Powder goals to function solely the very best services and products. If you happen to purchase one thing through considered one of our hyperlinks, we could earn a fee.
We already launched the newly up to date CAST Freetour 2.0 binding earlier this 12 months when the Driggs, Idaho-based brothers and designers Lars and Silas Chickering-Ayers first launched it, and have since had the higher a part of the 12 months to place the modern touring binding by means of its paces.
For anybody who nonetheless haven’t heard in regards to the CAST, this freetouring binding is designed to supply the strongest, most secure, and most performance-oriented touring binding choice available on the market by letting you descend on a real alpine binding (the Look Pivot 15 or 18) and ascend by swapping the toe piece throughout your transition. Sure, it requires carrying a part of your binding in your backpack if you ski our tour, and it calls for barely longer transitions than in the event you’re snowboarding with a lighter-weight pin binding. However, it permits for unparalleled downhill efficiency, security, and reliability.
After Cy Whitling examined the setup on some Rossignol Sender Free 110s, I examined the Solid Freetour 2.0 on a pair of Valhalla 115 Smoc skis, a midweight freeride powder ski that’s precisely the kind of experience I’d pair these with in the event that they have been mine. I principally used the Atomic Hawx Extremely XTD BOA with each an Instinct Energy Wrap (means stiffer, shitty ROM) and the inventory Mimic liners (much less stiff, higher stroll mode) to check touring, and spent loads of time snowboarding numerous devoted alpine boots just like the Fischer RC4 130 and Phaenom FS120 in them.
In A Nutshell
DIN: 15 or 18 relying on modelCompatibility: any Alpine ISO 5355, GripWalk ISO 23223, Touring 9523 norm boot with a tech toeClimbing Risers: 0, 8, 12 levels
Development and Design:
From distant, the brand new CAST Freetour 2.0 binding might simply be mistaken for the previous system. The truth is, the one main change is within the toepiece meeting (and the truth that in the event you purchase your complete binding from CAST, it is available in a sick limited-edition deep purple colour). The heelpiece stays unchanged, with the acquainted lever/heel riser meeting that folds over to carry down the brakes. Mount sample is an identical as properly, which implies you improve your older Freetour 1.0 or any ski that has been drilled for a Look Pivot or Rossignol FKS binding.
The brand new system takes benefit of a totally redesigned toepiece meeting. CAST checked out a few of the ache factors of the previous system, with explicit consideration to icing and the necessity for terribly straight and exact mounting. They’ve now moved to a platform mount that makes swapping between tech toes and downhill toes a a lot cleaner affair and may enable for some extra leniency with mounting by hand.
The brand new tech toes now solely have one-sided springs and are considerably lighter than the older ones due to intelligent CNC machining and higher supplies. The raised mounting platform on the two.0 has slots which can be designed to push snow and ice out as you push the toepiece in, and the spring-loaded button that enables for launch additionally prevents icing even in nasty, moist situations.
Photograph: Cy Whitling
For you metal-heads on the market, a lot of the binding remains to be manufactured from metallic, guaranteeing that this factor will maintain up higher to your abuse than absolutely anything else available on the market. If you happen to do find yourself breaking one thing, CAST presents a full guarantee and substitute components for the system. Hit them up, Lars and Silas will deal with you.
How Does the CAST Freetour 2.0 Carry out Uphill?
So how does this behemoth really tour? That’s an advanced query to reply. How any binding “excursions” is a posh topic, and actually comes right down to what you anticipate or need it to do. The CAST 2.0 shouldn’t be actually similar to a real light-weight pintech binding like an ATK, Atomic/Salomon MTN, light-weight Dynafit or Marker Alpinist. I say “light-weight Dynafit” for a cause there, because the usability of a few of Dynafits heavier bindings is fairly terrible.
Right here’s a number of issues to think about. Merely put, the CAST is heavy, and also you undoubtedly really feel that on lengthy days. Nevertheless, I’d argue that snowboarding on a binding with that a lot elasticity and such a clean really feel (and with heavier stiff boots) will make your legs much less drained on the descent. The effectivity of a tech toe actually helps right here, however in the event you’re snowboarding actual (learn: heavy) freeride skis with this setup, your legs will get drained a lot sooner on the uphill
Secondly, regardless of being a lot simpler and fewer fussy than with the Freetour 1.0, transitioning the Freetour 2.0 nonetheless takes a number of additional steps and undoubtedly takes longer than a devoted tech binding. I’m used to the simplicity of switching over a pin binding just like the ATK Kuluar or the Marker Alpinist with out taking my skis off, and the method of a CAST transition is nowhere close to as clean, even when practiced. If you happen to’re touring with associates who’re on light-weight bindings, they’ll simply have to attend.
One main enchancment with the two.0 is that it not ices up and jams the best way the previous tech toe items would. I swear I’ve spent hours of my life making an attempt to wash out the slots of the previous ones to make them work on deep days the place I’d somewhat be really immersed in bottomless pow. Thus far, I haven’t skilled this difficulty but with the brand new ones, and it turned out to be a reasonably moist winter.
