Blister Labs: Results from our On-Snow Ski Testing & Dynamic Modeling

Recently, Austin Smith created a stir when he posted a video of a prototype of a snowboard binding … that rotates. So Jonathan talks with Austin about the idea, his prototyping process, the testing process, and his predictions for whether we’ll see a development like this come to market.RELATED LINKSOpenSnow.com/buy (use code Blister50)Blister Rec Shop: Teton Village SportsGet Yourself Covered: BLISTER+Get Our Winter Buyer’s GuideTOPICS & TIMES:OpenSnow Deal for GEAR:30 Listeners (1:30)Blister Rec Shop: Teton Village Sports (2:17)BLISTER+ News / Time to Get on Snow (3:16)Austin’s Roadtrip (5:50)Rotating Snowboard Binding (9:13)Testing the Prototype (12:02)Safety vs. Ride Quality (18:23)Future Predictions for Bindings (20:51)Realizing Dreams, Lessons Learned (23:22)Board Preferences & Riding Styles (25:21)CHECK OUT OUR OTHER PODCASTS:Blister CinematicBlister PodcastBikes & Big IdeasCRAFTED Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

On this week’s episode, Kara Williard sits down with some of the crew from our Blister Recommended Shop, Powder7, to quiz them on gear; discuss the skis, boots, and outerwear they’re most excited about this season; gear they’re sad to see go; the best and worst topsheets; and get some of their hot takes. Then we dive into the topic of circular business and how Powder7 has maintained this as a key part of their business model since they were based out of a garage through their ski trade-in / ski recycling program.RELATED LINKSBlister Recommended Shop: Powder7Our Full List of Blister Recommended ShopsGet Yourself Covered: BLISTER+Get Our Winter Buyer’s GuideTOPICS & TIMESMost Exciting Skis This Season? (4:30)Boots (11:23)Bindings (17:51)Blizzard Anomaly & Black Pearl (23:01)Gear Updates / Overhauls (28:56)Outerwear & Apparel (31:02)Awards: Topsheets (36:38)Powder7 Bussiness Circularity (41:54)Event Season & What’s Next (55:40)CHECK OUT OUR OTHER PODCASTS:Blister CinematicBlister PodcastBikes & Big IdeasCRAFTED Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The snow’s been falling here in Crested Butte, and we’re already fantasizing about those really deep days. So today, Jonathan Ellsworth and Paul Forward are discussing pow skis. They start by making the case for wide pow skis, then, they talk about a bunch of current pow skis, old pow skis, and some design specifics that they think are good ideas when you’re building a wide ski that’s designed to float for days.RELATED LINKSGet Yourself Covered: BLISTER+Get Our Winter Buyer’s GuideTOPICS & TIMES:The Case for Wide Pow Skis (7:45)1st Gen DPS Lotus 138 (27:56)Line Pescado (21:09)Heritage Labs 132 (34:18)K2 Powabunga (43:33)Volkl BMT 122 (54:32)DPS Lotus 124 Tour (57:06)K2 Hellbent (59:49)Praxis Protest (128) (1:01:17)Praxis Powderboards (1:04:07)Folsom Rapture (1:06:38)4FRNT Renegade (1:09:51)Faction La Machine 5 (1:10:35)Blizzard Spur (1:14:22)Salomon Rocker2 122 (1:22:53)Volkl Shiro (1:27:53)K2 Reckoner 124 (1:32:30)Paul’s Injury & Recovery (1:35:38)CHECK OUT OUR OTHER PODCASTS:Blister CinematicBlister PodcastBikes & Big IdeasCRAFTED Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Jonathan talks with Moment Skis CEO, Luke Jacobson, about Moment’s latest skis; some former Moment skis; some other companies’ skis; Moment snowboards?; why Hoji is a traitor(!!); and more.RELATED LINKSGet Yourself Covered: BLISTER+Get Our Winter Buyer’s GuideVIDEO: Luke J @ the Blister SummitTOPICS & TIMES:Company Overview & Mt. Rose (5:41)Factory Updates (8:43)Snowboards?? (17:08)Moment’s 24/25 Lineup (22:58)Deathwish 104 & Countach 110 (23:36)Wildcat (29:32)Meridian (35:18)Countach 104 vs the old Belafonte (40:39)Commander Series & Touring Skis (45:49)ATK x Moment Voyager Evo Binding (50:31)Reverse-Camber Skis (53:17)Q’s from Tyler Curle & Scott Andrus (1:00:16)CHECK OUT OUR OTHER PODCASTS:Blister CinematicBlister PodcastBikes & Big IdeasCRAFTED Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Kara Williard catches up with Drew and Rachel Harding of our Blister Recommended Shop, Spokane Alpine Haus, to hear all about the exciting recent developments at the shop; how this news runs counter to a lot of what you see from local retailers these days; what ski / snowboard gear they’re excited about for the 24/25 season, and more. RELATED LINKSSpokane Alpine HausBlister Recommended Shops Become a BLISTER+ Member24/25 Blister Winter Buyer’s GuideTOPICS & TIMESStore Background (1:39)Big Announcement & All the Details (10:52)Bringing in Bikes (20:20)Advice for Small Retailers (30:32)Love What You Do (31:26)Season Lease Program (33:00)The Winter Ahead (35:17)24/25 Gear (37:53)Ski Network & Community (41:55)CHECK OUT OUR OTHER PODCASTS:Blister CinematicBlister PodcastBikes & Big IdeasCRAFTED Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

