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Altimeter watch: Why it is important and beneficial to know your altitude?

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Knowing at what altitude (elevation) you are at any moment while backcountry skiing is very important and can be also very beneficial. Lets take a look why this is the case, and how you may go about choosing an altimeter watch that suits your needs and fits your budget.
map-compass-altimeterThis article is followed by “Buying altimeter watches that fit your needs and budget” guide to make your decision easier if you decide to by an altimeter watch.
For simplicity sake, terms “altitude” and “elevation” will be used interchangeably throught this article. (To see the difference read the first paragraph of Wikipedia article on Elevation.)

Case for knowing your altitude (having altimeter watch)

The single most important argument for knowing your altitude is safety as that can make or break your navigation.
The second argument is your benefit – meaning the luxury of knowing your altitude helps you make better choices towards enjoying your days even more by getting the best out of them.

Safety factor – navigation and general awareness

While backcountry skiing, on a single day trip or a multi-day traverse, we have couple of tools that support our decision making. Altimeter would be one of the tools along snow stability tests, weather observation skills, maps or compass. To use these tools correctly we need also experience which in itself becomes a tool then.
Having an altimeter watch, thus knowing your altitude, significantly helps you make safer choices in navigating through terrain because:

  • If you have a map and compass but you don’t know what altitude you are at you can’t accurately figure out where you are on the map. Therefore it’s tough to make a decision where you should be going, safely.
  • Or, if an avalanche bulletin says that there was a significant accumulation of snow above 2100m it’s good to know where the potential overloading of slopes begins.

The factor of knowing your altitude for navigation purposes is the most important one for your safety. And this becomes increasingly important on longer multi-day trips.
Once out there you are completely relying on a map, compass and altimeter (or GPS with altimeter). These three are like avalanche safety equipment – beacon, shovel and probe really work the best together. Leave one out and you have to deal with additional unnecessary problems.

Benefit factor – better skiing and comfort

On this day the snow above 2000m was fantastic, below 1900m was wet. In between was so-so.
On this day skiing above 2000m was fantastic, below 1900m was crusty. In between was so-so.
Enjoyment and fun is why we ski (some ski for work). Quality of snow makes this experience good or great.
Besides knowing which aspects (slopes face certain direction, e.i.: north, south…) to ski for the best snow at a given time, knowing your altitude can greatly help you with getting the most fun out of your runs.
Scenarios presented here are not always true as the conditions greatly vary from place to place and from time to time, but they demonstrate how altimeter can help you:

  • At higher elevations the temperatures are lower on average. This means that if it rains up to 1900m the better skiing should be above this elevation.
  • Also, precipitation increases the higher the altitude. That means deeper snow pack which usually means higher quality powder skiing. And better chances of face shots.
  • On the other hand, places at higher elevations are often pounded by greater winds which can blow the snow away or form a hard wind-affected top layer that you penetrate through unpredictably while skiing. And that is no fun.

In the three cases above you can clearly see how knowing your altitude can make you help decisions where and when to ski to have the biggest blast.
Among other beneficial factors of knowing your altitude is comfort. Sure, once you are out and the elements are testing you, you enjoy but there is a limit to everything. Here are examples of what I mean by comfort factor, especially on multi-day trips:

  • You need water but want to save gas for your stove (or time melting snow). Creeks with running water are more accessible (convenient to reach) at lower elevations.
  • You may have trouble sleeping comfortably above certain altitude. Altimeter can help you find a spot without loosing significant vertical meters by letting you know where you are exactly while looking for a suitable place.

Altimeter watches

Now that points were made why knowing your altitude is important and beneficial we will take a look at some altimeter watches that will fit your needs and budget in the next article.
“Buying altimeter watches that fit your needs and budget” will provide you with tips on what you need to consider when buying an alti watch as well as it will introduce you to couple of models where each one has a specific use.
If you just want to browse online stores for watches  take a look at Backcountry.com and Altrec.com.

