The Basics of Proper Snowshoe Gear

Learn the basics of proper snowshoe gear in this video with Adam Chase, Atlas team captain.

Hi! I am Adam Chase and I am here in beautiful Boulder, Colorado where we have fresh snow and that's a good thing because I am here to talk about snowshoeing. I am the Captain of Team Atlas, and I would like to introduce you to the sport. Starting from the snow up, let's begin with picking your snowshoe. If you are in deep pattern, you are going to want a snowshoe with a lot of surface area. So a larger snowshoe. If you around a packed surface, you can use a smaller snowshoe, something like this, which is designed for running. As far as footwear, you are going to want something waterproof and then going from there up, you probably want gaiters to keep the snow from intruding into the shoe. Then, as far as a parallel, you really want to go for layering because snowshoeing is a - it cause a lot of exertion and you are going to heat up rather quickly. So layering is a great technique as far as being able to strip down and then add the layers back. Lot of times people want eye-wear to keep a lot of snow up and so having some protective glasses is important. Okay, well as a basic first step is getting a snowshoe on your foot. So basically, the form is bindings are usually on the outside of the foot. Step into the shoe to align your ball of your foot with the traction device and then once you are there, you want to pull it from the back and secure yourself, so that you are properly seeded. And this is a simple one-pull system. So you are all aligned up and then, Voila, you are ready to go. Next, I am going to talk about backcountry safety.