It's still a little early for good back-country downhill skiing in Kodiak, but on the first day of winter we were out making the most of it. My friend John took me to one of the taller mountains that you can ski to in a day. We started near sea level so it was a bit brushy down low, but at 1500 to 2000ft there were nice pockets of new snow. The sun stayed low on the horizon but the fact that it was out made it an outstanding day to be in the mountains.
Another friend of ours let me borrow the skis, boots and skins (thanks Patrick). This allowed me to avoid hauling my skis to Kodiak and back. Patrick's ski setup was very light weight and uses dynafit bindings. This was my first time skiing with dynafit bindings, I really enjoyed them but am still skeptical about there durability and the durability of the boots that are required to use them. Dynafit bindings are very light because they are use a very small about of material to hold the boot in place. Just about every time John visits me in Seattle he ends up breaking some part of his dynafit bindings. The other downside is that the brakes for these bindings are basically useless, which means you are stuck using leashes which in my opinion are annoying and potentially dangerous.
I could go on, but I will wrap it up by saying I think these bindings are a great revolutionary design, but there downsides are often overlooked by skiers far too excited by the two pounds of weight saving.
The cross-country skiing at low altitudes in Kodiak is fabulous. If you like skiing over brush and salmonberry bushes. Sexist interpretations in Kodiak skiing, part 1.
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