Buying backcountry skiing, alpine touring and avalanche safety gear

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This article is from a series on “How to start backcountry skiing and alpine touring?”. Visit the link to see an outline of all the topics.
Now that you skied off piste in knee deep powder with your friends and learnt some very useful things in the avalanche safety course, you are hooked. If not, then something went wrong while you were reading the two preceding articles from this series, please go back and re-read 🙂
When you are truly aboard you will need some basic gear that will get you further into the backcountry. The choices are immense these days, so your budget will be your biggest definer.
The basic fact with backcountry skiing is that since we need to climb up before we go down, the weight of your gear is very important. Light gear means faster uphills but may not provide the best control for downhill. Heavy gear doesn’t necessarily mean great downhill control but definitely means tougher climbing.
There are three ways to go about this:
•    you take someone’s advice and stick with it
•    you start experimenting on your own
•    or you combine the two
In my opinion, the best thing to listen to some advice but experiment as well. And eventually you should gradually hone your skills and technique that will allow you to eventually tour with lighter gear without compromising anything.
Below is a fairly long yet still quite brief overview of all basic equipment (that you will need) divided into sections: skis, boots, bindings, climbing skins, avalanche safety gear, and backpacks & clothing.

Skis for backcountry and alpine touring

Fat, skinny, light, heavy – the preference should be made on what you plan on skiing the most, whether powder or more of a harder snow.
skis
The best, before you really find your soul, is to go the middle way. Get backcountry skis with around 80-90mm width under the foot. Pick something in the middle of this range and you should be fine for now.
Lengthwise, get a pair that is about the same height as you are, or the skinnier the skis the longer they can be while the opposite is true for fatter skis.
The weight of skis will depend on the length of the ski. At 80-90mm width the weight will generally vary from 1300g to 2200g per ski.
Most popular backcountry ski brands are Atomic, Ski Trab, Dynafit, Black Diamond, K2, G3, Dynastar and Goode.
The usual price range is between $500 to $800. To get a better idea you can check out a wide backcountry skis selection at Backcountry.com.

Alpine touring boots

Backcountry (or alpine touring) ski boots have a lot to do with how well you will be controlling your ride. Again, the obvious properties are light or heavy, however, for good control you need to consider things such as:
boots•    how many buckles a boot has
•    how high the boots are
•    how well do the boots fit
The number of buckles ranges from two to five (to maybe more on some models) and this pretty much defines how well the boots will fit your feet. The better fit, the better control. But again be aware of the weight.
For starters, go with three to five buckles, with a heat moldable liner. The weight of these will be around 1400g to 1900g per boot. Weight significantly depends on the size of the boot.
There are four major alpine touring boots manufacturers: Scarpa, Dynafit, Garmont, Black Diamond. Scarpa and Dynafit will most likely have something for everybody from weight cautions to best downhill performers. Garmont and Black Diamond are focused more towards the downhill performance, so you might not find as light boots in their selection.
The usual price range is between $600 to $800, and again you can check out Backcountry.com to see what’s out there since they seem to have the widest selection in North America. Also, you can check out MEC.ca as they carry lots of models too.

Alpine touring bindings

Fifteen and more years ago the market in Europe was dominated by Silvretta. In North America there were different brands since telemark skiing was much more popular than a fixed heel.
biddingsThen Dynafit came out with a revolutionary Dynafit LowTech binding that changed everything. This was primarily due to the very innovative functionality design which shaved pounds and pounds of weight off the previous touring models.
Over the years Dynafit bindings proved to be at least as durable as anything else on the market. However, your choice should be still made based on some other facts.
If you like to ski the resorts on your backcountry skis or if you ski more in the resorts than in backcountry then you can for Black Diamond’s Diamir bindings since it gives you more clearance above the ground and skiing feels more like on normal bindings. Marker’s Duke bidding belongs in this category too.
Anyone else should pretty much consider only Dynafit. Nowadays, the brand offers various models yet all of them are way lighter than any other brand’s models. And the simplicity of the design means that there is a lot less to break than on any other models.
Dynafit design is specific in a way that not all alpine touring boots can be used with their bindings, however, now all boot manufacturers have at least couple of models that are Dynafit compatible. So no worries.
Also, you may consider “alpine touring adapters” for normal biddings. Those can be easily locked in your downhill bindings and provide a climbing mode for you. You can use these with your downhill ski boots. But beware you will be hauling a lots of weight up the hills with this setup.
Most recommended alpine touring bindings brands are Dynafit, Black Diamond’s Diamir and Silvretta. G3 has recently released an alpine touring bidding too, so if you are like to test new things that might be your choice.
Again, to see what’s out there go to Backcountry.com. Prices will range mostly between $350 to $500.

