Powder Skiing

Powder, pow, fluff, angel dust, champagne, or whatever you want to call it, it is the stuff that skiers dream of.  Powder has the magical ability to take skiing that one step closer to that sought after sensation of floating.  That perfect balance between control and reckless abandon.  That sense of weightlessness mixed with the power of the turn.  Many skiers will tell you that their best day of skiing ever was a powder day (and so was their second and third best days).

Whatever powder skiing is to you it has always been associated with very specific gear.  Those perfectly sunny powder days where a big storm that dumped 24 inches the night before and then blew over to leave a nirvana of perfect snow sparkling in the sunlight are rare.  In fact, most powder days are storm days.  This means good goggles, good outerwear, and a super pair of powder skis.

The powder ski is designed with deep, light snow skiing specifically in mind.  They tend to be wider then other ski types often being over 90 cm or wider under the foot.  They are also softer flex allowing for more ski bend in the softer, less resistant snow.  They are generally lighter themselves with an easier swing weight so that skiers can move the skis with more agility in the deep snow.  Many are now being manufactured as twin tips too.  This adds some to the carvability and flotation of the ski in the really deep stuff.

Most manufacturers are making a variety of powder skis these days and as skis get fatter and fatter, more and more people at different ability levels are able to get out and enjoy it too.  So when your shopping for your next powder ski, keep some of these characteristics in mind.