News Roundup — July — Ski Town Zoning, Dynafit Khion Recall

Just in, Monday July 18: I had a good phone convo with Dynafit about their Khion recall, and put some of the mystery to rest.

First, the “North American mystery.” The deal with that is the more important boot problems such as the lean lock only exist in the first production run of the Khion boots, of which nearly all were shipped to North America. Shipping is done with this timetable because the lengthy shipping delay would otherwise make it difficult or impossible to time North American product releases with those in Europe. That said, from what I’m seeing in reports from other countries as well as using basic intuition, I’d guess that it’s a good idea to upgrade from Khion no matter where you are.

As for what problems triggered the recall, it sounds like the lean-lock failing is the most important, though some cracked plastic and difficulty of the fit did contribute. I was told that the problematic lean lock could be fixed with a “shim” that Dynafit provided, but this was not ideal as the shim could become misaligned when the boots were traveled.

In my opinion, recalls such as this are indicative of Dynafit placing much more importance on getting their products closer to perfect than in the past, when we’ve been frustrated by things like binding problems that might have justified a recall but were instead handled on a case-by-case basis. If you are a North American customer who purchased the Khion, you can swap for a new pair of the Beast model which is the upgrade, or get a refund. Beast does sound good. It’s been in pre-production for some time and we’re more interested in what it looks like once it’s ready for the consumer, so we’ll cover it in more detail as things progress. We do know that the Beast boot is an upgrade of the Khion and is nearly identical. It’s improved with Masterstep inserts, power strap, and small but probably essential reinforcements.

Meanwhile, Dynafit’s line of uber lightweight performance ski touring boots is ever interesting.

You can see the official recall info on the Dynafit website here.

Just in: Dynafit is recalling all North American Khion boots for a somewhat mysterious safety issue that we’ll hopefully detail, soon. The recall info doesn’t go in-depth as to the reason. Our guess is it could be anything from failing tech fittings to defective plastic molding. Dealers tell me that the reasons are everything from cracking plastic, to the lean-lock failing, to the difficulty of the fit.

Our condolences to those in France affected by the Bastille Day terror attack. We’re not clear on what’s really going on in France, but just as we do here in the U.S., they obviously have some challenges to deal with regarding the security of their country.

One has to wonder if the seeming acceleration of attacks, along with things like the Brexit, are going to change how open the EU is for easy traveling? Further, I’ll admit to some personal concern about attending mass events such as ISPO where a large group is vulnerable and exposed with no way of defending themselves. My feelings in that respect go for the U.S. as well. Have to say it’s nice to just go to the mountains and get away from it all. Interesting article about why France keeps getting attacked.

Since my early days in Aspen, living in everything from a van to a closet, I’ve been interested in the issue of resort area housing. Seems many of such areas have a never-ending shortage of affordable shelter. This is obviously due to a shortage of developable land; scarcity that will never end due to the growth spiral (meaning each housed person begets more people needing housing, as in, who cuts your hair and pumps your gas?). But more, one has to wonder if other factors are in play.

The Aspen area has attempted mitigating the housing problem by throwing rather large amounts of cash against the wall to see what sticks. Result, they’ve sheltered around half their worker population fairly close to their jobs (an accomplishment that essentially preserved Aspen as a town instead of a giant hotel). But prices remain high even when “controlled.” How much of that is artificial, driven by restrictive zoning and building codes that do everything from making a foundation cost a fortune, to making it illegal to build and live in a tiny house? Check out this take about zoning and housing at the NYT.

One has to laugh. But seriously… If it’s an innocuous case of foot-in-mouth advertising that violates well know principles of sexual equality, how uptight should we get? Honestly, I don’t have an answer. But I enjoyed laughing and thinking about the last time I was out climbed and out skied by a woman, which wasn’t all that long ago. She was a mom, as well. You’ll see what I mean when you check the link. More here.

And more for grins. I remember various dirt, rock and sand skiing footage over the years. Here is one more recent. Obviously, one really does not need snow. Though the correct binding ramp angle appears to be essential, as well as strong quads.

I had a friend once, “R. B. Johnson,” who said he’d been hiking near Seattle and “found” D.B. Cooper’s money. He subsequently retired with a new identity to a far eastern land where they have good rock climbing, pretty girls who appreciate rich guys, and plenty of local beer. Johnson was a backcountry skier as well, but he gave that up for the sun.

Funny thing, the FBI never pursued Johnson, even though they kept investigating D.B. for about 40 years — till they recently closed one of the longest running efforts in Fibbie history. Others claim to know what happened with Cooper, but my friend R.B. is actually D.B. and the FBI should have given up on their quest many years ago.

Want some DPS skis? Sometimes the Drake Powder Slayer is tough to get a deal on. The guys at DPS are smart, they know diehard backcountry skiers don’t stop shopping just because we’re due for a record heat furnace in most of the United States. In fact, the heat keeps them indoors looking for deals! So, check out the DPS Summer Dreamtime and see if anything makes sense to your credit card. More here.

Lastly, just be glad you don’t ride ski lifts. Or do you?