Would it have killed them to add the following?Small/medium:
Fits 16~19" torso, 30 liters/1831 cubic inches, 3 pounds 10 ounces.
Medium/Large:
Fits 18.5~21.5" torso, 32 liters/1953 cubic inches, 4 pounds 4 ounces.
Amazon system will not allow me to enter this without a star rating. I don't own one of these so I really can't, thus the middle of the road star rating.
Having said that I'm nothing if not oppinionanted so I'll say this; too much capacity for a resort/slack country backpack, too little robustness for serious use. It has the avalung so I'll make the assumption that people interested on this are into getting a tad far from the groomed slopes. Based on that these are my observations:
On the backcountry I carry snowshoes. This strap system is very likely to send your shoes flying at the first oportunity; most decent packs use (or are modified with) a decent double-dual strap, where one part tighthens the load, the second fastener on the strap locks everything, times two. The waist strap is underengineered (for the pack capacity), which will seriously limit the weigth load you can stash on this, else you will compromise comfort. Often you see packs with a pad on the back that can be unsnapped from the top, which serves as a quick sit-down pad, and as means to strap the snowboard sideways. When climbing steep I like a horizontal mount.
If you are looking for a day pack, slackcountry pack, resort pack, this should work if you pack it light, but then again I hate the extra volume that I can't efficiently put to a good use. If you are going further off trail and don't have to do a lot of hiking with a snowboard attached to it, nor carry too much weight, it should work. I would not try to carry a load, nor would I trust my snowshoes without modifying the straps.
If you must know my main pack is a North Face Off Chute 22 liter, 1325 cubic inches, 3 pounds 7 ounces, with enough features for serious use. My light pack is a 11 liter K2 Pilchuck that can fit the shovel/probe/emergency kit/sandwich, and is so slim that without snowshoes I can ride a chairlift without problems. The Pilchuck shares some of the same design shortcomings as the black diamond but that is fine; it has a third of the volume capacity. Short of you carrying steel plates you couldn't put that much weight on it, nor do I plan on summiting a big mountain with it.
At the end I'm going with the stand-alone avalung which I can then use on any backpack.
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