Is This The Ultimate Backcountry Skiing Repair and Medical Kit?

There's a lot to be said about saving weight when it comes to backcountry skiing–carrying less mass up the hill means you have energy left over when it comes time to pointing those skis back down. We spend a lot of time obsessing over lighter skis, boots, bindings, packs, jackets, helmets–all the obvious things, really. The thing about saving weight on the big things is that marginal gains on weight loss often equal huge performance trades. Lose 100 grams on your skis and you might end up hating skiing them! What's the point of that?

Instead of focusing on the obvious, what if we thought about shaving weight elsewhere? There's plenty of stuff we carry every day into the backcountry, like avalanche safety gear, rescue gear, first aid kits, or a repair kit to fix in-the-field oopsies. We've talked about some dedicated ultralight tools like PurePeak's carbon avalanche shovel, ski packs like Samaya's ultra-minimalist Ultra 35 Pack, and even ways to shave some weight off your bindings, but I've never met anyone so categorically weight-obsessed as IFMGA Guide Mark Smiley.

An American guide now based in Canada, Smiley has long been tinkering with gear in his garage to strike a balance between functionality, weight, and realistic durability. If you follow him on Instagram, you might already be familiar with some of his Bruce-Wayne-esque creations with liberal use of carbon fiber and other unorthodox materials, like a TKTK-gram rescue tarp, an innovative crevasse rescue setup, or even his all-in-one backcountry repair kit.

MtnSense PRO Backcountry Rescue Kit Specs:

• Includes: Rescue Tarp, UHMWPE Cord, Kevlar Cord, Mylar space blanket, headlamp, waterproof stuff sack, Tourniquet, Battle Wrap Compression Dressing, CPR Mask, Nitrile Gloves, Hemostatic Gauze, Skin Adhesive, Syringe, medication tubes, Carbon Fiber Storage Handle 1/4” Ratchet, 7 Bit Set, Drill Bit, binding hardware, super glue, multitool, ski strap, ice scraper, rivets, knife blade, and more
• Dimensions: 9x12" (fits into the back panel of a ski pack)
• MSRP: $419 (Pro), $339 (Basic), $299 (Pro w/o Tarp), $219 (Basic w/o Tarp)

What's in The Backcountry Rescue Kit?

One thing I've learned (unfortunately the hard way) about many skiers in the backcountry is that they're not carrying the proper tools. These days, most recreational backcountry skiers are diligent about carrying avalanche rescue gear like a beacon, shovel, and probe–but for the most part, unless you're a guide, it stops there. Yes, avalanche rescue tools are absolutely imperative to carry, but the thing is, you're likely never going to use them. Instead, you'll probably actually need to use things like a first aid kit, repair kit, or some sort of rescue tarp. Where do those live in your pack?

Think about it, what would you do if your buddy digs a tip and tweaks a knee? Do you have a way to stop a bleed if someone slices themselves open on a ski edge? What about a way to wrap and support a dislocated shoulder after an innocuous-looking tomahawk? Do you have the tools to get them back to the parking lot if they can't move under their own power? Beyond just medical emergencies, how about fixing a broken binding or boot? Can you improvise something to fix that? These things happen all the time out there, and being unprepared sucks. There's a reason guide packs are generally pretty large...they're carrying all kinds of crap to keep themselves and their party safe in an emergency.

Smiley's MTN Sense Backcountry Rescue Kit seeks to solve most if not all of those problems. As an internationally-certified mountain guide and avalanche educator, this guy has had plenty of real-world experiences teach him what's important to carry in the mountains. Better yet, it's taught him what's actually just dead weight and not actually useful.

In the past, I've typically carried my emergency gear in four distinct units: avalanche rescue gear (beacon, shovel, probe), a guide tarp/short rope, a first-aid kit, and a repair kit. I pieced together everything I needed and typically carried all the pieces separately (so that I could share them within my touring group). The MTN Sense kit essentially combines the latter three of these into a single do-it-all system. It's designed to fit neatly into a lightweight flat foam board with cutouts for each tool/piece, that can then slide into the back panel of your ski pack. In fact, its dimensions happen to work perfectly with the Raide Research LF30 and LF40 packs (Smiley is affiliated with Raide as an ambassador), but it will fit the back panels of most ski packs that have a hydration sleeve or removable pad there. The guide tarp and necessary cord are vacuum-sealed into a flat panel about the size of a small laptop.