Telemark skiing gear – skis, boots, bindings

Being not a telemark skier myself (but soon to try) I will give it my best to introduce you to the tools of the trade. (Original photo of the telemark skier is from John Baldwin collection.)
telemark-skiingTelemark skiing (or telemarking) gear consists of the exactly same components as alpine touring – skis, boots and bindings. However, this gear functions differently due to the downhill technique of the marvelous telemark turn.
Telemark skis
Many people are using alpine touring skis (or all mountain skis) for telemarking or even skiers are using tele skis for skiing. Although, that definitely says something about compatibility telemark skis, in general, are somewhat softer and narrower than backcountry skis. However, in recent years they are catching up with the fatness.
When choosing the right ski for you, you need to consider your height, weight and skill just like with normal skis. The best is to ask an experienced tele skier but you should not go wrong with a length that matches your height. And the deeper the snow you plan on riding the fatter the skis need to be.
Usual prices for telemark skis would be about the same as for alpine touring skis, between $500 to $800.
The most popular manufacturers that offer specialized telemark skis are Karhu, Voile, K2, Atomic, Black Diamond, G3, Ski Trab and Rossignol.
Telemark boots
Telemark boots are different from any other ski boots at a first glance. They feature a bellow that allows for a “bending motion” of the boot that is necessary for dropping low when carving the tele turn.
telemark-bootImportant differences among telemark boots, including the weight factor, are:

  • How soft or stiff a boot is?
  • How tall or low a boot is?

To have more control for downhill as well as to have a more precision for aggressive skiing (or jumping) you should be choosing some of the beefier boots that are stiffer and taller. On the other hand, if you want more comfort while climbing then a softer, lower boot will do.
Telemark boots as well have about the same price point as alpine touring boots – $600 to $800.
There is not as many specialized telemark boots manufacturers as for telemark skis, however, there are plenty of boots to chose from. The most popular brands are Scarpa, Black Diamond, Garmont and Crispi.
Telemark bindings
Telemark binding is responsible for making the core differences between telemarking and backcountry skiing downhill techniques. Telemark skis and boots are just follow ups of this tele gear component.
telemark-bindingIn the past, the biggest concern for telemark skiers (and those that wanted to try it) was a lack of releasability of their bindings in a case of a fall. Therefore, facing a potentially nasty “beating” of your head by your attached skis or spraining your knees. This has been dealt with in the recent years by improved binding models.
A cool feature with some of the latest tele bindings is that you can adjust its stiffness. This would affect your downhill control (aggressive vs relaxed). I am not sure how much telemark skiers fiddle with this “setting” while on their skis, however, it is something that alpine touring equipment is missing.
Telemark bindings price range is a bit wider than for backcountry skiing bindings and it’s nice to see the price drop even under $200 on some models. However, you can pay almost as much as $500 for a pair.
These days, telemark binding manufacturers offer a wide choice from different models. The most notable brands are Black Diamond, 7tm, Voile, G3 and Rottefella.
Where to buy telemark skiing gear?
You can buy specialized tele equipment at the same online stores that sell alpine touring gear. So Backcountry.com and MEC.ca will do, with MEC.ca having a better selecion of the bindings and boots.

