 Poster: A snowHead
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In powder, should you have a higher DIN setting than you can get away with on piste?
Despite being a relatively fast/"aggressive" skier I tend to like my bindings set slightly on the low side. However, in deep powder, I feel my skis are sometimes releasing prematurely at the heel the minute I start to loose one ski into the snow in a way that might have been recoverable. I'm not talking about a tip sinking here, more when one ski sinks a bit more in deep wettish snow, gets a lot more friction. This typically results in me skiing 2-3m further with one ski on and having to climb back to search for the other ski which has been burried (flat rather than tip down) 20cm or so under the snow. This happened to me several times in Hintertux in December when I was skiing in week-old knee-to-thigh-deep powder that had become a little heavy in places.
Is this purely my poor powder skiing technique (I have no delusions about being anything more than an early intermediate in the deep stuff) or should I consider increasing my DIN settings?
Thanks in advance!
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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Personally I think you should ski with the correct DIN settings for your weight/ability on piste, certainly don't increase them beyond this point. I can ski with lower settings in powder than I would on piste as there are (should be) fewer forces action on your skis.... you don't need a lot of edging as you might need on a steep icy piste.
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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My powder skis are set lower than my piste ones - with steeper runs and the potential for unseen obstacles, I want to come out.
You might want to invest in Powder Leashes to make it easier to find your skis.
...oh and maybe some pow lessons.
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I don't change my Din settings for powder, and it doesn't cause any trouble. Perhaps if they're pre-releasing, it's worth checking that they're properly clear of snow before clipping into them?
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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The only argument of for increasing DIN off-piste that I subscribe to is where the risk of losing a ski outweighs the risk of losing a knee... but we are not talking about regular powder skiing on 30-40 degree slopes.
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I'd go along with the general thrust of the epic thread - and not change the settings. I certainly would not increase them. My achilles rupture was caused when the tail of my left ski suddenly droped in deep snow off-piste (maybe I was skiing over some sort of hole) amongst trees. The tail then dropped right to the binding, whilst I was still going forward. The heel did not release, and my achilles tendon ruptured. A lighter setting might have saved my tendon - but of course increased the risk of pre-release. Bindings work best with shock loads, I believe, not the progressive load that was applied in this case. Even so, I have now bought my own skis so that I can be more sure of the state of the bindings.
Bottom line: I can see no case for increasing the binding settings in powder.
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You can of course argue this point both ways. Not infrequently you do find yourself in a no fall situation when a binding that pre releases can cause a bit of a bother and therefore you should crank up the DIN. On the other hand in case of an avalanche you want to get rid of your skis as easily as possible. But, having spend several hours of precious guide/off piste time looking for peoples skis (tracers or not; never made finding a lost ski any easier) I would be tempted to use higher settings.
The practicalities of off piste skiing are such that you cant always guarantee that you will ski powder only and you need to expect anything. Bottom line for me is that I dont change my DIN settings, but it does sound like you need to have your bindings checked.
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
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| davidof wrote: |
| The only argument of for increasing DIN off-piste that I subscribe to is where the risk of losing a ski outweighs the risk of losing a knee... but we are not talking about regular powder skiing on 30-40 degree slopes. |
This is the only reason I've ever heard that makes any sense too.
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Thanks everyone for the balance of opinions, useful info and links. I suspect it's prob a combination of 'unperfected' (being polite to myself) powder technique, and probably having my bindings set on the low side. I ski with my DIN settings on 6, which is what most charts would put a Type 1 skier of my build/age/boot length at (I wasn't given the skiing nickname Kamikaze through being a type-1 skier). However, I've always prefered the thought of loosing a ski to a damaging my knees and so I've kept my bindings set low and never really suffered from pre-releases. This was my first trip on a new paif of Skis/bindings, and with my old pair I didn't get any pre-releases, so I never upped them. My skies are due for a service anyway. Reckon I'll get the bindings checked at the same time just in case, and take some advice from a qualified tech.
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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| slikedges wrote: |
| davidof wrote: |
| The only argument of for increasing DIN off-piste that I subscribe to is where the risk of losing a ski outweighs the risk of losing a knee... but we are not talking about regular powder skiing on 30-40 degree slopes. |
This is the only reason I've ever heard that makes any sense too. |
I agree, only really worth losing a knee if losing a ski means something worse.
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And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
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I'm withWear The Fox Hat, on this. Under the powder lurks all kinds of hazards waiting to get yer! My worst experience was when I skied into a 3 foot snowdrift thinking that it would be fun. A wall of ice under the drift was the reason my skis stopped dead in their tracks and had the result of me kissig the tips of my skis through 18 inches of snow without releasing! The backs of my legs got a damn good stretching but luckily no injuries. I now back off the bindings half a notch for peace of mind.
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