TR: My first hike for turns

[Sheena]

Well, we pulled into the Alta parking lot at 7:00 am. It was still lightly snowing, and the coverage looked great. I was all set to start off on my first hike for turns.

I did not have a full set of skins (just some "kickers"), but we thought it would be ok. Also, my AT bindings did not have breaks, just the leashes... no biggie I thought.

So we started off on the skin track, and I it was a lot of fun, and great exercise. Well, we got to a steeper section, and suddenly I started to slide backwards, I toe released from the binding, and down I went. So I tried to inch myself out of the skin track. There were TONS of people coming up behind me. (everyone wanted to get out and get some today, and I don't blame them!) So after fighting with the stupid leashes on my bindings, I get set up again, and start skinning further up the track. Next little up hill section, I start sliding back again. Again, toe release and fall over. This time when I tried to stand up, stood in a loose bit of drifted snow, and fell down with the snow about up to mid-thigh. Then decided it would be best to try and boot pack up.

That worked well for a bit, but without a backpack to carry my skis, and no breaks to hold the skis together, it was a challenge for me. Got a little further up, and decided to try skinning again. This time, Tim thought it would be best to skin behind me so he could see if maybe I was doing something wrong. So I get set up again, and the second I start heading up an incline, down I go. By the fourth time, I decided to just ski down from where I was.

Even though we were only about 1/4 of the way up, the snow was amazing! I never ever thought I would be skiing powder in OCTOBER!

So after we made it back to the base, I just practiced skinning on some of the lower levels. As long as the skin track was not as packed out, and not inclining too much, the kickers seemed to work.

Definitely, need to get some full length skins and I would prefer a set of wide breaks for my AT bindings.

Glad I got out there, wish it would have been better. But I am at least happy to be able to get some turns in.

 

[ski diva]

I see you're adjusting very well to life in Utah. And here we were worried about you.

Sounds like a great day, especially for October!

 

[tradygirl]

Sheena - what kind of skis/bindings are you using for AT? I have some old skins that may work for you, but they're pretty skinny. Even if they don't cover your ski edge-to-edge, they would be full-length.

Also wondering why your toe kept popping out of the binding? If you have Dynafits, I know they can be a bit fickle until you really figure out how to pop your boot into the binding correctly. I tell ya, sometimes it's the logistics that kill ya, not the hiking. :mad:

 

[Sheena]

Sheena - what kind of skis/bindings are you using for AT? I have some old skins that may work for you, but they're pretty skinny. Even if they don't cover your ski edge-to-edge, they would be full-length.

Also wondering why your toe kept popping out of the binding? If you have Dynafits, I know they can be a bit fickle until you really figure out how to pop your boot into the binding correctly. I tell ya, sometimes it's the logistics that kill ya, not the hiking. :mad:

I have the silveretta freeride bindings mounted. They seem alright, we adjusted the DIN setting for the toe, it was set at 6 on the toe and 10 for the heel. That may solve that problem (hopefully) it was more than a little annoying.

We also just ordered a pair of black diamond skins. They were not terribly expensive, and hopefully will make the skinning a bit easier.

I was not expecting to slide backwards on the inclines.

 

[BackCountryGirl]

I have black diamond skins and I love them. They're the ones that look like a tire track. One piece of advice -- get someone with experience to help you trim the width if they're not perfectly fit to your skis. I am sure I would have ruined mine if I had done it myself.