Related Sponsors

Deciding on a Ski Type

Home » Skiing » Buying Skis » Deciding on a Ski Type

Alpine: Alpine skis are fast, high performing, and very precise. These skis do great on the hard groomed pistes and are appropriate for advanced skiers through to race levels.
Freeride/All Terrain Skis: If you want to be able to hit all the slopes this is the best ski for you. Freeride skis are built for the tough conditions. These skis slash through crud, float through powder, and slice through the slush. They are a compromise between side-cut for skiing on the piste, but fat enough to remain up in deep snow. These skis are appropriate for advanced, expert race skiers as they are usually 50% on-piste, 50% off-piste. All Terrain skis, on the other hand, are easier to control off-piste, but are primarily intended with the piste in mind. All Terrain skis are generally much less challenging than freeride skis.
All mountain, all terrain bandits: These skis are less challenging than Freeride skis. All mountain, all terrain bandits are appropriate for advanced and expert skiers. With 70% on-piste and 30% off-piste, these skis are easy to control off the piste, yet still supply sound performance on the piste.
All mountain trailblazers: These particular skis are appropriate for beginners and intermediates through to advanced skiers. All mountain trailblazers are easy turning piste carvers.
Freestyle: Freestyle skis are the ski for many young people. With the growth of terrain parks and halfpipes in most resorts, short twin-tip skis make spins possible for almost everyone.
Just Cruising: These skis are perfect for cruising along blues and greens, and because they are very easy to turn with carving skis, beginners and intermediates will both benefit from their use.
Racing/Skier X Skis: Racing skis are for those who want great performance at great speeds. Appropriate for more advanced and expert skiers, they are incredibly responsive. Skier X skis are a similar model to the racing ski, but possess much deeper sidecuts and a larger surface area, providing off-piste performance as well.
Carving carvaholics: Extreme carving skis that are most appropriate for advanced and expert skiers.
Cross-country: Cross-country skis diverge from alpine skis in that they weigh less and are intended for self-propelled travel across a broad diversity of terrain, not simply down hills. These skis are also called free-heel skis because the bindings allow your heels to lift off of the ski in a normal striding motion.

Next Page: Deciding on a Ski Length

Related Buying Skis Articles