Bridger Ridge Run Training

I have a friend who is training for his 7th consecutive Ridge Run, which is widely regarded as the hardest 20 mile race in existence. The race begins by climbing up Sacagawea peak (9,200ft ish), the highest in the Bridger Range, and follows the knife like ridge for the next 20 miles all the way to the “M” (a giant M on the side of the last mountain). It’s not really a run as traditionally thought, it’s more like a fast hike, occasional jog, controlled slide, and a lot of praying. For an idea of what it’s like check out this link, then click on “clients”, then click on “events” for a short movie.

Thankfully, today was only training. We parked at Bridger Bowl and hiked up to the ridge, then hiked/ran/cursed/stumbled the last half of the Ridge Run course. I had skied off of several of the peaks we encountered, but I couldn’t believe that anyone actually ran the whole thing. Hey, it’s 6,800ft elevation gain and 9,500 ft elevation loss… that’s a lot. The record is 3:08… are you kidding me? He rand the entire 20 miles in less time than it took us to do 10. This is loose rock the whole way, huge hills, high elevation, and very high injury risk to anyone who runs it. Roots, downed trees, and the majority of the run is a VERY exposed ridge line. If you fall, it’s going to hurt badly. With that said, we trudged along on our own 10 mile ridge excursion, and we did pretty well for a training run. I had never been up there in the summer time and the wild flowers were really something to behold, and of course, the views were incredible the whole way. The quads will hurt tomorrow.

Check out the Ridge Run Homepage or Stats

Beehive Basin and Ousel Falls

Hi all,

The weather in Montana has been incredible recently. A lack of posts usually means that we’re spending all our time outside and the last few days have been no exception. The first shots were taken in Beehive Basin, which you may have seen in previous backcountry skiing posts. In the summer it’s equally beautiful and covered in wild flowers. Sometimes we get a little artsy with the camera. The last picture is of Ousel Falls in Big Sky. I hope everyone is enjoying their summer!

The National Music Review/Suggestion

My sister insisted that I listen to The National, and I’m glad she did. The music is incredible and I like it the more I listen… so, listen to it.
Here is what Alec Hanley Bemis has to say about their music (an excerpt from the myspace page)…

“What exactly is The National going on about? Why are songs about love and war intertwined with songs about money and office life? Are these songs about all those topics at once? The only certain thing is that, like boxers, The National are making their way in a rough trade—a sport, a pastime, a violent thing. They get cut up and caught up in the ropes. They rip out the stitches though friends urge them not to. I won't lie. The National’s music is not easy to describe, but it’s very easy to listen to. It’s an antidote for uneasy times.”

Go to their myspace page and listen to “Fake Empire”, then others. I agree, "an antidote for uneasy times". Let me know what you think.

Cheers

Tagged: Powderfin, Outdoors, Outdoor Gear, The National, The National Reviews, Music Review, Bozeman, Montana

Kayaking Hyalite Creek

Hyalite Creek lies about 20 miles south of Bozeman and offers some excellent low-volume creeking. We were on it at medium levels. The run is a short and fast paced class IV+, with pinning, piton, broaching potential all over the place. It is a very bad place to be upside-down, and several of us were very thankful for our helmets and elbow pads. If you’ve never been down the creek but you’re thinking about going, I recommend doing it with someone who has been down it before and knows the lines. A class 5 boater could probably read-and-run most of the creek, but I had my hands full just following a seasoned veteran. The section is only 1.5 miles long, but it is full-on the whole time; we ran it twice. When it was all done, everyone had cuts and bruises. One person snapped their paddle trying to brace and ended up swimming a very difficulty section of the creek. We had to z-drag the boat out from a snag in the middle of the creek. It’s an incredible run and we were smiling in spite of our soreness.

Tagged: Powderfin, Outdoors, Outdoor Gear, Hyalite Creek, Creekbating, Hyalite, Bozeman, Montana

June Maddy Blooms

Bear Trap Canyon
Madison River, MT - June 8th

Aquapac Joins the Mix

Powderfin launched another line of solid products today, Aquapac 100% Waterproof Cases. If you want to keep it dry, Aquapac has a case for it...

• Cell phones
• GPS
• MP3 Players
• PDA's
• Digital Cameras
• SLR Cameras
• VHF Radios
• Maps
• Keys
• Wallets
• Passports

Ranging from $10.00 - $120.00, you can find a waterproof case to either keep your cash dry at the beach, or allow you to shoot underwater photography...and everything in between!

