DayMaker Touring

American backcountry hardware brand | Founded 2016 by pro skier mechanical engineer Giray Dadali and industrial designer Chris Trunek | Known for: Daymakers Classic adapters, Tekdapters, four bar walking geometry and removable touring access for alpine bindings | Focus: lowering the cost barrier to ski touring while keeping familiar downhill binding performance

Salt Lake City garage roots and the adapter that had to make the day

DayMaker Touring is not a ski brand, boot brand or film crew. It is a focused backcountry hardware company built around one unusual but useful idea: let skiers tour uphill on the downhill skis and bindings they already own, then remove the adapter and ski down on their normal alpine setup. The brand traces its beginning to 2016, with Giray Dadali and Chris Trunek. Dadali is a professional skier and mechanical engineer from Bristol Valley, New York, while Trunek is a skier, biker and industrial designer from Cleveland, Ohio.

The company’s origin story sits in Salt Lake City, Utah, where years of skiing the Wasatch backcountry exposed the same frustration many strong resort skiers feel when they first look at touring gear. A complete second setup means new skis, new bindings, new boots and skins. Older adapter systems and frame bindings could feel awkward, heavy or compromised. DayMaker’s answer was a removable adapter that would be durable, transferable, easy to use and efficient enough to turn a sidecountry idea into a real day outside.

Classic adapters and Tekdapters for two different boot worlds

DayMaker’s catalog is compact. The Daymakers Classic adapters are the original system for skiers who want to use standard alpine boots, GripWalk boots or Walk To Ride boots with regular downhill bindings. The adapter clamps around the ski boot, steps into the alpine binding, then creates a touring interface for the climb. DayMaker lists the Classic system as fully adjustable across a broad boot sole length range, with compatibility for downhill bindings and no requirement for tech fittings in the boot.

Tekdapters are the newer, tech-toe-focused version. They are designed for skiers who already have boots with tech toe inserts but still want to ascend using an adapter and descend on trusted alpine bindings. The concept is different from a pure pin binding or a hybrid binding. The adapter is used for the climb, then stored for the ski down, leaving the skier clicked into the alpine binding for descent. That is the core DayMaker promise: carry the touring mechanism when you do not need it, and ski down on the binding feel you already trust.

Four bar stride and the problem of walking in alpine boots

The most important DayMaker technology is its four bar linkage. Instead of using a simple single pivot, the Classic adapter uses a linkage driven virtual pivot intended to rotate under the ball of the foot. DayMaker describes this as a way to create a more natural touring stride, even when the skier is using boots without walk mode. The design also includes a neutral stance for flatter approaches and climbing risers for steeper tracks.

This does not turn alpine boots into lightweight touring boots. That distinction matters. DayMaker works best for skiers who understand the tradeoff: the system can make short tours, sidecountry missions, backcountry jump sessions and exploratory laps possible without buying a full setup, but it is heavier and less efficient than a dedicated touring boot and tech binding system. Its value is not maximum uphill speed. Its value is access, cost control and downhill confidence.

Giray Dadali, Tanner Hall and the hard charging use case

DayMaker’s credibility comes partly from who built it. Giray Dadali’s background as a pro skier and mechanical engineer gives the product a direct connection to freeskiing, not only to gear design. The brand also appears in a specific corner of ski culture: strong skiers who want to reach jumps, sidecountry lines or short backcountry objectives while still skiing down on bindings they know.

The company’s official homepage includes user and athlete references from names such as Ian Hamilton and Tanner Hall, which helps explain the brand’s niche. This is not a race federation product and not a lightweight ski mountaineering tool. It speaks more naturally to freeriders, film crews, patrol style users, resort skiers curious about uphill access and people who want to use their existing quiver before committing to a dedicated touring setup. For those skiers, the appeal is clear: skin up with an adapter, drop it in the pack, then ski the descent on an alpine binding.

Wasatch testing and the sidecountry terrain that shaped the idea

DayMaker’s Salt Lake City roots are important because the Wasatch is a natural testing ground for this kind of product. Resort access, storm cycles, short approaches, lift assisted gates, sidecountry zones and backcountry jump terrain all sit close together. A product made only for long human powered traverses would not necessarily start here. A product made for strong skiers who want to add uphill access to familiar downhill gear makes sense in this environment.

DayMaker’s own blog and trip content show the product moving beyond Utah, including Hokkaido powder trips and road missions. That travel context is useful because the adapter concept makes the most sense in places where the goal is not always a huge vertical day. Short powder approaches, roadside zones, bootpack to skintrack transitions and filming missions can reward a system that prioritizes downhill trust over uphill minimalism. In deep snow or jump sessions, many riders prefer the confidence of their alpine bindings once the climbing is done.

Aluminum geometry, boot compatibility and the cost of extra weight

DayMaker’s construction story is about mechanical geometry more than exotic materials. The adapter must hold the boot securely, fit into an alpine binding, pivot smoothly enough for climbing, deploy risers on steeper skintracks and release from the setup quickly before descent. Classic adapters list a product weight around 1440 grams per pair, making them a meaningful addition compared with a dedicated lightweight touring setup. Blister measured individual adapters in the same broad weight neighborhood during long term testing, reinforcing the obvious tradeoff: DayMakers are practical, but they are not weightless.

The weight should be understood honestly. On the climb, the skier is moving alpine skis, alpine bindings, alpine boots and adapters. On the descent, the adapters can be stored in the pack, which restores normal alpine binding feel underfoot. That is the design compromise. DayMaker is strongest when the skier values downhill power, binding familiarity and budget access more than the lightest possible uphill system. It is less ideal for long traverses, high mileage tours or skiers who already own efficient touring boots and pin bindings.

Choosing between Daymakers Classic, Tekdapters and a full touring setup

The best DayMaker choice starts with boots. Skiers with normal alpine boots or GripWalk boots who do not have tech inserts should look at Daymakers Classic. This is the lowest barrier path because it can work with existing downhill boots and bindings. Skiers who already own tech toe boots but still want to descend on alpine bindings should compare Tekdapters. That system makes more sense for riders who have moved partway into touring gear but still do not want to remount skis or give up alpine binding confidence.

The bigger question is whether an adapter is the right category at all. For occasional sidecountry laps, short approaches, resort uphill access where allowed, film jumps and trying touring without replacing a whole quiver, DayMaker makes sense. For regular long tours, multi day trips, technical kick turns, steep sidehilling or big vertical days, a dedicated touring setup will usually be more efficient. DayMaker should be seen as a bridge, not a magic replacement for every touring system.

Why DayMaker matters to skiers who are touring curious

DayMaker Touring matters because the cost of entering backcountry skiing can be intimidating. Many skiers already own resort skis, bindings and boots that they trust. Asking them to buy an entire second kit before they even know whether they enjoy touring creates a high barrier. DayMaker lowers that barrier by making the first step simpler: add adapters and skins, learn the basics, and start discovering what uphill travel actually feels like.

For the skipowd.tv audience, the brand belongs in the freeride hardware conversation because it serves a real use case. It lets strong skiers chase short access lines, backcountry jumps and sidecountry snow without abandoning the alpine binding feel they rely on. It is not the lightest, fastest or most technical touring option, and responsible backcountry travel still requires avalanche education, partner skills and appropriate safety gear. But DayMaker has earned its niche by turning an old adapter idea into a more modern, skier built solution for people who want more terrain without immediately rebuilding their entire setup.