Genuine Guide Gear

Horrible icing problems with this binding. I would not recommend it to anyone. The only person dumber than the engineer that designed this binding is the skier who bought it!

Check out one of our on-line videos for tips on how to counter any icing issues:

http://www.genuineguidegear.com/emvideo/thickbox/696/570/470/field_video...

Superb binding! I borrowed a set of skis to try it out in the backcountry. Having always skied "normal" tele bindings, the Ascent is a revelation. It takes a bit of getting used to skinning up in tight trees and making kick turns, but the ease of climbing is well worth the price. Unlike the previous reviewer, I found icing to be a non-issue, despite the above-freezing temperatures during the afternoon above tree-line. I would highly recommend the Ascent binding.

The two most important parts of de-icing an Ascent binding in the Central Cascades of Washington State is clearing the ice between the 1.) rear Actuator and base mounting plate . 2 . ) clearing the ice from the "H" body on the under side of the toe plate . All can be accomplished by removing your skis and using your ski pole tip as an ice pick .
It is most important to maintain at least two working pair of Ascent bindings if you do not have access to spare parts .
In two winters( 2007-2008 ) & ( 2008-2009 ) the following parts have been broken by a 55 y.o. 5'11" , 170lb. skier .
Two (2) alloy Toe plates, replaced with Stainless Steel .
Four ( 4) Heel Assemblies , Heel carrier failure adjacent to heel pivot .
One (1) Rear Cable tube .
One (1 ) Toe plate mount . Two forward screw holes stripped -out .
Two ( 2 ) Toe Ice Plates . Rear mount clip breaks .
One ( 1) Heel Insert Ice Plate . Mount clip breaks and slips away .
I'll stop now .
All Failures have taken place ski touring . None covered by warranty .
The two happiest two with my Ascents: the day the were purchased and today , Feb. 19th , the day when they were sold .
Best Regards ,
Tom Davies

I've been skiing a pair of Ascents for a couple of years now and mostly I've been really happy with them. They ski well, the tour mode works nicely, the heel-lifts are really easy to operate with a ski pole and I love the ski crampons - a breeze to fit and remove without even taking the ski off.

However ... those icing issues are real. It's not a big deal, but it's common to have to spend a bit of time getting snow/ice out of that "H" in the underside of the toe plate before the binding can be coaxed back into ski mode. Maybe hitting the tour mode lever with a pole (like in the video but harder) would force the catch in and break the ice but I find it hard to believe that you wouldn't just end up breaking the binding.

And, more seriously, I've definitely had some durability issues. I'm only about 150lb, not especially aggressive and I reckon I ski about 30 days tele a season, but I've still broken both alloy toe boxes - plus the ice plate clips - and had to replace a couple of cables. Like Tom, I've replaced the toe boxes with steel ones. They're a little heavier, but they inspire more confidence.

The other problem I've found is that the rivets that make up the tour-mode pivot are wearing and starting to develop some fairly serious play. It's hard to say how much difference it makes when skiing (or whether I should be worried about their failing completely) but there's enough movement to be pretty alarming when you wiggle your feet on a chairlift!

Conclusion: the Ascent is a great binding (at least when new) and I've had some fantastic days on mine but I don't think I'd buy another pair unless I was confident that those durability issues had been properly addressed.

The tour/downhill lever froze shut on my one day of demoing the binding. It was during a storm and temps were in the mid 20's the whole time. Was barely able to force the lever into downhill mode using my ski pole. Would not use this binding until they resolve this issue. Can it?

Try Silicone spray for now. Works wonders- apply thoroughly before your tour.