Buying new skis? Learn what all those terms really mean?

We at SnoCountry want to help you enjoy your time on the slopes and there’s nothing more fun than making turns on new skis. When heading out for a demo day or to your favorite ski shop to look at skis, here is your very own glossary of ski terminology.

Let’s start with types of ski construction:

• Sandwich Construction (aka laminate): most commonly used on race skis, with layers assembled and glued together with resin, then pressed, usually with a wood core center. Pros: stable, excellent rigidity and dampening. Cons: Heavier and more expensive that other construction.
• Cap Construction: the topsheet material spans from one edge to the other and bears the load. Usually associated with polyurethane milled or injected cores. Pros: versatile, soft, easy to turn; best suited for younger, lighter, less demanding skiers. Cons: weaker edge grip, minimal dampening.

Now, let’s look at ski cores. Core helps define the basic flex, flex distribution and torsional rigidity of a ski. The core also works as filler between the load-bearing members of the ski, such as the sidewalls, and between various synthetic layers, such as fiberglass, carbon, Kevlar, titanium, etc.

• Wood Core: vertically and horizontally laminated wood that’s milled into the core shape. Known for a smooth and precise feel, and unsurpassed feedback from the snow. Most common race core and the most expensive.
• Injected Polyurethane Foam Core: PU is injected into the mold after the ski as been assembled, filling the gaps and bonding the construction components. Inexpensive, lightweight and soft.
• Milled PU Foam Core: a PU milled into the core shape then laid into the ski during assembly. Better elasticity, rebound and edge grip than injected PU. Weaker than wood, but more consistent and versatile in the production process.
• Hybrid Core: usually wood combined with a synthetic material, hybrid cores integrate the attributes of wood with the lightness and versatility of synthetics.

The are a few other terms you may see in your search for the perfect pair of skis. These are:

• Sidecut: measured in meters of radius, sidecut determines turn shape. The smaller the number, the tighter the turn a ski will make at a given angle. The number itself is an estimate of the circle a ski would describe if you laid it on its base and stenciled along its edge until you completed a circle.
• Interfaces (aka plates): mechanisms mounted between the binding and the ski, often pre-affixed to the ski by the manufacturer. Adds lift for increased leverage, allows shearing so as not to impede natural ski flex, and, for GS, SG and DH models, dampens vibration.
• Lifts (aka lifters or spacers): usually a hard plastic platform between the ski and the binding that provides a rigid connection and serves only to give the skier extra height, thereby increasing leverage.

Technical descriptions from Ski Racing, September 13, 2005