Not Your Average Buyer's Guide

Skis are cool — but boots rule

Boots are so much the most important element of equipment that all other components—including skis—are virtually accessories by comparison. Assuming less than unlimited funds, we recommend an equipment budget with 50% of the total given to boots, fitting and alignment.

If the boot is right, a reasonably skilled skier can manage on almost any ski; if the boot is not, no ski made will perform at its potential. The N^o 1 technical barrier to expert skiing is the wedge and ill-designed, poorly-fit or non-aligned boots all but guarantee wedge turn-entry, no matter how many hours of lessons and practice. Good boot choice, fit and alignment will produce better results faster than any amount of private coaching.

The trouble with socks

Abother really good way, beside the wrong shell size, to guarantee bad boot fit (and cold feet) is to wear thick socks, or, even worse, several pairs of "cushy" socks. Thick socks allow the foot to move around in the shell, compromising precise control. Thick socks also reduce snow-to-foot-feedback and—this may be surprising to some—they "fill in" veins on the top and sides of foot and ankle, inhibiting circulation and creating cold feet.

We recommend very thin wool or blended socks, like the Eurosock Euro Ski Elite. Yes, they are relatively expensive, but cost less than any lift ticket in North America and can prevent wasting lift money on a never ending string of cold feet and "bad boot" days!

Footbeds, not "foot-bonds"

Poorly designed or badly made footbeds ("orthotics") degrade comfort, balance and performance more than many skiers realize. Chief culprits, we believe, are rigid footbeds, like the Superfeet Kork^® or Surefoot custom orthotics. These kinds of footbeds lock the foot in a high-arch position, preventing the foot and ankle from making subtle muscle and ligament adjustments the human body has evolved over millennia to maintain upright balance. Few would argue that skiing is not a balance-intensive sport. It makes little sense to compromise basic balance capabilities of the feet.

 

Ironically, custom footbeds typically cost more than $100 and, in our experience, often provide less benefit than $30 off-the-shelf, self-molding products like Downunders^® and Superfeet's Trim to Fit^® models.

Shape is more important than brand

We have noted a disturbing trend that seems to be accelerating. For whatever reasons, the ski industry seems bent on selling ever-wider skis to ever more skiers, no matter the brand. Worse, shop employees, ski instructors and self-described "experts" in various forums seem to promote favorite models more than they attempt to discover an individual's skiing style and goals in order to suggest the right shape.

Fischer Watea 101

Rossignol S6 Caballero

There is nothing inherently wrong with wide skis (by which we mean anything with a waist wider than 88mm). Wide rides, especially rockers, are unequaled in deep snow and many of them have side cuts and the "beef" to perform well on hard snow, in chop and crud, or even, in some cases, in bumps.

But, and this is the key point, wide skis and rockers are first and foremost for deep snow. Anyone who skis more than half the time on the groomed, or who is working on developing technical skills, won't gain much benefit by using these skis as primary tools. Wide skis are slower than narrow skis to come up on edge, less nimble in the fall line and reduce margin of error in bumps.

Dynastar Contact 4X4

Head Peak 88 (formerly Monster 88)

We are not "down" on fat skis, but do caution anyone pursuing technical skiing as a primary interest to consider something with a bit less girth. The truth is that a 78mm ski can handle virtually any off-piste condition, up to and including bottomless powder. Narrow skis are simply the best tools available for anyone interested in becoming a better skier. And, we can flatly state that level 6, 7 or 8 skiers trying to develop modern carving skills will be frustrated on any wide, twin-tip-or-otherwise model. To put it another way, those skiers working on technical development would be wise not to sacrifice efficiency for, dare we say, fashion.

Length is as important as shape

Two lengths of the same model from the same brand will ski more differently that the same length of similar models from different brands, even if one is a foam core and the other wood. Period. End of story.

Of 4 1/2 basic shapes, two make sense for most improving skiers

The following groups are constructed around primary use. Most modern skis handle everything better than old-style specialized skis handled specific conditions—and there are a number of legitimate "1-ski-quiver" tools —but for our review structure this year we arrange skis according to optimum match between ski and principal use.

Technical Skis - for frontside skiers who engage primarily in technical carving on hard or groomed snow and for skiers who are developing or honing basic technical skills. Includes all racing and race carving skis and recreational carvers. Typical waist measurement is 66 to 72 mm. Turn radii are generally less than 16m for non-race skis.

Example: Head Supershape Speed

Example: Elan FIS Slx

Example: Palmer PO 2 Carbon

Example: Völkl Tigershark 8 Foot

Tactical Skis - for skiers for whom the relationship of ski to snow is of paramount importance. These skiers roam the entire mountain, or, at the other end of the spectrum, simply cruise around the groomed. We call these 1-ski-quivers "All Mountain Carvers". Waists are in the 75 to 85mm range, turn radii vary from the mid to high teens. Superb on the groomed.

Example: Dynastar 4 X 4

Example: Atomic D2 VF 75 Woman

This group also includes Big Mountain Carvers, which are 1-ski-quiver skis that are at home anywhere on any mountain, including steep and deep as well as hard snow and ice. The most versatile skis ever made.

Example: Dynastar Legend Sultan 85

Example: Fischer KOA 84 My Style

Freeride Skis - this is the one current label that seems to work for everyone, although we do not include park and pipe skis in this group per se; they are in the specialty freestyle group. Rockers (the "1/2" )are increasingly popular. 

Example: Kästle MX 108

Example: Stöckli Rotor 106

Example: Salomon Czar

Example: Rossignol s6 Caballero

Freestyle Skis - everything else, especially skis that fare best in park and pipe conditions and mogul skis.

Example: K2 MissConduct

Example: Völkl Wall Mogul

 

Binding placement and design are critical

Bottom line on this is fore/aft placement and the combination of boot ramp angle (the difference in height between heel and ball of foot) and binding delta angle (difference in height between brake pad and afd) have more effect on stance and overall performance than most would imagine. We have tested this extensively—details and fascinating full story available on Member site

 

Poles affect stance, balance, timing and technical competence

Leki Venom

Good poles of the correct length will not necessarily improve technique (one still must learn to use them), but bad poles, or poles that are either too short or two long will degrade technique in subtle ways.

Weight should be as light as possible. If the pole is too heavy, it makes accurate timing difficult and tires the skier. We recommend poles from Goode and Leki. Both sell models that are extremely light, fairly rigid with modest flexibility and that feature well-designed pistol grips, rather than dangerous platform grips, which can cause sprained thumbs. In the realm of ski poles, the honored adage that you get what you pay for is probably more true than any other item of gear, except goggles.

Length is likewise crucial. Too long and the skier will either sit back perpetually or, maybe even worse, reach too far down the hill on steeps and in bumps. Either effect is disastrous for balance. Moreover, a pole that is too long will make an efficient arm-swing and pole-touch impossible to achieve.

Vision is the most important human sense

Like binding placement, the value of vision to enhance performance is, alas, not widely understood. Human brains devote the greatest percentage of their bulk to managing vision and to using sight to control balance and movement. Anyone accustomed to skiing in sunglasses that allow the eyes to water or in goggles with cheap, distorted, color-changing lenses will experience an immediate performance improvement by donning good goggles or windproof sunglasses with distortion-free lenses. We use Briko goggles in heavy weather and prefer the superb Panoptx sun goggle under all but the most severe conditions.