The Official Retail Partner of the FIFTY+ Project
Alpenglow Sports is stoked to provide our friend and longtime customer, Cody Townsend, with the gear he needs for his new project, The FIFTY+! After 6 years of climbing and skiing 46 of the 50 lines in the book “The Fifty Classic Ski Descents of North America”, Cody's headed back into the backcountry in pursuit of new "modern classics."
In the process of skiing the classic lines depicted in the book, Cody often found himself curious about adjacent lines and what truly constituted a classic. This new series will chronicle his attempts at these lines, and subsequent determination of whether or not they should be included as a classic, based on his personally developed scoring system.
As Cody has ventured to more remote locations and completed more challenging ascents through the FIFTY Project, he often found himself being asked about his gear choices. What gear did he choose for a specific line, and why? As a result, rather organically, he became a trusted voice for outdoor gear choices and performance, and a new aspect of the series, gear reviews, evolved. Alpenglow Sports is excited to be able to utilize his experience with the gear we carry, and are honored to add his voice to our team.
“Alpenglow represents everything that’s positive about specialty retail. Their commitment to Tahoe, public fundraising, local event development and community support is unparalleled in our industry. To me, this partnership is just representative of how supporting principled commerce can be good business."
“Cody Townsend is a visionary athlete who is pushing the boundaries of ski mountaineering. Cody has an innate storytelling capability, one which documents his adventures in an innovative, engaging and progressive fashion. We’re honored to work with one of the most well-rounded athletes alive today.”
Shop Cody's Gear
Cody curated a list of gear that he uses for ambitious ski descents and deep backcountry adventures. We break down the reasons he's chosen some of his favorite pieces.
Watch Gear Reviews
Gear reviews are central to the Alpenglow Sports ethos. We pride ourselves on using the gear we sell and are thrilled to have Cody personally review top picks for backcountry skiing.
Watch the Episodes
Our behind-the-scenes looks into the FIFTY+ makes us a great resource for the episodes and the stories behind them. We'll post all the episodes as they air and will link to more info on the FIFTY+ website.
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The FIFTY+ is a new episodic video series by Cody Townsend centered on exploring the mountains and the definition of what makes a line a classic. It’s the FIFTY, plus more mountains, more lines, more adventures and more fun. The series is all about expanding, and exploring the definition of the classics as backcountry skiing continues to evolve.
Cody developed a scoring system to evaluate the merits of a line and determine if it's a classic. He and his partners will rank lines on the following characteristics:
- Aesthetics
- Popularity
- Ski Quality
- Climb Quality
- Bragging Rights
Our favorite parts of the Fifty Project was the amazing folks that we go to know through Cody's adventures. The FIFTY+ Project continues that tradition with an exciting cast of new friends and old favorites. Keep your eyes peeled! You might even see a friends from Alpenglow Sports!
What gear did Cody choose for a specific line, and why? How did it perform? Cody is a trusted voice for outdoor gear choices and our partnership will bring more, high-quality gear reviews to both our audiences.
The FIFTY+ is a new episodic video series by Cody Townsend centered on exploring the mountains and the definition of what makes a line a classic. It’s the FIFTY, plus more mountains, more lines, more adventures and more fun. The series is all about expanding, and exploring the definition of the classics as backcountry skiing continues to evolve.
Cody developed a scoring system to evaluate the merits of a line and determine if it's a classic. He and his partners will rank lines on the following characteristics:
- Aesthetics
- Popularity
- Ski Quality
- Climb Quality
- Bragging Rights
Our favorite parts of the Fifty Project was the amazing folks that we go to know through Cody's adventures. The FIFTY+ Project continues that tradition with an exciting cast of new friends and old favorites. Keep your eyes peeled! You might even see a friends from Alpenglow Sports!
What gear did Cody choose for a specific line, and why? How did it perform? Cody is a trusted voice for outdoor gear choices and our partnership will bring more, high-quality gear reviews to both our audiences.
The Fifty+ Picks:
Cody's Boot:
S/LAB Mtn Summit
Why it's Cody's top pick:
"This is an incredibly light boot, at 1,050 grams! It's an incredible touring boot because it skis much more powerfully than it's weight would suggest and it walks like a tennis shoe. It's a really form-fitting boot that get's you proper flex out of your ankle and drives power from your legs right down into your skis."
- Cody Townsend
Pickup available at 415 North Lake Boulevard
Usually ready in 24 hours
S/LAB Mtn Summit
23/23.5
415 North Lake Boulevard
415 North Lake Boulevard
Tahoe City CA 96145
United States
Cody's Bindings and How to Choose:
Salomon MTN Pure + Brake
Why it's Cody's top pick:
"I rely on the MTN binding on the majority of my trips. It’s a simple pin-binding with very few moving parts, which promotes reliability because there aren’t a lot of pieces that can break and malfunction. A 40-millimeter wide mounting zone on the toe allows for increased power transmission and stability up front. At 390 grams per binding (100 millimeter brake width), the MTN is an absolute dream for serious tourers."
- Cody Townsend
Pickup available at 415 North Lake Boulevard
Usually ready in 24 hours
Salomon MTN Pure + Brake
Black / Blue / G90
415 North Lake Boulevard
415 North Lake Boulevard
Tahoe City CA 96145
United States
S/Lab Shift2 13 MN
What about the Shift?
Cody provided much of the input in designing the popular Shift binding, but relied on it sparingly for the FIFTY. However, on Mount Superior, which required a minimal approach and held deep snow conditions, he chose the Shift. He wanted to ski fast and hard and out-run his slough, and the need for consistent release was greater than the need to shed weight. The Shift binding’s true alpine binding capabilities and low profile make it an incredible downhill binding, and it tours like a true pin-binding, making it the best of both worlds. Look for Cody to rely upon the Shift for some of the shorter approaches in the FIFTY+ Project.
Pickup available at 415 North Lake Boulevard
Usually ready in 24 hours
S/Lab Shift2 13 MN
Black / 90
415 North Lake Boulevard
415 North Lake Boulevard
Tahoe City CA 96145
United States
Cody's Sharps
What's in Cody's Pack?
How Many Gloves Does It Take?
For Everyday Life
All Cody's Picks
Shop the Fifty+ Picks
Fifty+ Picks
About Cody Townsend
Cody Townsend is a career professional skier based in Tahoe City, California. From award winning freeride skiing to directing, producing and starring in The FIFTY, his passion for skiing and the mountains has driven him for 20+ years.
About Alpenglow Sports
Alpenglow Sports is an original California Mountain Shop that has been providing locals and visitors with inspiration, local knowledge and the best gear to enjoy the great outdoors since 1973. Based in Tahoe City, we take pride in being community, socially and environmentally responsible to ensure Lake Tahoe stays one of the best places to play, visit, and live in California.
Episode 1
The Northstar Couloir
Episode 1 is The Northstar Couloir, a line that draws your eye in from almost every corner of the small ski town at the base of Alyeska Ski Resort, Girdwood, Alaska. With a 10mi / 16k approach and 6k / 1800m of elevation gain, the couloir follows the mantra of Alaska, everything is bigger than it looks in AK. Joined by Elyse Saugstad, the crew embarks on a multi-day adventure to take Elyse on her first winter camping adventure, encounter tough decisions, touchy avalanche conditions and an obligatory sufferfest to ski an off-road Alaskan quintessential couloir.