You’ve heard about it. You’ve read about it. But have you seen one in real life yet? The sleek Micon LiTRIC 32 took the world by storm when it debuted. The promise is to couple the renowned design principles of Arc’teryx with a lightweight, modern airbag system co-designed with the safety brains at ORTOVOX. I previewed the bag last spring before I had really had enough trips with it to write a full review. Now, with summer avalanche touring in the books and another season of touring in the PNW and BC, it’s time to do the full write-up.

Arc’teryx Micon LiTRIC Avalanche Airbag Features:

• 150L two-layer airbag doesn’t require complicated folding to restore
• High tenacity N210r HT nylon 6,6 LCP / N400r-AC² – bluesign Approved Materials
• Novel pairing of super capacitors with a 25g lightweight lithium-ion battery is cold resistant
• 4 second filling time, with top-up activations at 1 and 2 minutes after activation
• Simple LED display is visible through the side of the pack to indicate charging and readiness.
• New locking system to prevent accidental opening of the airbag pocket
• Ergonomic, height-adjustable activation handle with Bowden cable and safety lockout
• Hip belt and leg loop reimagined for comfort and speed of attachment
• USB-Rechargeable Lithium-Ion Battery
• LED Display
• Leg-Loop Clip
• Avalanche Tool Pocket
• Helmet Carry System
• 3-Layer Laminated Back Panel
• MSRP: $1600

The Airbag You’ll Never Leave at Home

I’m going to start by saying that the Micon LiTRIC 32 is an Arc’teryx product to its core. It’s sleek, minimal and superbly designed. Visually, it’s sleek and clean. The construction quality is excellent, with top-notch materials. The layout is minimalist: my question is, is form still following function?

Anyway, let’s start with the foundation, which includes the pack’s materials and construction. The foundation of this pack is the Arc’teryx Micon, which is the new name for the Rush SK 16 that I’ve previously reviewed. The Rush SK (now Micon) is my daily driver for short tours, so I feel well familiar with the build and carry of this line. The Micon LiTRIC carries well and does NOT feel like a cumbersome avy bag. The pack straps are flawlessly designed, with a perfect medium-density foam that’s supportive yet comfortable and doesn’t mash down.

The fabric is an uber-burly 210D nylon with a ripstop weave. It’s bulletproof: this is the type of bag that’s going to get sun faded and permanently faded well before you ever get a rip in it, unless you literally run over it with racing skis. The quality of construction is absolutely top-notch. The back panel is smooth and sheds snow, and a frame sheet and aluminum rod provide adequate support for mid-sized loads.

The featureset is relatively minimal. There’s a generous external ‘map’ pocket, which I kept things like snacks, binding tools and glop stopper in. The main compartment is spacious, and only minimally impacted by the LiTRIC system on top. There’s no bladder pocket or hose routing, which is a bummer for me – I love being able to sip endlessly on the up track. Instead, I’ve been hanging a tiny Nalgene off of the tip belt gear loop. The right waist band has a stretchy stow pocket which can handle a couple of bars.

You can carry your helmet with the Corac Helmet Carry System. This is a detachable strap/pouch affair which, when removed, keeps the pack really clean and sleek. I hauled both my lightweight climbing helmet and a fat Smith resort helmet and had no issues with either one. It also cinches down small enough that I could squish my hat in it for descents.

The ice axe carry is also a little quirky – there’s a good attachment for the head but you need to secure the handle with a compression strap. Skis are carried diagonally, and it’s easy to stow a snowboard thanks to the fully detachable compression straps.

The rescue compartment is not my favorite design. To get into it, there’s a partial-length side zipper or a bright yellow zipper accessed via the main compartment. Both zippers are too small and hard to use easily during a real or simulated rescue.

The best avalanche backpacks have generously sized, easy to unzip access to the rescue compartment. The side pocket is theoretically always accessible, but it’s relatively low on the compartment so it’s hard to get length of your probe or shovel handle out. The interior access is also relatively narrow. Both of these problems worsen when your pack is full, and the temptation then is to dump your pack contents on the snow to get into your rescue compartment. That is a bad situation. On version 2, Arc’teryx needs to re-design the rescue compartment access.

On a similar note, the main compartment door opens almost like a full-size inverted U-shaped door, but not quite. When you completely unzip it and flop the bag open, the pack doesn’t fold open neatly. Instead, the tension on the fabric at the end of the zipper track keeps it at an awkward partially open yawn. By comparison, the D door on the ORTOVOX sister product is, well, better.

Despite these concerns about emergency access, the Micon LiTRIC has areas that truly set it apart. For one, as far as I am aware, this is the single lightest airbag on the market. This pack carries SO WELL. At just a hair under 4lbs 12oz, this is nearing the weight of some of the better summer backpacking backpacks out there. And it translates to a comfortable carry: I routinely wear this backpack when I’m skinning in the resort with no avalanche concerns. It became the pack that I always reach for, which was the goal Arc’teryx set out to reach.

LiTRIC system

I talk about this much more in my First Look article, so I won’t belabor it too much here. The LiTRIC technology was a trans-atlantic partnership which resulted in a really stellar, re-usable airbag system that lends itself to practice, repetition and durability. Both of the LiTRIC bags I have tested have a similar problem with the zippered compartment on the airbag. It likes to creep open on the sides, although the mechanical release at the center will keep it from actually flopping out. It’s just annoying.

A massive perk of the LiTRIC system and other capacitor-based designs is that you can practice with them penalty-free (with some caveats). By comparison, canister-based options require specialized equipment to refill; even though it’s do-able, I think it’s a small psychological barrier that will keep some users from deploying their system on at least a yearly basis to stay fresh. Practice is an essential component of avalanche preparedness. I also love that you can mount the trigger on either the left or right.

A significant safety component of any electronic airbag system is its potential interference with a beacon. This article, which is in German but is easily translated by most browsers, discusses real-world testing of the different systems. In their testing, LiTRIC came out ahead in part because its system is positioned the furthest away from where beacons are usually positioned in use.

Fit: I’m 5’11” and 185 lbs. and the regular size fits is great on my body.

Buy Now: Visit Arc’teryx.com