Equipment Guide

it's important to dress in layers to stay warm, dry, and comfortable. Start with a moisture-wicking base layer (top and bottom) made of synthetic or wool material—avoid cotton, which retains moisture. Add an insulating mid-layer like a fleece or down jacket to trap heat. On top, wear a waterproof and windproof ski jacket and pants. Don't forget warm ski socks, waterproof gloves or mittens, a helmet, goggles, and a neck gaiter or balaclava for face protection. Dressing in layers lets you adjust as conditions change throughout the day.

Your ski boots are the most important piece of equipment of all.

• The easiest possible thing to do is to get ski boots that are too big.

• If your ski boots are too big, then it is likely that -

  • Your shins will hurt, and you will not want to flex your ankle.

  • Your ankle will be loose side to side, reducing edging precision.

  • Your foot will move fore/aft, possibly blackening toenails from impact.

  • Your foot will move up and down, reducing your ability to pressure and control your skis.

  • You want to over-buckle your boot, thereby putting pressure on the arteries on the top of your foot.

• No Cotton Socks. Only wool or wicking synthetics. And only socks down in the boot, all long underwear, pajamas, pants, and ski-pant powder cuffs should be above or over the top of the boot cuff. One pair of socks is adequate. Two pairs of socks is too much marshmallow junk in your ski boot. A thin pair of liner socks inside a thin pair of ski socks can be functional, but one pair of ski socks allows fewer wrinkles and folds and is more sensitive.

• Any sort of aftermarket insole to replace the pathetic stock insole will help your skiing; the more structured and supportive the replacement insole, the better your skiing response will be.

• The closer the hinge of your ski boot corresponds with your ankle joint, the more natural your movement up and down will be.

• Rear-entry ski boots are very convenient for children, but they do impede skiing progress.

• Your ski boot size does not correspond to your street shoe size.

• An easy assessment – pull the entire foam liner out of the plastic ski boot shell, insert your stockinged foot into the bare plastic shell, and slide the foot forward until the toes just touch the front of the shell. There should be 3cm, 1.25”, or a finger and a half between the heel and the shell. If more than 4cm, or two fingers, then the boot is too big; 2cm or one finger behind the heel is a race-fit, and for aggressive skiers. More than 4cm, two fingers side by side, is highly detrimental to your skiing.

• Straight alignment of your leg bones so that you are standing on top of flat skis is critical for effective and efficient skiing. Being bow-legged, knock-kneed, or pronated affects your ability to edge your skis, and this can be compensated for with your equipment.

• A stiffer boot flex will result in quicker response, while a softer boot will let you flex and absorb terrain more easily. More than ability level or even skier weight, the range of motion that a skier possesses in Achilles tendon flexibility and range of dorsiflexion should determine exactly what stiffness you may need.

• New skis are coming out of the wrapper these days exceedingly well tuned and do not need further work beyond being waxed. Your skis should be waxed regularly, as often as possible, to help you turn easily.

• Wipe your skis dry with a cloth or towel after every ski day – this helps prevent the ski edges from rusting, which can significantly impact your skiing.

• The length of most adult recreational skis should be about face-height. For beginning children or small, light people, chest-high is a reasonable minimum; chin-height gives a bit more platform as a skier begins to ski faster. For rockered (without camber) fat powder skis, add at least 10cm to create a longer platform, allowing you to ski through deep snow.

• Remember that powder snow is much less common than hard, packed, sometimes icy snow. The entire ski industry is optimistic about powder snow and wants to sell you wide powder skis, which are much less effective and fun on ice and hard snow. Narrower skis place the ski edge directly under the ski boot, enhancing your ability to edge the ski and control speed on groomed snow.

• Lightweight skis are much easier to carry and are less of a burden to ride up the chairlift with; however, they are much less stable and smooth on hard snow and let vibration upset the skier’s stability on ice. Metal layers in a ski handle the vibration better, and make skiers feel much more confident and secure.

• Generally, the cost of a ski reflects the internal materials that reduce vibration while skiing. Race skis are marvelously complex and stout and sometimes can be quite forgiving and fun to ski, but they are rare and expensive; fat powder skis are supple, soft, and floppy – great for playing in deep, uneven snow conditions, but they are compromised for edge hold and stability. There are exceptional values of ski performance that accommodate a wide variety of skier abilities, skis which can handle a variety of terrain choices and different snow conditions, that are available and can be found through professional advice and/or thoughtful ski demos.

• Ski poles have several uses – sensory, balance, timing, propulsion – but mostly they are a tool for timing the unweighting movements in parallel turns, and until a skier understands this movement and usage, the ski pole becomes basically a distraction.

• For measuring a ski pole, the skier should hold the pole upside down and grasp the shaft just under the pole basket, and the skier’s elbow should be at a 90-degree angle. Poles longer than this are ideal for deep snow, steep slopes, and racing. Shorter than this can be beneficial in moguls and terrain parks, and may also be helpful for skiers who tend to sit back too much.

• Expensive lightweight poles can be less fatiguing and are helpful in quicker, more intense turns, but they can be more fragile. Less costly poles are made from cheaper materials and are weaker, making them more easily bent. A good alloy pole of moderate price can be reasonably light, relatively strong, and durable.

• Ski bindings are generally a safety item, and therefore are more important than your skis. They release the boot from the ski when the skier is in trouble, in an attempt to protect the skier from injury.

• Bindings are also a performance item in every turn, and every move that the skier wants to make, is transferred to the ski through the solidity of this connection. If the binding is a less expensive, lightweight, less stout device, then it is compromised in this attachment, and some imprecision of control results. Therefore, purchase bindings of a quality that is comparable to the value of the skis, or better, as otherwise a considerable portion of the performance value of the skis is wasted and inaccessible.

• You should never attempt to adjust your ski bindings yourself unless you are a certified ski binding technician; considerable injury may result from an incorrectly adjusted binding releasing inadvertently or failing to release in the event of a fall.

• Many ski binding systems allow adjustment for various skier stance needs – such as canting, position fore & aft on the ski, and ramp or forward lean of the binding, which can help the skier stand taller and more relaxed and pressure the tongue of the boot, and thereby the ski, much sooner.

• Bindings do need periodic function testing for proper release values, and should be tested at a certified ski shop.

• Binding manufacturers have a determined lifetime for all ski bindings, discovered through rigorous testing, and all bindings will eventually become too dated, too fatigued, to meet testing standards and will therefore fall off of the approved list of safe bindings, called the Binding Indemnification List, and should be retired and disposed of.