One of the best pieces of gear you could buy as a backcountry snowmobiler is a Garmin inReach. It's what literally saved my ass. But the second is an avalanche beacon as if the worst occurs when you're carving up some far-off bowl of powder, you want one in your pocket or attached to your backpack to help others find your butt under six feet of snow.
I actually had one when myself and Ski-Doo's Steve Martin (no, not the guy from Three Amigos) went off into the wilds of Utah and shredded the deep recesses of the mountains.
But sometimes gear fails. Whether that's because you broke it, you forgot to charge a battery, or because of manufacturer defects. And it's the last one that's of concern today, as Black Diamond Equipment has issued a recall over its PIEPS Pro IPS avalanche beacon and told customers to stop using the devices immediately.
