Skis - how many do you need

Although the days are long and the air is warm, I have been spending a lot of time with athletes discussing their fleets for the upcoming year. A topic that constantly comes up is, "how many pairs of skis do I need?".

This is a complicated question with a complicated answer. However, the short version is that more pairs are better... to a point. The key to remember is that more pairs of skis should reduce stress, not create stress. In other words, if you find yourself testing five pairs of skis before every race, you either need to pare down your fleet or get some help learning about your skis. World cup racers have enormous ski bags, but they also have enormous technical resources to help them along the way.

Podium skis

 With that in mind, the following system works quite well. The highlighted items at each level represent the additional skis added from the previous level.

1) Basic
Skate - universal
Classic - hardwax
Classic - klister

2) Intermediate

Skate - universal cold

Skate - universal plus

Classic - hardwax
Classic - klister

3) Intermediate +

Skate - universal cold

Skate - universal plus

Classic - hardwax
Classic - klister
Classic - zero

4) Advanced

Skate - universal cold

Skate - universal plus

Skate - wet

Classic - hardwax
Classic - klister

Classic - zero 

5) World Cup

At this point you would have skis specific to every temperature range and snow condition. This category would represent fleets of 5+ pairs of classic and 5+ pairs of skate. Awesome, but difficult to manage without a dedicated service staff. 

 

World Cup... lots of skis, lots of staff.

 As always, however, the key with skis is quality not quantity. For more information on that topic click here - skis, what you need to know.