How to choose the correct LENGTH and TYPE of ski touring skis?

LENGTH OF ALPINE TOURING SKIS

We reccomend that the appropriate alpine touring ski length be between 20cm less than height of skier up to equal to the height of the skier. If you choose short, more tapered skis with a small turn radius you can expect your turns to require much less effort to initiate than they normally would.

Touring skiis that are equal in length to your heigh will feature a larger turn radius and will generally take more effort to initiate a turn; that is they like to stay pointed forward at higher speeds and are more suitable for traverse. Freeride skis may be up to 10cm longer than skier height.

TYPES OF ALPINE TOURING SKIS

Racing skis
Ultra-lightweight skis designed for racing alpine touring skiers. They are easy to use for uphill climbing but due to low weight and sharper cut they will be more difficult to control for the casual alpine touring skier.This style of skiing features a significant break-in period and takes time getting used to.These skiis tend to be quite thin, with a midline width of about 65mm.Ski construction typically features lightweight materials such as carbon and wood.

Classic alpine touring skis for ski touring
Perfectly balanced ski type. They provide good uphill climbing comfort with excellent downhill ability and varied types of terrain. Ski width at the midline tends to be 70-90mm.

Freeride skis
Out of all three types of alpine skis, freeride skis tend to be the widest and heaviest. These skis are designed so that both uphill climbing and downhill skiing can be done comfortably off-piste featuring deep snow or icy slopes. Ski width at the midline tends to be minimum 90mm up to some truly ridiculous widths. Uphill climbing in these skis tends to be difficult and exhausting but they are excellently suited for downhill skiing in unforgiving terrain.

CONSIDERATIONS TO KEEP IN MIND WHEN CHOOSING ALPINE TOURING SKIS

Material
Most crucially the material used for sandwich ski construction such as carbon, aramide, titanal etc.

Radius
Usually tends to be between 13-17m. Freeride skis tend to have a larger radius. Generally the radius is around 15m. One simple rule applies: You will be able to carve a larger curve using a smaller ski radius than a smaller curve with a larger ski radius.This is an important consideration in terms of safety and maneouverability, especially if you tend to ski on popular slopes with many other skiers present.

Dimensions
Notice the width of the ski at the tip, middle and tail (eg. Tip: 112mm, middle: 75mm, tail: 100mm).The general rule is that the wider the ski the more stable they are.

Length
For men it is recommended that the skis be between 165-180cm in length while for women it should 146-160cm.

Weight
Weight varies between different types of alpine skis. Racing skis tend to be around 700g per each individual skiClassical skis tend to be somewhat heavier, with a weight of roughly 1300g per skiFreeride skies are the heaviest with each individual ski weighing around 1800g or more, thus making their weight much more noticeable.