my knowledge of Georgia. Wrongly so, because the country has an incredible amount to offer, as I will gradually learn during the trip.

Völkl's widest powder ski is getting an update this winter. Since the Kuro first came onto the market in winter 2008, it has only changed marginally. The 2013 version is now being revised and will be significantly stiffer and therefore heavier thanks to titanium inserts. PowderGuide has already had the opportunity to put the powder weapon through its paces in the deep Tyrolean snow and the rugged off-piste terrain of Disentis.

We encounter almost no vehicles on the way from Baqueira-Beret in the Spanish part of the Pyrenees to Andorra. After two hours of constant ups and downs on the narrow roads over the Port de Bonaigua and the El Cantó Pass, the sea of lights of the duty-free shopping nirvana of Andorra shines out of the darkness deep below us.

From March 23 to 25, 2012, the BigLePowSki– event series took place in Chamonix (France) for the first time. No other ski resort in the Alps can keep up with the off-piste possibilities of the five resorts in the Chamonix Valley, so it seemed only a matter of time before the Dude made an appearance here too. With sunshine and good snow conditions, the participants were able to explore the off-piste terrain of Les Grands Montets on Saturday and Brévent / Flégère on Sunday with the local guides. The BigLePowSki is organized by Black Diamond, Arc?teryx, Diamir, Freeride Maps, Pieps and Polartec.

On Saturday, March 18, 2012, 59 skiers, snowboarders and telemark skiers tackled the rocky and challenging competition slope of the Piz Piogn Crap in the Maighelstal valley on the Oberalp Pass. All participants were treated to some great freeride action.

From March 23 to 25, 2012, the third BigLePowSki Freeski Happening of the 2012 season will take place - and for the first time, the Dude will be making a guest appearance in the Mecca of steep face skiing, Chamonix! A series of workshops, testing opportunities and of course the legendary Dude Party await all participants. The BigLePowSki event series is presented by Black Diamond, Arc?teryx, Diamir Fritschi, FreerideMap, Polartec and Pieps.

The Manhattan is the second widest freeride ski in the 2012 product range of the Canadian mountain sports brand G3 (Genuine Guide Gear) after the Highball, with a perfectly tuned 108 millimeters under the binding. Despite its considerable dimensions, the Manhattan turns out to be a great touring freerider with good running characteristics and even better downhill performance.