A one trick pony or a versatile touring weapon? My thoughts after a 100,000 feet of touring during the second snowiest February in the Tetons (ever).
A long time ago I used to edit a little online ski magazine. It was started before the days of Instagram, just on the heels of Facebook’s attempt to become profitable. The company was called “Earlyups” and was something of a VitalMTB or Pinkbike of big mountain skiing. When we finally ceased operations in 2014 (or 15?) I had amassed enough skis to last multiple seasons of skiing in the Tetons. To add, I had gone full sledneck, given up my season pass and was a backcountry only enthusiast when it came to two stick fun having, which bodes well for ski longevity. This all translates to “Jeff didn’t need to buy more skis for a long long time” (plus sledding is expensive).
At some point in 2019, the idea of a light touring ski entered my mind. Something with enough effective edge to be formidable in the spring, but enough float to still be worth breaking out for big vertical days in the winter. I finally made this dream happen on February 1st of this year and picked up the K2 Wayback 106 mated to the Dynafit Superlight 150 binding. Total package weight, 1800 grams. What does this mean for non weight weenies? It means I just lost over 2 pounds per foot over my prior setup, which was a 4Frnt Hoji mated to a G3 Ion binding. If a standard tour is 10,000 steps, this is 20,000 pounds of lifting I’m not doing per foot. Questionable math? Maybe. But two pounds per foot is very different than 2 pounds of bodyweight.
Coincidentally February 1st was the first day I heard about a silly community challenge. “Who in Crystal Wright’s gym (yes, that Crystal) can ski the most vertical feet in the month of February”.
I like numbers. I especially like big round numbers. After my first tour on the new stick, I haphazardly decided I should be able to handle 100K of ascending over the month. With careful time management, I was able to pull it off. I’ll spare everyone the details, because frankly, its not that interesting. But yes, it is possible to ski about 3500 vertical feet everyday with a day job and “normal life demands”. It requires a very tolerant girlfriend, a lot of dried mango, and a willingness to overlook other “hobbies” (for instance, using the snowblower).
Back to the ski. I find most long hand reviews unbearable, so I’ll bullet point the rest of this.
K2 Wayback 106 Thoughts
- Incredibly light for its size
- Titnal (metal) in it helps minimize deflection, adds dampness, adds stiffness
- A far more capable ski than most other skis in its weight class
- Shape is very versatile. Floats well, good edge hold.
- Not for in bounds use. You could survive. Key word, survive
- Fast ski in powder. Doesn’t always plane to the top of the snow, but isn’t a total bottom feeder either.
- Shape provides for relatively neutral performance. Not a “hooky” ski, but not a total schmear-machine either.
- Would like to see K2 build a different model with more forward mount point
- I mounted on line, should have gone +1 or +2 (old bump skier here).
- Added a lot of freedom to my touring; felt like I had more in the tank after a lap even when going hard on ascent
- Great tree ski.
- Has a speed limit in harder snow
- Overall: Great ski for a backcountry skier looking for a light, versatile ski. Does have a speed limit, though it is high in soft smooth snow. Not built for “charging all conditions”. Not for in bounds. Ultimate mountaineering tool for someone who still likes soft snow.
Dynafit Superlight 150 Binding
- Incredible piece of engeineering
- Held me in the entire month with zero issues. Yes, I even jumped off a few things.
- Held me in through harder snow I’ve found in March with no issues (like filling rattling awful snow).
- SO light.
- Heel risers suck. They don’t stay in place, are not high enough. This is the only complaint.
- Overall: A perfect binding for those looking to move fast in the backcountry. Beware of low riser.