J2Ski Forum Posts and Replies by SwingBeep

GreenLantern wrote: Snowbrainer, Alpinresorts etc are ridiculously cheap.

There are a number of standards relating to the rental of skiing equipment that are intended to improve safety:

ISO 13993:2001, Rental ski shop practice: Sampling and inspection of complete and incomplete alpine ski-binding-boot systems in rental applications
ISO 8061:2004, Alpine ski-bindings: Selection of release torque values
ISO 11088:2006, Assembly, adjustment and inspection of an alpine ski/binding/boot (S-B-B) system.

In France the following standard also applies:

AFNOR NF X50-007, Service de location du matériel de sports d'hiver.

Unfortunately many shops don't adhere to these standards, which saves them a lot of time and money. If you want to hire from a "solid outfit" look for one that displays the NF X50-007 label.

Snapzzz wrote: Im loosing all respect for you Mr H. First Rose, now bubbles. :shock:

Troubling isn't it, next he'll be telling us that he mixes the rose himself!

The Marker Baron/Duke, Salomon Guardian / Atomic Tracker and Head / Tyrolia Adrenalin are alpine bindings with a walk mode whereas the Fritchi bindings are touring bindings; some models have been beefed up and are sold as freeride bindings.

The alpine bindings are all functionally very similar, a transverse spring toe piece (similar to the Iser touring binding from the 70s) married to a heel piece from their standard ranges. The Markers have to be removed to change from walking to skiing mode whereas the Salomon and the Tyrolia ones don't. The Salomon is very expensive, I haven't seen any pricing on the Tyrolia yet, last year's Marker Baron can be had for about 230 Euro unless changing modes on the fly is an issue I would get the Barons.

I also use Fritchis, mainly because of the weight. When walking in the mountains the more weigh you have on your feet the more effort it is.

Bandit, if that was the case then the bindings wouldn't have passed the TÜV SÜD tests. Without TÜV certification alpine ski bindings can't be sold.

I think it's reasonable to have concerns about chairlifts, especially the detachable ones as they rely on springs to hold the chairs on the rope.



Even though there are safety mechanisms in place to prevent chairs that are not properly attached from leaving the station, they have been known to fall off.



http://www.20min.ch/winterspecial/news/story/Sessel-stuerzt-auf-Skipiste-13494668

Ranchero_1979 wrote:Well, I always wear following and works from ski touring, ice climbing and skiing:-

1 x thermals (tucked in or one piece). Arms should have thumb hole as this is why most people suffer from cold hands.

1 x Polo Neck/thermal layer

1 x down jacket (100g insulation. Belay jacket that can be put easily into rucksack).

1 x waterproof jacket.

If I was your mother I would worry about you going into the mountains without trousers! :D

A mountain jacket that has a waterproofness of only 8,000mm won't be up to much. Look for something that can withstand a hydrostatic head of at least 20,000mm and layer up as necessary. Down is the best insulator but it doesn't work well if it gets wet or crushed.

Drag lifts will be around for a long time yet. They are still being developed, they can now run at up to 3.5 m/s and one has been even been fitted with solar panels.



In 2011 about 20 new ones were installed across Europe.

If you're looking for something inexpensive check out the Coreupt Slasher, on offer at Ekosport in France for 220 Euro.

The hotel Berna is only 200 metres from Milan Central station; from there you can get a train to Turin Porta Nuova station. Train travel is less expensive in Italy than in the UK and groups of 10 or more can purchase a group ticket, 10% discount. If you want to be taken door to door the only other option I can think of would be to hire a coach, try Googling "milano noleggio autobus".