Climbing skins

Skins are divided usually into three categories – mohair skins, synthetic and mixed. The more mohair, the better glide (less energy, goes faster), but absorbs water in warm conditions quicker. The more synthetic, the less glide but somewhat more durable. The mixed models are a mix of bought.
climbing-skinsMake your first pair of skins synthetic or mixed ones and maybe after a season or two treat yourself with mohair skins for glacier skinning days.
When buying skins you need to consider the length and the width of your skis. Skins are now usually sold in about 2m length, but the widths will differ. It’s always better to buy fatter ones, then trim them to fit your skis as oppose to have skins too narrow.
Popular brands for climbing skins in North America are Black Diamond, G3 and Dynafit; in Europe it would be more Coltex, Pomoca and Ski Trab.
Backcountry.com carries about 15 different types of skins with prices ranging from $120 to $190.

Avalanche safety gear

Avalanche safety gear is a package of three items which function together in a case of an avalanche accident – avalanche beacon (or some times called transceiver), snow shovel and avalanche probe.
The most trickiest to chose is the avalanche beacon, mostly due to the wide range of prices (from $200 to $600).
avy-safety-gearThe shovel and probe are more straight forward with each costing only around $40 to $80. Pick a shovel with an extendable handle and a metal blade as this gives you the best tool to dig with. For the probe, don’t go shorter than 240cm, preferably buy one that is 320cm long.
As for the avalanche beacon, the recommendation is to ask friends that have experience in using one or your instructor at your avalanche course. How to chose an avalanche beacon is a whole new topic, so I won’t discuss it in this article.
A new piece of safety equipment to consider is an avalanche airbag. After pulling a handle a bag full of air infaltes around you or your head. This protects you from trauma injuries as well as helps you to stay above the floating snow.
There are very few manufacturers around the world that focus avalanche safety equipment, and these would be pretty much it: Ortovox, Backcountry Access, Pieps, G3, Mammut/Barryvox, Pulse.
You can find the widest selection of avalanche safety gear at BackcountrySafety.com or at Backcountry.com.

Clothing and backpacks

Most of the clothing you need for backcountry skiing can be the same as you use in a resort. The main difference would be the top layers. Buy a breathable jacket for uphills (soft shell) that has some wind proof properties. The same is true for pants with more emphasis on the breathable part.
ski-clothing-packsFor downhill or more stormy days you should have some heavier duty windproof and waterproof gear. The most recommended are jackets and pants made out of GoreTex fabric.
Then you will need some thin gloves for climbing and a pair of warm ones for skiing, or when the conditions turn bad. The same goes for hats.
All of the extra clothing and avalanche safety gear is best carried in a backpack along with some water and a bit of food. The choices for backpacks are great, but to start buy a pack that is around 25 to 35 liters large and features straps that allow you to attach your skis, this is very useful for boot packing.
This is the category where you will find the biggest selection of all equipment and the most popular brands for clothing and backpacks for backcountry skiing are The North Face, Arc’Teryx, Marmot, Patagonia, Mountain Hardware, Columbia, Mammut…
You can go nuts at these online stores: Altrec.com, Backcountry.com, MEC.ca, REI.com and many more.

Altimeter watch

Altimeter watch doesn’t really fit inside any of the above mentioned categories but it’s an essential piece of backcountry skiing equipment, and the more you learn how to use it the more you will appreciate it.
To learn why altimeter watch is a great tool to have see:
Altimeter watch: Why it is important and beneficial to know your altitude?
To get help with buying an altimeter watch see this article:
Buying altimeter watch that fits your needs and budget

Have questions about gear?

If you have any questions or comments about the gear I just introduced you to feel free to ask or discuss below. I will answer the best I can or even write a post about it. And you are all welcome to answer each other’s questions too.

Buying altimeter watch that fits your needs and budget

Vertical climbing speed: Ski mountaineering vs Uphill running vs Slope angle (vs Gear weight)

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How does vertical speed compare between different mountain sports?
And how does slope angle affect that speed?

vertical-speed-ilustrationThese are very interesting questions to which no one has an absolute answer for. I am going to take a shot at it while relying on my knowledge and experience in both ski mountaineering (skimo) and uphill running.