The actuation of the brand new tech toe can also be far smoother and the lateral clamping pressure feels greater. I by no means inadvertently launched out of the Freetour 1.0, however my previous pair developed fairly a little bit of play after only a season of sunshine use. The brand new ones, regardless of really having fewer springs, really feel a lot stronger and I’ve but to expertise any side-to-side play.
One different draw back, and this won’t be an enormous deal relying on the place you reside, is that there isn’t a true flat touring mode, regardless of CAST calling their 0-degree riser a flat mode. Folding the heel platform right down to lock the brakes up provides you a number of mm of rise within the heel, even with none of the risers up. Right here within the Tetons, I do a number of flat skinning to get to locations, and no flat mode actually makes my toes harm within the tight-fitting boots I prefer to ski with this binding. As soon as I used to be really heading uphill the issue disappeared. I’m stunned this wasn’t one thing CAST totally addressed with the up to date Freetour 2.0, since I really feel that could possibly be a simple repair by elevating the toe pins a number of mm to match the heel rise.
Photograph: Hanne Lundin
How does the CAST Freetour 2.0 carry out downhill?
Effectively, the entire cause to purchase this stuff is for the downhill efficiency. And sure, they ski amazingly properly. Like, 100 instances higher than any tech or hybrid binding available on the market. Why is that? You’re driving the Look Pivot, a binding that’s received the very best elasticity and damping available on the market.
If you happen to’re solely on the market solely snowboarding deep untouched pow, which is completely a factor, then you definitely in all probability gained’t actually discover a want for all that elasticity and damping. But when your days within the backcountry contain charging on variable snow surfaces like wind board or dust-on-crust, or in the event you’re spending a ton of time snowboarding these inbounds, then the additional suspension will actually turn out to be helpful and your knees and again will thanks. It’s like driving a hardtail vs. an enduro mountain bike: each are instruments for particular use instances. Within the case of the Freetour 2.0, I feel the very best use case is an 80/20 break of ripping inbounds or chopped up backcountry situations and ski touring.
The place does the CAST Freetour 2.0 make some compromises?
The largest compromise I discovered with the Freetour 2.0 is effectivity of transitions. I observed the burden penalty on lengthy uphills, however truthfully discovered that shortening my stride and simply chilling out on the skintrack made it bearable, particularly understanding I had a boot/binding/ski combo I used to be actually excited to experience on the best way down.
Nevertheless, transitioning this stuff nonetheless makes me really feel like a helpless first-time splitboarder yardsale-ing their gear each which means. It’s undoubtedly simpler than on the 1.0 model with the icing difficulty taken care of, nevertheless it’s nonetheless annoying to need to take away my skis, fish round for the toe piece in my pack, swap it, and pack the opposite half away. I additionally stay in fixed worry of forgetting or shedding the toes throughout a transition.
Photograph: Carter Edwards
What would an ideal day on the CAST Freetour 2.0 appear to be?
For me, the very best use case for this binding is driving in a spot the place you’ll principally experience chairlifts and infrequently tour to sidecountry laps (suppose Jackson Gap, Chamonix, Hakuba, or Kicking Horse). It’s an amazing choice to deliver on a journey journey the place you’d prefer to pack solely a single pair of skis.
I’d additionally extremely advocate it for many who work on their skis as patrollers, media, or mechanized backcountry guides. Snowboarding each day with a heavy pack on a setup like that is a lot nicer than on a tech binding: the Freetour 2.0 is extraordinarily sturdy, you’ve gotten dependable launch if you want it, you may ski onerous and quick with out additional stress in your knees, and you’ve got the flexibility to tour if vital.
Usability Notes:
A behavior I developed to make working this factor simpler included maintaining the tech toes in my jacket pocket whereas snowboarding. They’re low profile sufficient to not be annoying and the heat helps additional maintain them from getting snow packed contained in the mechanism. Additionally, working the brakes with two arms makes locking and unlocking them a lot faster. When releasing them, gently push up on the brakes and the locking lever will come undone by itself.
How does the CAST Freetour 2.0 examine?
The up to date CAST Freetour 2.0 nonetheless falls into the identical market class that the older model did, straight competing with the Marker Duke PT and the Salomon/Atomic/Armada Shift (and Shift 2.0). Like many have stated earlier than, I’d break that class down by the next generalizations. The Shift is finest geared in direction of those that need a touring setup that may sometimes ski the resort, whereas the Duke and CAST are freeride/resort setups that may tour and are higher selections for these a binding first for inbounds snowboarding that may be sometimes used for touring.
The brand new Shift2 remains to be a bit lighter at 920 g, however has related downsides to usability. The Duke, with out its toe piece, weighs in equally to the Freetour 2.0, and you continue to need to cope with eradicating a part of the toe. In my expertise, neither competitor’s choices ski as properly nor are anyplace close to as dependable because the all-metal CAST.
Associated: Overview: Salomon Shift2 Binding
