The Crested Butte News Serving the Gunnison Valley since 1999
By Kendra Walker
Over the past several years, local gear review company Blister Review has grown its recognition in the global outdoor industry scene while deepening its roots in the Gunnison Valley. Earlier this winter, Blister held its fourth annual Blister Summit at the Elevation Hotel, hosting 658 attendees from 34 states and nine countries and over 100 brand representatives in Mt. Crested Butte.
What began as a small and intimate inaugural event in the midst of the global pandemic back in 2021, the Blister Summit has quickly evolved into a must stop every February for movers and shakers in the ski industry. Touted by Blister as the first consumer-focused gear test and demo event in the world, the Blister Summit incorporates gear and apparel demos, resort ski meetups, backcountry ski tours and nightly panel sessions with industry leaders and pro athletes. The goal is to bring together some of the most compelling brands in the industry, put them in conversation with one another and invite the public to be a part of the experience and provide feedback.
“It gets better every year, it’s really fulfilling,” said Blister senior editor and programs manager Kristin Sinnot. “It’s pretty cool to see people from all over the country, and a lot of repeat attendees. We’ve had brands and attendees return every year ever since that first year,” she said. “A big part of this is bringing people into the community and sharing Mt. Crested Butte with others and having a great spot for people to demo gear.”
While the Blister Summit continues to attract more folks in the winter outdoor scene, Sinnot said that it’s also evolved much deeper on a local level. “We’re starting to see more locals in attendance. More people from the valley are volunteering, demoing gear or coming by to listen to the panels. We’re very happy to have more local participation.”
Throughout the Summit week, attendees, athletes and Blister reviewers all met up for early morning uphill hikes, restorative yoga, group laps on the mountain or guided backcountry tours.
“We had over 150 people sign up to go into the backcountry with Irwin Guides,” said Sinnot. “This is the fourth year we’ve worked with Irwin, they are super knowledgeable and enthusiastic. We had a lot of never-evers demoing backcountry gear, and we were able to provide a safe space for people to explore and be introduced to the backcountry. There was even a marriage proposal during one of the backcountry outings,” said Sinnot, one of many highlights from the week.
Snowboard demos were a new addition this year, and Sinnot said Blister plans to continue to grow their snowboard offerings at the Summit in the future. “We got exceptional feedback from Never Summer Snowboards and they’re planning to be bigger and better next year. Everyone that came is super excited about the future of the event and growing the snowboarding element.”
Blister held various panel sessions throughout the week, covering topics ranging from ski design and manufacturing, to hearing from athletes on their favorite experiences in the mountains, to how the outdoor industry is activating political change.
Sinnot said they hosted more professional athletes than ever before, including Cody Townsend, Angel Collinson and Caroline Gliech. Still, Sinnot said that the Summit feels just as intimate as it did that first year. “Even with bigger names coming and our attendee numbers growing, it’s become this community where egos are set aside and everybody lends a hand. The pros are out there helping put gear on folks and hiking up the mountain with everyone.”
The Summit also aligned with the Natural Selection Tour snowboarding competition at Crested Butte Mountain Resort, and Sinnot said it was great to have that overlap. “We had a few people on panel sessions that were here for the Natural Selection event and if it comes back to CBMR, we hope to grow with them. CBMR has become a terrific partner of the Blister Summit over the past few years, and their help has been integral to the success of the event.”
Blister also held its first annual Blister Film Awards this year, highlighting and celebrating filmmakers and athletes in the outdoor world. Another first, and a highlight for Sinnot, was the impromptu karaoke party at Blister headquarters in the Elevation the final night. “We decided it’s going to be a part of the tradition,” she said. “It all ties into this tight-knit community, it’s not an elite group. Attendees, athletes, brands, reviewers were all in there singing and having fun with it.”
The Summit also provided Blister with the opportunity to share its local work with Western Colorado University and the University of Colorado-Boulder. The collaboration, called Blister Labs, works with engineering faculty and students to test gear at Western’s Paul M. Rady School of Computer Science and Engineering.
Blister Labs tests both qualitative experiences on the trails and quantitative analyses in the lab through dynamic modeling. Some projects over the past two years have included comparing durability and stiffness of bike wheels; producing more consumer-friendly apparel ratings for water resistance and breathability; and working to standardize flex ratings of ski boots. The goal is to gather data that helps speed up the prototyping phase for companies as they design products and get riders in the best gear for their particular use case.
Sinnot said that Blister has received overwhelmingly positive feedback from attendees, and she is already looking forward to Blister Summit 2025. “So many people love the culture and the community and want to return. It really provides this amazing space for people to connect, learn from each other and nerd out on the mountain together.”
She also hopes Blister can be a resource for the local community. “We’re always happy to have people stop by the Blister headquarters and talk to us, ask questions, and hear about what we’re up to. We’re very happy to be more involved in the community, we’re here for the community.”
