Back-country skiing in its safer form entails conducting the exercise in a resort. You have got groomed trails, services and God forbid if needed rescue services during operating hours. While a true touring experience cannot be beaten – it is the easy option when you are on your own. As with many sports the equipment to conduct the sport has been subject to research, development and engineering – leading to high-technology shoes, bindings and skis. The key metric is weight – how to make it lighter. Which would indicate inherently it is focused on how to conserve energy going up the mountain – with narrower skis, thinner skins and ultralight bindings. My own endeavor in this area is only a few years in the making and it is fair to say that I do not consider myself a well-trained athlete in this domain. That inadvertently leads to a situation where people pass me on the way up and I get to say hello, exchange a few words and study their style and equipment a little bit. When I first got into it, I discovered that there is a class of bindings that fit regular downhill ski and offer pretty much the full performance – here stiffness and safety – as regular downhill bindings do. That offered a transition scenario that appealed to me because it enables multi-use without specialty equipment. So that is what I went for – yet it comes at a price – the wider skis, more rugged skins and the high downhill performance bindings add substantial weight to the setup. I came to the sport from downhill skiing – which I really like. So, I was wondering then as I was watching my fellow comrades passing me today – what matters to the individual – going up or down? Is the focus the tough exercise stomping up the slope or gracefully sliding down? The latter one is the award I am after – standing on the top of a hill, soaking in a magnificent landscape (weather permitting), looking possibly at virgin snow fields (not always possible in the resort) and descending back in smooth turns.
I wondered if that schema might be turned around in other people’s perspective – looking to enjoy the workout part and making time uphill and then ascending slightly constrained with the advanced uphill skis. When I parted with the mountain today a group of skiers passed me on their way up for a third time and it may not have been their last ascend that day.