The Key to all Aquapac Waterproof Cases: The Aquaclip® Sealing System

Sealed with a Twist

The Aquaclip is the key to all Aquapacs. An amazing little device which seals the case with a simple twist of a lever.

It has a V-groove in one half and a raised V on the other. When the levers on the male half are turned they run up a ramp on the female half – squeezing the two together. The pressure’s not sufficient to cut the soft plastic case material, but just enough to make a totally hermetic seal.

The two halves are attached to the case by a pair of ‘flexible clips’ in such a way that the whole case stays in one piece, even when open.

Award Winning

The Aquaclip was awarded Millenium Product Status by the British Design Council. A government initiative to recognize "one of the most innovative products created in Britain for the new Millennium".

Tested to Destruction

The Aquaclip is made entirely of light injection-moulded plastic. So it can’t rust.

The Aquaclip has passed the two most demanding of all waterproofing standards – IP67 and IP68. Find out more

In tests at Bath University the lever mechanism was tested for 10,000 cycles of opening and closing, with no loss of function.

User Friendly

When you open an Aquapac everything stays in one piece. No loose screws. No need to fold the end of the case. Simple.

Fully Patented

The Aquaclip is fully-patented in the USA and most of Europe, and the subject of pending protection all over the world.

Gorillapod Product Review

“The Joby Gorillapod is an excellent replacement for your travel tripod. Our company field-tested these in March/April and after positive reviews from our Agents in the field we bought a half-dozen. The Gorillapod is sturdy and compact and stores easily into a side stow pocket. I especially like the adjustable legs that allow placing the tripod on the most uneven of surfaces. It also has a detachable/locking foot mount that when attached to the tripod securely locks the camera in place. I have used this for both still photography and video and have was able to securely mount a camera and flash weighing as much as 2.5lbs. This is a recommended must-have for every travel photographer.”

Andrew Liakos
www.proxibid.com

New Product Intro: AquaFlo™ Hydration Systems

We launched an interesting new product on Powderfin.com today, the MPACK AquaFlo™ Disposable Hydration System.

My first reaction may have been similar to yours..."disposable"?! It seems to stray from the trend of responsible manufacturing and earth friendly products. However, upon closer examination, AquaFlo makes sense. First and foremost, it's entirely recyclable, from the caps, to the tube, to the reservoir. To find out more about how to recycle AquaFlo, check out their recycling program.

So then why would someone want a "disposable" hydration system?

• Disposable: less time cleaning equals more time playing
  
• Taste and odor free right off the shelf
• Convenient and cost effective
• Hygienic design
• Designed to retrofit most existing hydration systems

We think this last item is pretty important. I've been using a Camelback® for a few years now, and it's still in pretty good shape. I've only used water in it, and I've cleaned it a few times to keep it fresh. I broke the bite valve cover off on a snowshoe trip, and my valve often leaks when hiking or snowboarding. I was considering replacing the unit with another Camelback® product, but I decided to try the AquaFlo™ instead.

The most impressive feature of the AquaFlo™ Universal Starter Kit is the Bite-Me Valve®. It simply works well when you want it to, and doesn't leak. I've been using the same AquaFlo™ reservoir for nearly a month now, and I've had zero problems with leakage, odor, or bad taste. To me, it makes more sense to purchase 3 recyclable reservoirs, a drink tube, and a superior bite valve for $26.99, rather than spend $28.00 on a single replacement reservoir, drink tube, and inferior valve.

I thought that since the reservoirs were "disposable", that they might be flimsy, leak easily, etc. It really hasn't been the case, I've been tossing mine around the boat, in the suitcase, around the house, in my backpack, without a protective cover, and I've had no problems with this product holding up well.

June in Montana...

This is the weather report for today and tomorrow...

... Heavy Snow Warning in effect from noon today to 12 PM MDT
Thursday above 6000 feet...

The National Weather Service in Great Falls has issued a Heavy
Snow Warning... which is in effect from noon today to 12 PM MDT
Thursday. The Winter Storm Watch is no longer in effect.

Snow... heavy at times... will develop over the mountains above
6000 feet. Snow accumulations of 8 to 12 inches are possible with
local accumulations of 1 to 2 feet on higher mountain peaks.

A Heavy Snow Warning means severe winter weather conditions are
expected or occurring. Significant amounts of snow are forecast
that will make travel dangerous. Only travel in an emergency. If
you must... keep an extra flashlight... food... and water in your
vehicle in case of an emergency.