Canadians have more fun.  This theory was recently put to the test- we spent a weekend on Mt Hood with 30 Canadians and 4 Americans.  With one exception who put in a valient effort (you know who you are...), the Canadians partied in a league of their own. 

They are also more intelligent...  The same Canadians who were inhaling jagermeister until 4 in the morning happen to be geniuses who have developed cutting edge optical technology.  They started a company called Recon Instruments that, partnering with Zeal Optics, is about to release the world's first GPS enabled goggles. 


We spent a lovely August weekend testing out these new James Bond style goggles-The Transcend.  We were the only people outside of Recon Instruments to have the privilege of testing these goggles, so you're reading the first review written by someone who has actually skied with these goggles...  

What are GPS enabled goggles and why do you want them?  Well, do you want to have fun like a Canadian?  Of course you do and these goggles will help you.  In a little screen that's clear as an HDTV, these goggles display the temperature, altitude, time, current speed, average speed, max speed, how many runs you've skied, and more. 

Throughout your day of skiing, they track everywhere you go and when you plug in to a computer, you can download all the data, view it overlaid on a satellite map and re-live each turn.   

For those of you who don't like to have fun like Canadians, don't worry these goggles are for you too.  There are a few practical applications:

One of the most useful features of these goggles was that you never had to get out your cell phone to see what time it is.  Any product that keeps my hands warm is a winner in my book.  It also could come in useful during an avalanche rescue- when time matters most.   

Before you launch off the ramp that will make you a ski hero, take physics 101, do the math and calculate the speed you'll need.  Then, when it's time to fly, just watch your speed on the goggle display and you can be 100% confident that you'll clear the gap. 

For long days, the goggles tell you how fast you are going so if you are trying to keep a certain pace to reach a certain objective at a certain time it can help you with that.

Want to be like Greg Hill and ski 1 million vert this year?  Yeah, neither do I.  But it's still fun to keep a ski journal and share information using the STB vert tracker.  With the Transcend goggles, you'll never have to guess or use google earth to calculate your vert from each day!

In the future, who knows where this technology will take us.  I know that Recon Instruments is already working on biometric integration (heart rate, etc), but I personally am looking forward to the day when I can watch a movie while I skin out Teton Pass.  Heretical for some backcountry purists, I know, but I thrive on multitasking.   :)