Here is a summary of conclusions from my “study”, but if you have 20min then read on, it’s worth it. Also, share your opinion in the comments below, thus we can all learn even more.

The most efficient angle for:

  • skinning for guided clients is believed to be 12 degrees.

  • skinning for trained athletes is 13-16 degrees.

  • skimo and uphill running isn’t the same.

  • skinning is lower than the one for uphill running.

Why this topic? Why now?

Kilian Jornet Burgada
Kilian Jornet Burgada
I was always interested about this topic and what made me to research it now even more is that, these days, we are fortunate to have a single athlete who is arguably the best in the world at both disciplines. This fact makes things easier as we can “forget” about some variables that are very different between individuals such as body weight, years of training, etc..

The athlete’s name is Kilian Jornet Burgada. He is a 21-year-old phenomenon from Catalonia (Spain) that wins races over any distance, from 30min bursts to 30h mountain marathons, whether on skis or in running shoes. If he is a new name for you then check out his results on Wikipedia – Kilian Jornet Burgada.

The second athlete I will be talking about is Sebastian Selas. I will introduce him further down.

Comparison data – raw race facts

The races (performances) I am going to use for my comparison are:

  • 2009 vertical race at European Ski Mountaineering Championships (Italy)

  • 2007 1km vertical uphill running race (Switzerland)

  • 2009 Grouse Grind Mountain Run (Canada)

The conclusions I am going to draw (or not) in this article come from pure facts I could find and know about these races and athletes, and from my personal experience.

I chose the three races/two athletes for couple of reasons:

  • two of the races were raced by the same athlete in two different disciplines

  • all three races are of very similar vertical gain

  • times at two races stand as course records

  • all three races take place at an arguably low altitude (not going over 2000m)

  • both athletes seem to be quite gifted in terms of vertical racing

  • both athletes are about the same age, 21 and 22

Vertical race at European Ski Mountaineering Championships 2009 (Feb 20, 2009 – Alepago, Italy)

Elevation gain: 835m
Distance: 3800m
Course altitude: 980m – 1815m
Time: 35min 51sec
Winner: Kilian Jornet Burgada
Website: Alpago 2009

“Vertical kilometre” race 2007 (Oct 27, 2007 – Fully, Switzerland)

Elevation gain: 1000m
Distance: 1920m
Course altitude: 500m – 1500m
Time: 31min 52sec (course record – unofficial world record for one vertical km)
Winner: Kilian Jornet Burgada
Website: Team La Trace

Grouse Grind race 2009 (Sep 20, 2009 – Vancouver, BC, Canada)

Elevation gain: 853m
Distance: 2900m
Course altitude: 270m – 1120m
Time: 25min 24sec (course record)
Winner: Sebastian Selas
Website: Grouse Grind

Ski mountaineering vs uphill running

Since we have the same athlete winning in both disciplines we will go straight to differences between the two mountain sports.

Obvious disadvantage in skimo racing versus trail running is gear weight, especially the weight an athlete carries on his feet as that restricts his leg speed (frequency) the most. Of course, we can compare the clothing and pack weight as well, but I am not going to do it as I don’t believe that weight (about 1.5-2kg difference in this case) affects us as much as what’s on our feet.

Here, just out of curiosity, are the weights per foot:

  • super light running shoe is about 200g

  • super light ski, bidding and a ski boot combination is about 1350g

  • a difference of 1100g

  • pole weight doesn’t matter since Kilian used poles at both races

Skimo vertical race analysis

Based on the raw race facts Kilian’s average vertical speed for the vertical European Skimo Championships was:

23.29 m/m (metres per minute) = 1397.4 m/h (metres per hour)

Click on the image to see a bigger version.
Click on the image to see a bigger version.
The skimo race course contained a boot-pack section where racers attach their skis to their packs and hike up a preset boot-pack track. This section was only 95m vertical according to organizers.

