Freeride

What is the great joy of skiing? Every person would answer this question differently, but we all share the joy of skiing. One person is particularly good at sharing his joy with others. Henry, known as the legend "Snowflake" from Engelberg, takes us with him this season and shows us his winter world.

In the season report, we traditionally look back on the past winter. The snow conditions in 2022/23 were anything but good, although late snowfall in the spring made us feel a little better towards the end. However, the May powder doesn't hide the fact that it was a difficult season with too many sharks and too little snow. Nevertheless, there were of course some highlights, both on the mountain and on PowderGuide.com.

Freeriding will become an Olympic discipline from 2030, as the IOC and FIS announced today at a joint press conference. The competition format will be slightly adapted, but the "spirit" of the sport will be maintained, assured FWT CEO Nicolas Hale-Woods.

First things first: I am positively biased - because the Bamboo Freeride ski poles presented here are not the first poles from the Swedish manufacturer Kang from Åre that have accompanied me in the mountains. I was so impressed by the entry-level Kang Bamboo model that I quickly went into raptures about the freeride version. But now let's get down to the nitty gritty and the hard facts about the GEAR OF THE WEEK:

His videos are as popular as ski trips to the Lyngen Alps: Nikolai Schirmer talks about extreme skiing in Norway on Instagram and YouTube. In this interview, the 32-year-old Norwegian talks about his attempt to reconcile climate protection and a career as a professional freerider, what makes freeriding in the far north so special and how he tries to minimize the risks of his profession.

The Tigard (a mixture of Tiger and Leopard, by the way) is the new top boot from Dynafit. At approx. 1.5kg, the Tigard is a relatively light touring boot. Thanks to the carbon-reinforced Grilamid, overlap construction and the massive Hoji-Lock locking mechanism, it still has a real flex of 130.

The SLF avalanche warning service regularly explains various aspects of avalanche prevention in the "AvaLounge". Another exciting livestream will take place tomorrow (14 March). Topic: No risk, no fun - is there anything to it?

The Tour 30 Women Removable Airbag 3.0 from Mammut promises optimum carrying comfort with a hip belt customised for women and a shorter back length. Thanks to its low weight, the good organisation of the interior and its visually appealing appearance, the backpack will make freeriding and ski touring fans' hearts beat faster.

The book presented here dates back to 2001 (!), written by three veterans of ski guide literature, the Innsbruck couple Rudolf and Siegrun Weiss and the Viennese mountain author and publishing director Kurt Schall. The fact that such an old book with a title that seems to have fallen out of time is being reviewed here either speaks in favour of the book or against the reviewer.

Innsbruck can be seen as the freeride capital of Europe. Where, if not here, should children and young people have the opportunity to explore the terrain together with professional instructors and experience freeriding in a safe environment? The Freeride Academy Innsbruck pursues precisely these goals. The vision is: "to ski or snowboard well, have lots of fun and be out and about with maximum safety away from the secured pistes".

With the Mod9t, Mod8t and Mod9, Original+ is launching its first skis suitable for off-piste and touring. What's special about them is that the skis are customised and built. This is designed to maximise skiing pleasure.

It's finally time again! The ski and snowboard season is just around the corner! In Innsbruck, the new winter will be welcomed with the first Freeride Night on November 1st live at Moustache. The Freeride Nights are a meeting point for Innsbruck's local heroes and a stage for ski and snowboard "home videos". Motivated riders can still submit their videos until 30.10.!