Different resorts have different terrain and snow conditions. Getting skis best suited to these will give you the best ride and chance of passing your exams.
First you need to choose the right type of ski. Will it be a piste ski or an all mountain ski? Generally speaking, in France or Switzerland you will be going for a thinner piste ski.
Second, you need to have skis with the optimum length for your height and optimum waist width (middle of the ski) for the right turning radius.
Understanding ski measurements
Width
The width of the ski is measured at three key points – the tip of the skis (the front), the waist of the skis (the middle) and the tail of the skis (the back). These widths are quoted in millimetres and will be shown in gear guides as 129-72-111. This means the tip is 129mm wide, the waist 72mm wide and the tail 111mm wide.
A thinner ski (65-75mm in the waist) is easier to turn and better suited for everyday piste skiing, whilst fatter skis (100-130mm in the waist) are more suited to off-piste where they provide more flotation in the powder.
Length
The correct length of your ski will be determined by your height as follows.
Take your height in centimetres (e.g.185cm)
Subtract 10 cm (e.g. 175cm)
Choose the ski closest to that length (e.g. 177cm)
SnowSkool advice
We have taken the advice of the examining boards in each resort to give you the best guide.
Saas Fée, Switzerland
When it comes to choosing a pair of skis for your instructor course in Switzerland, France or New Zealand, we are following the guidance of the examining boards. The information and recommendations are made to ensure that you are on a ski that maximises your chance of passing your Level 1 & 2 instructor exams.
When choosing a ski, you should look for:
1. A Piste Ski
2. A ski with a waist somewhere in the range 72 – 78mm
3. A ski with a turning radius of 13 – 16 metres
Ski Recommendations
We are able to recommend a few skis that are deemed perfect for SnowSkool in France, Switzerland and New Zealand. This doesn’t mean you should be rushing out to buy this exact ski, but buying a ski that is extremely similar to the skis listed below (in terms of type and waist) is highly recommended …
• HEAD Supershape e-Magnum
• HEAD Superjoy
• Rossignol Hero Elite MT, or Hero Elite LT
• Salomon S/Max 10
• Elan Wingman 78 Ti, or Insomnia (women’s) or Primetime
• Volkl Deacon 76, or Flair 75 (women’s)
• Atomic Redster Q7
• K2 Disruption (women’s)
These skis will be great for our our ski instructor courses in the Three Valleys, France and Cardrona, New Zealand, and our internship in Saas Fée, Switzerland.
What to find out more? Don't hesitate to be in contact about the different courses and programmes we offer.
Next up we'll be looking at skis for Canada where we have courses in Big White and Banff.