A super fast boot-pack bottom transition takes around 15-20s and the top one about the same.

According to summary articles of that race Kilian had troubles with his boot-pack bottom transition, so it took him longer than usual, and almost lost a race there.

Kilian’s winning time over the 835m was 35min 51sec but after deducting transitions times I feel comfortable at settling with a time of 35min flat.

That would mean his actual average vertical speed when he was moving was:

23.86 m/m (metres per minute) = 1431.4 m/h (metres per hour)

1. This means it would take him 41min 55sec to skin up 1000m (vertical) if the course would continue and he would keep the same speed.

2. Kilian’s pace in this race was 9min 13sec per kilometre. This is a pace road runners calculate, so it is not a vertical kilometre but a normal one.

Since the 23.86 m/m is the “unbiased” speed (without transitions) we can compare it with his running race as there are no transitions in that discipline.

Uphill running 1km vertical race analysis

Again, based on the raw race facts Kilian’s average vertical speed for the vertical kilometre race in Switzerland was:

31.38 m/m (metres per minute) = 1882.8 m/h (metres per hour)

Click on the image to see a bigger version.
Click on the image to see a bigger version.
1. Since the race was over 1 vertical kilometre, his time to climb 1000m – 31min 52sec – was the same as his overall time.

2. Kilian’s pace in this race was 16min 35sec per kilometre which is much slower than in the skimo race.

In the race, he had to pass a couple of slower competitors, but I don’t think this affects the comparison of the two disciplines too much.

The uphill run was done as a time trial and the skimo vertical race had a mass start. So passing few racers versus fighting in the mass start cancels the factors out.

Comparison – vertical skimo and uphill running races

Here is a conclusion to the first question, “How does vertical speed compare between different mountain sports?”:

We can clearly see that Kilian’s vertical uphill running speed is way faster than the one reached at a ski mountaineering race. This should be no surprise as equipment weight plays an important role. Therefore, of course, this is a bit of comparing apples to oranges, yet it is still interesting to see the numbers.

Also, there is a fact of two years between the two races. In that time Kilian got faster for sure as he proved it at many ski mountaineering races. However, he is running virtually the same time over the vertical kilometer race (at the same venue) past three years, between 2006 and 2008.

Therefore, I consider his record the best time in the world over one vertical kilometre that is not getting any faster at the moment. The vertical kilometre race is still due this year, so we shall see (Oct 24, 2009).

Another factor to consider and compare is the slope angle, which we will get a better comparison lower down when comparing running with running:

The skimo vertical race gained 835m over 3800m which means a slope of 12.69 degrees or 22.52%. Compare this to the uphill run and a 1000m gain over 1920m which means a slope of 31.39 degrees or 61.01%.

Two interesting facts to compare are Kilian’s vertical speeds and his paces per kilometre as they go in the opposite dirrection – smaller vertical speed with faster pace versus  higher vertical speed with slower pace.

Skimo race:

  • vertical speed is 1431.4 m/h

  • pace is 9min 13sec / normal kilometre

Uphill run:

  • vertical speed is 1882.8 m/h

  • pace is 16min 35sec / normal kilometre

Vertical speed and slope angle – running vs running

To answer the second question, “How does slope angle affect vertical speed?”, I didn’t use the same athlete as I couldn’t find enough facts about other Kilian’s vertical races. Instead, I opted to use a race that I know the course of very well; therefore, allowing me for somewhat “accurate conclusions”.

Also, the follow up question should be: “Which incline angle is the most efficient and the fastest to climb at?”. I’ll take a stab at this too, for now lets go back to the second uphill running race.

Photo cropped from The Province photo.
Sebastian Selas. (Cropped from The Province photo.)

The Grouse Grind Mountain Run in North Vancouver in BC, Canada is a very popular uphill race that is regularly attended by very strong athletes; however, no European speedsters have came to check it out yet.

This year (2009) the record was set to an incredible 25min 24sec for gaining 853m over 2900m.

