Fitting Your Skis
Ski fitting is very personalized. The way the ski will be used, the skier's ability, weight, height, and style all need to be considered. Then we also need to look at the model selected and fit it within its parameters. Not only are skate and classic skis fit differently, but each brand is also fit differently.
Fitting is also only as good as the tools used. Skis must be tested individually when standing on them to ensure that the weight distribution is not throwing the test off. Gauges are also important in the fitting process to ensure a ski is not too stiff or too soft. The skis will only perform as well as they are fit, and once you have them you cannot change how they fit.
Fitting Skis To Perfection
Properly fitting skis to an individual's weight and technique is a skill that takes years of expirience to develop. A ski doesn’t care how tall you are--it only cares about your weight. Expirienced, skilled shops are hard to find. Skis are getting shorter and fitting more complicated. Skate ski flexes vary greatly to accomplish a proper fit.
Skis are made in large batches, not in individual pairs. Once this batch of skis is finished, the skis are flexed, paired and serialized. When the batch gets flex-tested, the skis are matched as close as they can within that batch. Some are better matches than others. But, with today’s technology in ski manufacturing, all skis--whether the first pair or the last pair of a thousand skis--will be quite close in camber. Very rarely, a pair of serially matched skis have odd mismatched camber.
Ski manufaturers use high-tech computerized camber machines to determine the camber of their skis and to match them to a skier's weight and technique. The skis come marked with a weight range that helps stores fit skis. Many stores use this as their primary means for fitting skis. This is not accrate enough to find skis ideal for your needs-whether that need is to learn basic technique or to find the fastest skis for racing. Goldstream Sports uses two types of analog camber gauges, testing the camber of each ski individually. We make sure that each ski maches each other and your needs. We also use a paper test on our glass bench because it takes into account your foot size and weight distribution. These are factors that can not be reproduced on a gauge. It is also the most difficult testing method to use due to the way in which people balance and stand on skis. Subtle weight shifts can greatly affect the test. Some companies provide fancy-looking gauges to replicate the paper test, testing both skis at the same time. This is very inaccurate because it tests the softer ski or the ski the person is weighting more. With our table we simultaneously test both skis independently.
At Goldstream Sports we have the expirience to fit you properly. Because of our strong technique and coaching background, we know how technique, expierience and your personal style effect how you should be fit. Many shops make a the mistake of fitting all beginners with softer skis, citing poor weight transfer. They don't realize that people with good technique use technique to finess the power more than beginniers. Some beginners try to muscle and force the skis to glide--they need stiffer skis than beginners who are less aggressive.
We refuse to sell sksi that don't fit properly. We would rather lose a sale than fit you wrong. We will not sell an improperly fitting ski to anyone.