Need Tele Help

[FREESKIER_FIVE-0]

I would like to get my father back into skiing. He has always been a tele skier. However, he hasn't skied regularly in just over twenty years. He might go out once or twice a year just for fun and to hang out with me.

Even when he skied regularly, he was the quintessential dirt poor ski bum. We all know how it is. Duct Tape, five year old gear, just trying to get away with things as cheaply as possible. So when he goes out with me, he throws old three pins on old skis and tears up the powder. I can not believe it. He has trouble with hard snow, like groomed conditions, because of his gear and experience. But when he gets in fresh snow, its hard to believe that he picked up those skis at a garage sale, out of a dumpster, or a second hand shop, etc. His technique is really good (from what I can see.)

When I try and use his gear just to see if I am capable, its ridiculous. I find it nearly impossible. Three pin bindings and old leather boots. Its crazy.

But he is interested in the newer technology and advances. SO i'm trying to put together a set up thats good all-around, but especially good for touring. We're both backcountry oriented, him especially. He spent most of his ski years in the Winds, with countless trips to Titcomb Basin.

I picked up a pair of AK luanchers that are about 90? waist. I think this might be a good pair of sticks to start with. However, I am open to suggestions. He doesn't want powder specific like uber fat or fun shape, but a softer ski might do him well.

But I need binding and boot recommendations mostly. He feels that if he invested money, that the boot, (and rightly so) is the most important. Good energy transfer, and pretty stiff. But light for touring.

As for bindings they are secondary to him. So a good pair of touring bindings is the ticket. Light.

Anyway, I'm a tele NOOB, so i was hoping for some input to put an aged tele skier back into the game.

Thanks.

[hop]

I've got a pair of 4 buckle T1's (black/silver/red buckles) with plus-fit liners that I'd get rid of for $200. Skied ~20 days. Size 26.0

[telepariah]

I am kind of an old schooler and late adopter but have been on plastic boots for about 13 years now. One thing he may not like at all about a lot of plastic tele boots is how difficult it is to flex the bellows. Fortunately, there are some options that are less stiff in the bellows than others and so will be closer to the feel of leather and more easy to adapt his technique to. The higher end boots will generally be much stiffer and harder to get the feel of the ball of his foot on the ski with but of the three brands, Crispi probably has the most leather like feel. But more important than that is getting him a boot that fits his foot well. With thermo liners these distinctions are less pronounced than before but in general, conventional wisdom says that Scarpa fits a narrower and lower volume foot. Garmont fits a wider and higher volume foot, and Crispi fits a wider and lower volume foot. Also, you can't always go just by a straight size conversion, especially with Scarpa because they run big. New models run more true to mondo point size than the older ones that appear to have US sizes but in Scarpa's case, you have to assume they are UK sizes. Don't take the size off the tongue but from the shell itself.

I would say in your dad's case, a T2 class boot would be suitable. These are three buckle boots that are on the soft side. T2 is the Scarpa model. I am not sure what the other makers product names are that correspond to that but you can get a lot of information from the respective companies' web sites and also of course from http://www.telemarktips.com .

As far as skis go, my thinking is that there is no real difference between tele skis and alpine skis unless you are talking about ScottyBobs with their differential and offset sidecut. Since he cares more about powder and backcountry than anything else, a ski with a softer longitudinal flex will be more fun than a stiffer model. Some folks will tell you that you can't drive a big ski with a boot as soft as a T2 but that is pure bullshit that comes from people who have no idea how to tele in leathers. Your dad will be able to ski anything in T2s. What he will like best will come down to personal preference.

Bindings offer a lot of options in terms of how they perform or assist performance. A lot of tele skiers like what we call an "active" binding, meaning one that configures the pivot point farther back so that it helps with leverage to break the bellows. With a softer bellows and a larger person, some folks, like myself, don't feel the need and prefer a neutral binding that leaves the job of breaking the bellows to the skier. A free pivot mode (such as with an AT binding) is nice for climbing and breaking trail in powder and there are a few options with that. Probably the lightest, simplest, and least futzy of these would be the Voile Switchback.

[snowranger]

Your dad sounds like a really cool guy. What pariah says is sound. He'll probably like the switchbacks.

[Onward]

Yeah, what telepariah said.

This page (although not updated since 2006) is a good guide to more backcountry oriented tele setups: http://home.comcast.net/~pinnah/Dirt...ick-picks.html

[snowranger]

Yeah, what telepariah said.

This page (although not updated since 2006) is a good guide to more backcountry oriented tele setups: http://home.comcast.net/~pinnah/Dirt...ick-picks.html

Yes outdated. That's the same stuff he's on right now.

[LightRanger]

Yeah, Scarpa T2(X)s or Garmont Syner-Gs, or maybe the new 3-Buckle Black Diamond boot that Mitch just tested and reported over on Telemarktips.

Voile Switchbacks, G3 Ascents, or Black Diamond O1s with the Freeflex cartridges, but probably Switchbacks.

AK Launchers would probably suit him well. Forgiving ski. Something like old Work Stinx would probably work too.

[FREESKIER_FIVE-0]

Thanks for the help everyone. We'll get this going and give you some quality TRs.

[teleposeur]

I'd say scarpa t2x. If hes an old pinner, anything bigger will probably not feel right to him.
bindings- targas for sure.

[grandpa]

Grandpa speaks from experience -- skied leather Asolo Extremes (all laces, no buckles) for 8 years, then original Terminators, then old T2's (like new T3's), then T1 (stupid boot), then newer T2's, then Syner-G's.

Get him a boot that fits him -- T3, T2 or Syner-G, but only if they fit. Stay away from the stiffer boots when switching from floppy leathers. A T3 would be a quantum leap for him. If he is as athletic as he sounds, then stepping up immediately to a T2X may be a turn off, too stiff for a leather boot guy. Lots of used T2's and Syner-G's out there for sale by old timers like me switching to AT gear.

[XXX-er]

I say go big and get the t-1 right off the bat , there are freepivot bindings to make the up easier and the big boot will make the down more fun

but don't take my word demo some big boots