The winner was a 22-year-old local Vancouverite, Sebastian Selas, who is an amateur triathlete and cyclist. Judging by his time, I believe Sebastian would be a serious match to Kilian’s climbing abilities.

But lets look at some numbers, to see how a different angle affects the vertical speed and pace.

Sebastian’s average vertical speed when climbing Grouse Grind trail was:

33.58 m/m (metres per minute) = 2014.8 m/h (metres per hour)

Sebastian’s pace in this race was 8min 46sec per kilometre which is 27sec faster than Kilian’s skimo race pace and 8min faster than his vertical kilometre race pace.

The Grouse Grind race starts in waves that are seeded based on runners’ honest expected time estimates. It starts and finishes with a bit of a flat, around 150-200m in total which should account for about 25-30sec in total. So if we subtract 24sec (which gives us a time of 25min flat) we arrive at an average vertical speeds of:

34.12 m/m (metres per minute) = 2047.2 m/h (metres per hour)

1. Based on the second speed, it would take Sebastian 29min 19sec to run up 1000m (vertical) if the Grouse Grind trail (race course) would continue and he would keep the same speed.

2. Sebastian’s pace in this race was 8min 46sec per kilometre. Using 2.9km here and not sub-subtracting the 150-200m since I am calculating runners pace.

Even though we are not comparing the two athletes on those two specific courses, I think, it is very safe to assume that they are both world class uphill runners for efforts of up to 30-35min, and likely even longer.

Now, lets take a look at the slope angles of the two uphill running races:

Kilian’s vertical kilometer race average slope angle was 31.39 degrees (61.01%), compared to the Grouse Grind’s trail average angle of 18.07 degrees (32.63%) – instead of 2900m, I used 2750m as the actual course length due to the flat start (even downhill) and finish sections to calculate the angle.

The Swiss 1km vertical kilometer race is run straight up, doesn’t let up a bit; whereas the Grind has some switchbacks with low angle incline that allow for some recovery, or at least allow to pick up leg speed again.

One last thing to note here is that Sebastian did not use poles for his run and Kilian did. I believe, both knew what they were doing and picked the right tools for the slope angle they were facing or technique they are using.

Conclusion and an example – slope angles, speed and efficiency

Based on this “study” of mountain uphill running and skimo climbing, and my experience in both disciplines, I am comfortable to say that steeper doesn’t mean faster. However, the more important question is: “Which incline angle is the most efficient and the fastest to climb at?”

To answer that, I can only speculate based on my experience, as would most likely anyone else based on his. But we can clearly see that Sebastian was able to produce an average vertical speed of about 150 m/h (metres per hour) higher than Kilian in his race. This is about 8-9% faster than Kilian’s vertical running speed.

Also, Sebastian’s pace (time per kilometre) values are much more faster than Kilian’s. Sebastian was doing 8min 46sec per KM versus Kilian’s 16min 35sec per KM; that is almost 90% faster pace.

That leads me to say that Grouse Grind’s slope angle is more efficient (18.07 degrees) than the one in Switzerland (31.39 degrees). And that the most efficient angle is somewhere in between the angles of the two courses, while personally leaning more towards the incline values of the Grouse Grind.

But since the techniques of climbing (due to terrain and equipment) in ski mountaineering and uphill running are quite different we should not assume that the most efficient angle for both disciplines is the same.

Based on my experience, I would speculate that the most efficient and the fastest angle for skinning is lower than the one for uphill running.

I believe that in uphill running you can sustain your most efficient leg speed on a steeper slope over a longer period of time than while climbing on skis. This has very much to do with equipment weight and leg speed (and technique).

In fact, you can see this if we compare the paces per KM and vertical speeds:

Kilian went at a slower pace (9min 13sec / KM) and at a slower vertical speed (1431.4 m/h) on a lower angle course (12.69 degrees) when compared to Sebastian’s 8min 46sec / KM, 2047.2 m/h speed, and 18.07 degrees angle slope.

To demonstrate this without calculations here is an example:

Imagine running on a flat ground wearing a 400g pair of shoes (200g per foot). You run for 1km flat-out and record your time and you count your steps.

