Home > Trip Reports > January 6, 2008, Crystal BC, View From My Head

January 6, 2008, Crystal BC, View From My Head

1/6/08
WA Cascades West Slopes South (Mt Rainier)
6127
12
Posted by ajjenkin on 1/8/08 2:58am
Not an informational report, just a little fun.  Please make your own, educated decisions out there...

Excuse the intro segments.  When skiing with the "Doc", you gotta give him some camera time.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QJMLrp0aVkU

Sorry ZM.  Had to do it.  I've lost so many emails.  This is the easiest way to connect.
Nice video.  Remind me not to ask  for a ride with that guy though! ;D

Tony!  That was just like skiing with you - got a tree branch in the eye to prove it.

Amusing video work---I couldn't place Poopsicle's accent though----Swedish Chef from the muppets?

What helmet camera were you using and is the native (non-youtube) video higher quality? 

Thx

JK


Yeah, funny accent for a guy from the northwest part of lower Michigan (the pinky nail of the mitten).

I was PMed about what camera I was using.  My response is below:

The camera I have is an Aiptek DV recorder.  It has an "Audio/Video In" Jack for anything from a DVD player to a helmet camera.  I looked around on the web and the "suggested" helmet cam for use with the Aiptek is made by www.sportzshot.com.  It is kind of a strange setup.  Surezshot sells you a small lipstick sized camera that fits into a sheath that velcros to your helmet or a goggle strap holder - the goggle strap holder is nicer, that's what I use.  They also give you a small toothpick
sized mic.  I shove this into the camera sheath.  This gives you two wires that you have to run down into your jacket where they go into the A/V IN jack.  There is also a small stub of a cable that comes off of the camera cable (near the A/V IN jack end of the cable) where a small nickel-metal hydride battery pack plugs in.  This provides power to the helmet cam.  So, what you end up with is the Aiptek (size of a paper pocket notebook) and the helmet cam battery pack in your jacket pocket.  Two
wires come out of the pocket to the helmet cam and mic.

Oh, and yes, the quality is much better than the youtubed version...

Looked like a tasty day Tony.  Great video.

Didn't your buddy break his binding that day?  I was out there the same day, using the same uptrack.

Your info on the headcam gear is useful.  If you want to share higher quality video than youtube, there is always www.vimeo.com.   They have a nice system for supporting sharing of high quality video...much nicer than that grainly youtube stuff.

Big Joe, that was my buddy, Lintermans.  Were you hiding under the cornice? I don't remember anyone around when it happened.  He was executing an "extreme" de-skinning technique only known to A/T'ers.  Luckily, his binding gave, not his tibia!  After too many mintes trying to finess it w/ frozen fingers and a leatherman's,  He sledge hammered it with a shovel...Voila! Followed by almost 4k' vert of rock solid powder performance.  Lint- did you get that thing fixed?

I did.  Turns out the binding didn't exactly break, just jammed.  I disassembled the heel mechanism when I got home.  When I fell on it in the free positing, the heel assumbly tourqued against the foot rails and bound up.  The pounding from the shovel was all it needed to unjam.

For anyone curious about the performance of '06/07 Silvertta Pure Free rides - I am not overly enthusiastic.  This is the 2nd time in two seasons the bindings did something weird.  Luckily neither time ended the day, but it looked tenuous there for a while....

Great video!!!!!!!!!!!... Haven't skied Crystal since patrol days in '82.  Love that tree skiing and miss the heck out of it, especially with some pitch to it (We don't call Bachelor "Flatcheller" for nothing). Were you skiing above Gold Hills/ Norse Peak wilderness/ pickhandle basin-- almost?  Not many of us call beacons "bacons" here either. 

Fun but spooky snow pack up there...careful while you're tearing it up.....  Keep the videos coming..............

bigjoesmith - yes, my buddy did break his binding that day, but he was not the one that leggdragger and lintermans are talking about.  he has an old pair of silveretta ?55's - the ones with the 2 carbon fiber rails underfoot.  the carbon rails pulled right out of the toe piece.  this is only a problem when free-heeled as the rails are held in by the toepiece when locked down.  we got him going again thanks to a ski holder strap and some wire ties that were kindly donated by a passer-by.  if you, bigjoesmith, were the one who gave us the wire ties, thanks again.  my buddy was good the rest of the day after we made the fix.

and to skierguitarist...we took one run down the southwest facing slopes above bullion, and 4 more on the union creek side.
Beacons/Bacons, uh, don't follow?

Thanks for the locations.  I've got to get back up there again.  "Beacon/bacon" yada yada,...somebody caught a spelling error...my bad.

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january-6-2008-crystal-bc-view-from-my-head
ajjenkin
2008-01-08 10:58:59