| Remember those days of alpine skiing: you learned to | | | | in alpine skiing. |
| snowplough and you practiced and finally perfected it. | | | | Depending on the type of alpine skiing that you will |
| You were then instructed in the next lesson to | | | | do greatly affects the type of ski and binding to buy. |
| forget about the snow plough. Now you are going to | | | | Keep in mind the following features when considering |
| learn parallel. The skis were long and difficult to | | | | buying skis: |
| maneuver from turn to turn and your burning legs | | | | * Length of the ski, |
| and your beads of sweat blurred the whole purpose | | | | * the weight tolerance, |
| for being on the slopes. Some of you gave up alpine | | | | * technology, |
| skiing altogether and some switched to | | | | * the degree of flex in the ski |
| snowboarding, a sport that had a proven record for | | | | * and the sidecuts or the shapes of the skis. |
| fast progression. | | | | Ski bindings are your connection from your boot to |
| Thanks to the 1990's and modern technology, alpine | | | | the skis and should be purchased with the following |
| skiing has re-established itself as the user friendly | | | | aspects in mind: height, boot length and type, weight, |
| snow sport. Ski manufacturers realized that by | | | | and skiing skill level. Your alpine skiing will be greatly |
| producing a more user friendly ski that was shorter | | | | affected by this combination so be sure to buy it |
| and wider, alpine skiing could appeal to the masses. | | | | right. |
| The alpine skis of today possess more shape, | | | | Last but not least, be sure to wear and carry the |
| defined by side cuts. These deeper sidecuts and | | | | essentials for alpine skiing. A hydration backpack and |
| shorter skis allow the beginning and intermediate | | | | insulated thermal underwear is necessary for all skiers. |
| skiers to maneuver the skis better and to carve | | | | See shopping for a backpack. Keep in mind the |
| turns more easily. For the more advanced skier, the | | | | importance of food fuel and that your body needs to |
| skier has to modify their stance to allow the new | | | | acclimate at high elevations. Play it safe with survival |
| shaped skis make the turns and do more of the | | | | gear and join the revitalization of alpine skiing. The |
| work for them. The 1990's skis marked a revolution | | | | new shaped skis put the fun back into parallel skiing. |