Now you do the same with a 2700g pair of shoes (1350g per foot). Your time will be slower and you will most likely (absolutely sure about this) do more steps. If you manage to keep the same number of steps you will be even slower.

Without going in more detail about step frequency (because it’s a very individual thing) the example demonstrates you had a lower average speed while running with heavier shoes.

Translating this onto a 20 or 30 degree slope would show at least the same difference. Running with heavier shoes at the same vertical speed, with the same leg turn-over (leg speed) would tire you way faster than lighter shoes.

Subsequently, if you would want to keep the same vertical speed on the same incline you would have to change something – and that is either a faster leg turn-over or have lighter shoes (equipment).

If you don’t trust my example, go and try it out, but before you run around your house in ski boots make sure your neighbors know about the experiment, otherwise they might call for help 😉 and hopefully you don’t think I am crazy for writing all this 🙂

As for ski mountaineering skin track angles, mountain guides are thought to set about 12 degree tracks for their clients, so it must be believed by the experienced ones this angle to be the most efficient angle for most of the clients. The slope angle of Kilian’s skimo vertical race was just over 12 degrees as well.

However, I believe that trained athletes have their most efficient and the fastest skinning angle a bit steeper than average Joe. I would estimated it at about 13-16 degrees.

Now, what’s left to do is to either get Kilian run the Grouse Grind next year or get Sebastian to go to Switzerland for this years race (Oct 24, 2009), so we can truly compare the two machines and have more consistent data.

I hope you enjoyed this article and you are welcome to share your opinion on this topic in the comments below.

Sign up for avalanche safety and backcountry travel course

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This is a second article from the series on “How to start backcountry skiing and alpine touring?”.

As with anything new, we have two choices – learn it ourselves (with help from friends) or register for a course that is led by a true professional in its industry. In this case, the second option costs more money but the learning process is much faster and safer.

Recreational avalanche safety and backcountry travel courses are for novice backcountry skiers and usually take place over one or two days. Students are provided with hand-outs they can keep, and more importantly, with amazing knowledge that is lot of times gained only by experience. Therefore, make sure you sign up for a course that is certified by an appropriate organization in your country.

In Canada and United States this means various guiding companies that are certified (licensed) by the Canadian Avalanche Association or other appropriate authorities to teach these courses. Most of the companies that have mountain (and ski) guiding certifications are suitable.

The skills you will learn at such courses include:

  • recognizing avalanche terrain and danger

  • decision making

  • basic snow properties

  • basic avalanche search and rescue

  • backcountry travel in avalanche terrain based on your experience

  • and more

How to get involved in backcountry skiing and alpine touring?

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This is the first article from the series on “How to start backcountry skiing and alpine touring?”. Visit the page to see an outline of all the topics.

The best way to introduce yourself to backcountry skiing is through more experienced people – friends or guides. Friends are great because in case you don’t like what you ski you will at least spend some quality time with people you care about.

First, start skiing off piste in your favorite ski resort and see whether you like the unpredictability of the terrain; and all of a sudden, snow doesn’t have a corduroy texture. Powder days (fresh snow) are the best for this since riding in such conditions reward you with the most fun.

Once confident in your technique you should hook up with more experienced friends (or hire a guide) and do some out of bounds skiing. Skiing beyond boundaries of a ski resort isn’t backcountry skiing at its best but it already makes you feel different, not as secure, free.

Of course, this might already mean an exposure to avalanche conditions, so you need to start thinking about some avalanche safety skills before your new passion ends in an accident.

How to start backcountry skiing and alpine touring?

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“How to start backcountry skiing?” is not really a question that is asked a lot but it sums up the topic of the following article series very clearly. The information is intended for you guys that want to try backcountry skiing and alpine touring after reading or hearing about it, or watching it.

This article series should give you a good idea of how people usually become backcountry skiers and ski mountaineers. Of course, the progression paths vary for each one of us but in general this is what you need to know: