Our Staff’s Favourites for Winter 2019-2020

Every ordering season brings the same questions to the table. What products will perform the best? Which one are the best adapted to our terrain? What do we see on people's feet? Weeks of discussions and decisions lead to what we bring into the store. In the end, only the products we believe in make the cut. However, a few pieces of gear always stand out and make all of us really excited. Here are some those special items, our staff’s top 5 picks for next Winter.

The Fischer Travers CC Boot

Fischer’s Travers boot has been performing amazingly in the past two years. It combines this scandalous, skimo-inspired  range of motion with a high cuff and a great stiffness for sub - 100mm underfoot skis. Our most popular boot just keeps getting better for 2020! 

The new Travers CC features a full carbon cuff for more stiffness and power transfer in a lighter package. Fischer has also worked on their buckle and Velcro closure. The finished product will fit different calf volumes much better. Otherwise, expect the same awesome Travers fit with an average to high instep height and a fair amount of volume. This boot is one of our bootfitters favourite for customizations.

The Movement GO/ Alp Tracks Line

Movement skis have this special thing about them that we can’t quite put our finger on. Their skis have this perfect mix of power, playfulness and stability that makes them a beautiful tool in the hands of most intermediate to advanced skiers. 

After working hard on the Alp Tracks skis and giving us reliable planks at a super light weight, Movement is bringing that same ski in a new freeride-inspired construction. Always looking for that ski that has the maximum amount of power and precision but still weight-conscious? The new GO skis all feature a titanal-reinforced construction at a very competitive weight for those who like to push hard and go fast. 

 Alp Tracks: The Ultimate Weapon for classic ski-touring

Go: The same thing, with more power underfoot and a slight weight penalty (expect 1500 to 1700 grams per foot in the 100 and the 106 mm versions).

The New Plum Bindings

Plum bindings have been a revelation for many skiers. Apart from a few sticky brakes, those made-in-France bindings have proven to be amazingly reliable and durable.  

For 2020, Plum is releasing the Oazo 6, a softer version of our best-selling binding from last Winter. With a softer vertical release value (6) and the same adjustable lateral release value (4-10), the Oazo won’t be a tool for for heavier skiers only anymore! Other features include a 20 mm adjustment-plate and two different riser heights, all for 200 grams per binding. 

Another new and highly anticipated product in the 2019-2020 lineup is the Summit binding. French machining meets user friendliness and ease of use in this replacement for the classic Yak freeride binding. Plum kept the weight at a very reasonable (and lighter-than-most) 550 grams per foot for a binding that includes everything, from a rotating tower and a self-locking brake to pole basket-friendly risers. Available in 3.5-7 and 5.5-12 release value options

The ARVA Evo 5 Avalanche Transceiver

Considering how good transceivers have gotten over the past few years, we thought we’d already seen everything. It turns out we were wrong. It just keeps getting better. ARVA is releasing its new EVO 5 transceiver this Winter, which packs quite a punch for such a small unit. With a competitive pricing, an amazing search range and an awesome firmware, expect the EVO 5 to quickly become a staple of avalanche safety equipment. Our staff love the built-in redundancy and the ease-of-use of the EVO 5.

The SkiTrab Magico 2.0 Ski

If there is one catalog that we can’t wait to receive each Spring, it is the SkiTrab one. Those Italians are masters in the art of producing super-light and super strong skis. It is no secret that durability can be tricky when skis hover around the kilo mark, but SkiTrab found the recipe for indestructible skis many years ago. Their skis are consistently the best prepared skis, the flattest bases and the most consistent edges out of the box. They are a pleasure to work with from the mounting table to the local ski lines.  

For 2020, SkiTrab is bringing something we never thought we’d see from them: a rocker. The new Magico 2.0 and Maestro 2.0 are your ultimate ski-mountaineering weapons. They now feature a tip rocker and an early rise at the tail on top of a brand new flex profile and geometry. These are THE skis that we can’t wait to hold in our hands. 

Fantastic durability and fantastic edgehold with now more floatation  and forgiveness in soft snow, that is the Italian flair that SkiTrab is bringing to the ski industry! 

What about you? What new gear are you the most excited about? Let us know in the comments below!