BURTON'S CUSTOM SPLT 165, $900
(800) 881-3138 or www.burton.com
Serious powder junkies know that the deepest, fluffiest, downright powderiest snow doesn’t always fall conveniently on lift-accessed terrain. And even when it does, the race to first tracks has only one winner, and that’s the sorry sap who’s been up since dawn, staking his lift-line claim. If you’re not willing to go to such extremes, check out Burton’s SPLT 165, which quite literally splits down the middle, morphing into a pair of “skis” that make accessing remote (read: untracked) backcountry terrain a simple — if sweaty — affair.

In ski mode, the SPLT 165 glides across the snow with admirable grace, and once the climb begins in earnest, strapping a pair of climbing “skins” to the bases makes it relatively easy to gain precious vertical. The SPLT 165 doesn’t disappoint when you point its nose downhill. In fact, it carves and glides with such precision that you’re likely to forget all about its split personality. Kind of like you’ve forgotten all about those ski lifts.