When it comes to gear, we’ve all been there: loads of questions, crippling confusion, severe analysis paralysis. You need some help! So in this edition of GEAR THERAPY, BLISTER+ member, Pete Brantley, talks about getting back into skiing and playing football for the Oregon Ducks (and Chicago Bears!). Then he poses his most-pressing gear questions, and gets Jonathan’s best recommendations.RELATED LINKS:Episode Sponsor: Taos Ski ValleyBecome a BLISTER+ Member24/25 Blister Winter Buyer’s GuideTOPICS & TIMES:Pete’s Story & ‘Hot Dog… The Movie’ (4:15)Football: Oregon Ducks & Chicago Bears (21:45)Pete’s Crashes & Close Calls Story (30:47)Gear Therapy Begins (35:53)Atomic Maverick 95 (37:38)Chamonix / New Blister Guide to Chamonix (44:28)JE's Recommendations (47:37)Backcountry Skiing (1:12:56)Ski Boots & Ski Bags (1:13:53)Custom Footbeds (1:20:34)Our reviews & Pete’s Gear Purchases (1:27:02)CHECK OUT OUR OTHER PODCASTS:Blister CinematicBlister PodcastBikes & Big IdeasCRAFTED Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

We talk to ON3P Skis founder, Scott Andrus, about the 24/25 ON3P lineup; building skis in Portland, Oregon; and we dive into the weeds about numerous aspects of ski design and ski manufacturing that you really won’t hear about anywhere else.RELATED LINKSOpenSnow.com/buy (code: BLISTER50)Get Yourself Covered: BLISTER+Get Our Winter Buyer’s GuideCrafted Podcast: Scott Andrus on KnivesCrafted Podcast: Scott Andrus on CoffeeTOPICS & TIMES:Overview of New Stuff at ON3P (3:00)Origin Story of ON3P (7:00)Moving to Year-Round Manufacturing (9:44)USA Manufacturing (10:25)ON3P (Jack the) Ripper Rocker (14:30)Freeride Skis (16:02)Mount Points (20:08)Ramp Angle / Rocker Profile (22:45)Touring Skis (28:49)Freestyle Skis (34:34)Where They Start w/ Ski Design (41:18)Park Skis (49:00)The new ‘Oski’ (50:20)Team Rattlecan! (52:32)Unisex Skis (57:55)CHECK OUT OUR OTHER PODCASTS:Blister CinematicBlister PodcastBikes & Big IdeasCRAFTED Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Today we’re talking about exploding fabrics, microwaving hotdogs, and whether the color of your jacket affects its performance. Dr. Jeni Blacklock is back to discuss all of this, and to provide an update on the Blister Labs’ testing that’s been happening at the Rady School of Computer Science & Engineering at Western Colorado University, as part of the partnership program between Blister, Western Colorado University & the University of Colorado Boulder.RELATED LINKSGet Yourself Covered: BLISTER+Get Our Winter Buyer’s GuideCHECK OUT OUR OTHER PODCASTS:Blister CinematicBlister PodcastBikes & Big IdeasCRAFTEDTOPICS & TIMES:Apparel Testing Overview (1:25)Friction & UV Tests (3:53)Exploding Fabric?? (6:16)Color & Other Variables (12:23)What’s Next? (20:44) Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

We spend so much time reviewing the news these days on our Blister Podcast, we were officially overdue to have Cody Townsend back on GEAR:30 to talk about his current gear preferences and the specific gear he’s using most these days. So today, we remedy that.RELATED LINKSGet Yourself Covered: BLISTER+Get Our 24/25 Winter Buyer’s GuideCHECK OUT OUR OTHER PODCASTS:Blister CinematicBlister PodcastBikes & Big IdeasCRAFTEDTOPICS & TIMES:Cody’s Pre-Season Training (3:00)Coffee Gear Update (12:03)Skis (17:49)Ski Bindings (25:04)Ski Boots (34:57)Race Boots (42:33)Apps (48:20)Backpacks (57:24)Apparel (1:02:52)Gear Your Most Picky About? (1:12:22)Sidecut or Rocker Profile? (1:19:13)Mount Points (1:21:26)Bonus Talk for the 100 (1:25:03) Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

A Pedorthist is someone who is trained in the assessment of lower limb anatomy, biomechanics, and, of course – feet. Heather Van Glider is not only a Pedorthist, but also an experienced ski bootfitter, making her particularly well suited for the latest installment of our Very Deep Dive on Bootfitting series.We dive into the importance of custom insoles and orthotics; why they are beneficial for not only ski boots, but other types of footwear; how Heather thinks through some of the biomechanics related to skiing; what it’s like to run a women-owned and operated bootfitting operation, Boulder Orthotics; her best bootfitting horror story; and more. RELATED LINKSGet Yourself Covered: BLISTER+Get Our 24/25 Winter Buyer’s GuideBoulder Orthotics A Very Deep Dive on Bootfitting SeriesTOPICS & TIMESCustom Insoles 101 (3:13)Insoles vs. Orthotics (5:54)Insoles for Skiing (9:40)Insoles for Other Sports (17:21)Women-specific vs. Unisex Boots (19:36)Boulder Orthotics (27:32)Mentorship (30:50)Best Bootfitting Horror Story (36:37)CHECK OUT OUR OTHER PODCASTS:Blister CinematicBlister PodcastBikes & Big IdeasCRAFTED Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.