To helmet or not to helmet?
We asked Alan Rousseau what his favorite piece of gear was at the moment and this is what we found out…
When I was a kid I never skied without a helmet. Largely I feared my mother’s wrath if she found out I didn’t have my lid on that day. As I fully transitioned from resort skiing to ski touring, somewhere along the way my helmet stopped making it into my pack. I went from skiing with a helmet every day to only bringing one along on the rowdiest of ski objectives.
A big reason for this was carrying the weight of a traditional ski helmet on the uphill was unpleasant, and it’s one more step to do on the change over from skinning up to downhill skiing. Fortunately, last year a very lightweight climbing helmet was released that is rated to handle both a climbing and a ski fall. Weighing in at 215 grams (just shy of ½ pound) the Grivel ‘Duetto’ helmet started to find its way into my pack more days. Also, since there is no insulation in the helmet one can wear it all day and eliminate a step out of your transition if you are really trying to cover a lot of ground quickly in the backcountry.
It’s definitely been a trend for more backcountry skiers to wear climbing helmets in the past few years. It is nice to know that there is now a super-light, climbing oriented helmet that is actually rated to handle a ski fall. ⛷🏂🧗
Moral of the story, protect your noggin and if you are worried about weight or looking for style points, look no further the Grivel Duetto does not compromise on style or quality.
