Ski Warm, Ski Comfortable, Ski Better
Like most alpine skiers, if I can be warmer, transport my gear with less effort, and make skiing easier on my body, I will have a better mountain experience. Over the last five months, I went on the quest to see if new technological features in specific components of ski gear made a difference. The answer with most of the products was a resounding YEAH.
Kulkea Thermal Trekker
You park at the ski area and walk with your boots, skis, and gear to the lodge. Keeping them all together and warm with a backpack transport option is the forte of this heated boot bag. The boots go in the two side pockets, with a heating element on each side of the boot, with clothes and accessories in the middle (which get a bit of residual heat). It balanced perfectly on my shoulders for easy carrying. The Thermal Trekker hasn an attached power cord that uses both 110 and 12V from the car. I wore my jacket, ski pants, hat, and everything else fit well into the center section. Simply the best of the backpack heated ski boot bags. $279.
Roxa R3 130 Ski Boots
The Roxa R3 130 is 1.5 pounds lighter per boot than your current, older boot, thanks to the high-tech polymer shell compound, Grilamid. Reduced weight still solidly performs with control and power from intermediate to expert, ranging from piste/groomed descents to hiking with skins. The liner and the shell can be heat molded for an even better fit from this Italian boot maker. As a Cabrio two-piece shell, this boot was a breeze to get on and off. The innovative two-part design has 52 degrees of motion when unlocked, making walking or hiking easier. And lugging boots on a trip, or even at a ski area, and three or four pounds less is a huge advantage. For the four-buckle purist, those Roxa models have many of the same features as the R3 in weight saving, ease of entry, and fit tweaks. I found my previous favorite boot, the Dalbello Krypton, reborn to new heights with the Roxa R3. $875.
Sportube Toaster Elite Heated Boot Bag
If you fly with your ski boots, this heated boot bag is the choice as it is airline compliant. It can be checked as luggage and fits into larger overhead bins with the compact, cube layout. The Toaster Elite will fit two pairs, or one pair of boots and clothes. It fit on the passenger seat floor with ease, and will likely fit behind the front seats on most vehicles. Heat connects with a 110 or 12V car option. The 110 route offers three heat settings. Recessed backpack straps are cleverly hidden to be used as needed. It is not just for air travel. Drive to the ski area while charging in route, unzip the attached floor mat pad, step into warm boots without getting cold feet, and you are on your way. Regarding air travel, the construction is more robust than most soft-sided luggage. $269.
Zanier Heated Gloves
Heated ski gloves have been around for years. I wanted the glove to give easy grip and dexterity with as thin a construction as possible and then have the heat option for when the temperature dropped. Zanier, from Austria, has been perfecting gloves for skiing and outdoors for decades, and their Heat STX gloves seemed like the perfect one-quiver glove. Great features like internal stretch and insulation, durable seamed construction, and they come in a wide range of sizes for a precise fit. The all-around stretch in the gloves enabled just about every hand movement I needed in skiing. The little batteries in each glove are only 60 grams, and the three heat settings have up to 10 hours of power. I could quickly turn them on and off while skiing as the control is conveniently located at the top of the wrist under the red power indicator. $330 Euros.
ColdAvenger Balaclava
Balaclavas add neck and head warmth when skiing. Yet, goggle fog will likely occur when breathing through the material below the goggles after a short time as moisture clogs the material in front of the nose and mouth. ColdAvenger solved this issue with a patented air pathway that warms the air coming in and expels it through a vent to keep it away from the goggles. Having the air warm with increased humidity makes breathing easier on cold days at altitude. This was tested with the U.S. military, and now the technology is in consumer versions. I tested this both in skiing and snow shoveling/snow blowing. No matter how hard I worked and breathed, I had no goggle fog, and my lungs felt more comfortable. It’s way better than advertised. $60-$120 based upon model.
Karbon Ski Clothing
A little insider gem from the ski industry – ski clothing used by ski instructors and the ski patrol likely has more features that will keep you warm and comfortable than the super-stylin’ jacket you saw on the Paris runway. This has improved every year as the features for technical ski clothing have increased while bulk has gone down. As it was time to get new ski clothes, my shopping exploration led to Karbon, a Canadian company. Karbon has more than a solid track record for technical ski and outdoor clothing. I went for the Micron series jacket and pants, if you want the ultimate in warmth, then the Equipe series will deliver. Karbon touts all their gear will reduce bulk with increased stretch resulting in comfortable movement and warmth. Start with features like Hydrostretch Pro 3-ply material with Karbonite water resistance to 20,000 microns. Add waterproof zippers, triple-reinforced seams, cuffs, draw strings for a snow barrier, and an endless bevy of pockets inside and out. The proof was in the performance, as I skied the clothing with minimal layers underneath and was comfortable at 9 degrees. $910 for jacket and pants.
Product testing/inclusion notes: