Beacon Reviews on WildSnow.com

Ian Harding November 12th, 2008

Not long ago I made a post that compared AT bindings that I was considering purchasing for this coming ski season. Funny enough, I did not end up going with the Diamir (Fritschi) Freeride Plus as I had concluded to. The Naxo NX21’s are being used by a number of close friends, and since the 21’s are last year’s model, they were on sale (almost $100 cheaper) at my local Mountain Equipment retailer. So, price played a big role in my decision.

*Side note: I’m having them mounted on last year’s TenEighty Guns by Salomon. Slick ski, and I’m eager to test them out.

Anyways, if you are even remotely interested in any kind of backcountry ski activities, then I am certain that you follow WildSnow.com, a blog by Lou Dawson. If you don’t, I recommend grabbing the RSS feed, as its definitely worthwhile to follow.

Point of this post… Jonathan Shefftz will be reviewing beacons in the coming weeks. Beacons, in my opinion, are the most important piece of equipment one can have when in the backcountry. It saves lives, and I’d love to get one. But which one? I am going to be following the reviews in an effort to help make my decision, and if you are an avid venturer of the backcountry wilderness, I recommend you do the same. Even this first post informed me of something extremely important that I was unaware of:

… never listen to an iPod. (I am very serious about this: the potential for an iPod to be inadvertently left on and then cause interference in a beacon search is dangerous.)

Good to know, especially since last year I started using my iPod more frequently on the slopes.
http://www.wildsnow.com/1476/avalanche-beacon-review-intro/

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  • I used to ride my bike with music, but then you wouldn’t hear cars as well.. Granted I was out in the country.. I would however, never ski with music as I think sound on the slopes gives you LOTS of information for free. Avalanche? What does the snow sound like, someone yelling for help?

    Those skis are pimp, glad you found’em. :) Ah um.. Welcome to the naxo club.. heh..

    As for the beacon, here’s the one I’ve been eying up.

    http://www.mec.ca/Products/product_detail.jsp?FOLDER%3C%3Efolder_id=2534374302725855&PRODUCT%3C%3Eprd_id=845524442620184

  • Agreed, skiing with an iPod seems like a recipe for disaster. Plus don’t you like the sound of solitude?

    Hell, using an iPod anywhere turns the user into a semi-drunk non-responsive automaton. The number of times I have been run into by iPod walkers on the train or sidewalk? Countless.

    Recently I have been seeing a lot of people driving in their car (usually a POS) with ear buds in. Crazy.

  • The one and only reason I ever started listening to my iPod while skiing, is to put myself into a movie. Every ski movie has music to enhance the feeling of the moment you’re viewing. When I play “Cries in Vain”, “All These Things I Hate”, and other tracks by Bullet For My Valentine while skiing, I feel like I am in a movie, and to me, that enhances my experience. Why? I guess because someday I’d love to be in one.

    HOWEVER… since I will be doing more off piste this season, I most certainly will be going into the wilderness for the sound of silence. No question. Sorry iPod, you’ll be staying in the truck for the ride to/from the mountains.