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Soon after this original version of the Silvretta Saas Fee, in the early 1970s Silvretta added a stiff metal plate (sometimes known as a "bear paw" of "bear pad" ) under the boot, to prevent sideways slop. This plate, combined with the mechanical pivot, was the first alpine touring randonnee plate "frame" binding. Not shown here, the binding was designed so you could latch the cable through sidewall lugs, thus latching down your heels. My crew at the time tended to avoid this, as it totally locked out any sideways (lateral) safety release. Instead, we skied the binding as free-heel parallel. When set up correctly it worked okay. For example, on Denali in 1973, when we did the first repeat of Erling Strom's ski of the Muldrow Glacier route, we used 180cm Miller Softs with the early Silvretta with bear paw plates. Combined with properly fitted leather double boots (Galibier Hivernal), the system worked for backcountry skiing, but was nothing like today's randonnee AT gear.

The Silvretta Saas Fee was not for everyone. It was a highly specialized piece of machinery with a narrow range of purpose. When combined with the naiveté of most North American ski mountaineers of the time (compared to those in Europe), the result was frustration, and resulting experimentation with nordic equipment. Simply put, this version of the Silvretta binding may have been the seed of the telemark renovation we've seen over the last three decades. But equally as important, it was the foundation for the amazingly functional, durable, and lightweight randonee bindings we now enjoy.