I'm not going to list out every little item that comes with this kit, but I'll say that every single one of them serves at least one, if not several, very specific purposes. On the medical side, the inclusion of a high-quality but lightweight military-style tourniquet, "Kaolin" hemostatic gauze, and compressive "Battle Wrap" are a nod to changes in modern wilderness medicine protocols to focus on stopping arterial bleeds ASAP. There's also a tiny CPR mask, nitrile gloves, and skin glue. It's not a comprehensive first aid kit (you'll want to carry medications and probably some extra gauze/wrapping/slinging materials), but Smiley has figured out what are probably the best commercially available bang-for-your-weight options to address trauma.

On the repair side, this small but effective portion of the kit contains a tiny multi-tool with pliers and a variety of blades, plus a carbon-fiber ratchet and all the bits you would need to fix (and even re-mount) a touring binding. Included are screws, rivets, and all the hardware necessary for some pretty major repair jobs. I've never thought to field-repair a binding, instead having opted to just lash the boot/binding together using baling wire and ski straps in past instances, but the tools do allow you to do that. I messed around with re-mounting a binding in my garage using just these tools–it definitely isn't what I'd choose to do, but it does work.

Finally, the included rescue tarp is perhaps the most impressive part of the whole kit. For those unfamiliar with what I mean by "rescue tarp," I'm referring to a specialized tarp used by mountain guides to drag an injured skier to safety. There are a few of these that are commercially available, but most are designed to be super-durable and to double as a shelter in an emergency. It's also something that I know most people don't carry, even though they should. In the past, I've carried the Alpine Threadworks Guide Tarp (kind of the gold standard for these things, but unfortunately not easy to get). It packs down to the size of 1L Nalgene bottle, weighs about 750g, and costs a lot of money.

Smiley wanted to slim this essential piece of equipment down to the absolute bare minimum, so he did a deep dive on materials. Turns out that Tyvek (the vapor barrier sheet inside your house's walls) is an excellent option for this. It's extremely light and packable, super slippery (crucial when dragging a patient across the snow), and strong enough to work in this situation. The rescue tarp is constructed with 2 shovel handles (your own+your buddy's) and the included UHMWPE and Kevlar Rigging Cords. When practiced, it's possible to put this thing together in under five minutes, and the whole thing weighs 8 oz and packs down to a 8"x12"x0.5" package. That's tiny!

How did I use the Rescue Kit in the field?

While the back panel foam board packaging is nifty, I ended up getting rid of this part and carrying the tools and medical gear in separate small bags. Turns out the best way to slim down your pack weight is by having your friends carry your stuff! I also didn't find the fit of the foam board to particularly comfortable in any pack I had–I could feel some of the tools poking through and they didn't fit into the panel snugly enough to not bounce around. Not a huge deal, but I thought the foam piece was a little gimmicky.

The tools themselves turned out to be awesome. I've used the multi-tool and ratchet for all manner of things this season, including the aforementioned binding mount and several in-the-field adjustments. Luckily, I haven't had to break out any of the medical supplies yet, and hope to never have to do so. However, the fact that everything packs down so small and light that I forget it's in my pack means that it's always going to come with me.

Speaking of, I never used to carry any sort of rescue tarp when skiing out the gates of the resort, but I actually forgot I put the Bruce Wayne Tarp in my pack until discovering I had been skiing with it for weeks without noticing when I was looking for it to photograph for this review. The rescue tarp now permanently lives in my sidecountry/resort pack (a Dakine Poacher RAS Vest). For ski tours and bigger missions, I'll still carry my Alpine Threadworks tarp (much more durable, and doubles as a storm shelter).

What type of skier is this for?

In all honesty, if you're a backcountry skier, you (or someone in your group) should be carrying every single one of these pieces, every day. There's absolutely no reason not to. Sure, there might be individually better options for tools/bits/medical gear you can find with loads of research and experimentation, but Smiley's done the homework for you here and put together an impeccably thought out and very purposeful backcountry repair/medical/rescue kit. Get one!