What length of skis should one be on?

A snowHead

What length of skis should one be on?
You may have seen this before but nevertheless here below is an interesting discussion on this question posted in a mogul skiing forum:

Part 1
Determining the appropriate length of your skis has little to do with your height and weight - unless your goal is to ski fast. If you are an aging Baby Boomer, selecting the length of your skis should be a function of two things: your age and the number of days you ski each year.
The older you are and/or the fewer number of days you ski each season are all arguments for shorter skis.
Now “short” is a relative term. Skiers who used to ski on 210cm skis and who now ski on 180cm skis think they are on short skis. But, when we say short, we mean short. If you are skiing in-bounds in a ski area, with today’s ski technology, we find that there is little penalty for skiing shorter skis. You gain much more manoeuvrability and because a shorter ski length typically correlates with a smaller turn radius, a shorter ski spends less time in the fall line, which means that the skier is not going as fast and, which, in turn, lowers anxiety. These are all desirable benefits if you are a Boomer skiing in moguls and powder.
Let’s re-calibrate your thinking about ski length. For aging Boomers (age 50+) we are seeing great results with mid-fat skis in a 150cm - 160cm length for men and 142cm - 152cm for women.
What length ski should I be on?
In the first of this four part discussion we will take the first step toward answering this question, beginning with some historical context.
The sport of skiing has its roots in racing and, over time; most of the “heroes” of the ski world have been FIS World Cup or Olympic racers (e.g. Stein Erickson, Phil Mahr, Hermann Maier, Janica Kostelic, etc.). These racing “heroes” have defined the standard of excellence for being “the best in the sport of skiing”.
Why did we bring this up? It is because we believe that conventional thinking regarding ski length is biased around the notion that skiing is about going fast and that most recreational skiers either want to, or should, ski fast. After all, mounds of testosterone and screaming down the slope at Mach 5 is supposed to be what skiing is all about! Isn’t it?
The unintended consequence of assuming that most people want to ski fast is a bias toward recommending and selling longer ski lengths. Why? Because longer skis generally have a larger turning radius. Therefore, they spend more time in the fall line which means they can, and do, ski faster than a shorter ski. Short skis go slower, and who wants to do that?
For many skiers a shorter ski can have a significant advantage over a longer ski.
For example, if the skier is older, doesn’t want to ski fast, prefers mogul and powder terrain versus groomed runs, is fearful or has anxiety, is out-of-shape or has slowing reflexes, has a medical condition or has had an orthopaedic injury or only skis a small number of days each season. All of these factors, and more, just might make a shorter ski a better choice for achieving your skiing objectives.
If your skiing objective is to be the fastest one down a race course then you may want to be on a beefy long ski. However, if you are more conservative and have little interest in being the fastest one on the mountain then you might discover that a longer ski is actually making it harder for you to achieve your objectives.
The way you should pick your ski model and ski length should be based upon your own personal skiing objectives, not because it’s the ski that Hermann Maier uses or because you saw the ski marketed as a “hot” ski, or the latest thing, in SKI Magazine.

Part 2
Factors that you should consider when choosing the length of your skis.
In the second of this four part discussion we propose the five major factors that you should consider when making your ski length decision.
The traditional way of determining the appropriate length of your skis has always been an approximate judgment based mostly upon the skier's height and weight. As ski technology has changed over the years the ski length answer has changed. In yesteryear when skis were straight, the desired length was up to the wrist of an extended arm. With shaped skis and new construction materials “proper" ski length is still considered to be based upon height and weight but the equation has changed and the "new" answer is judged to be somewhere between the chin and the top of the head.
We would like to offer an alternative perspective on how to choose ski length. It is not an approach as simplistic as height and weight but rather an approach based upon the uniqueness of the following five attributes of the skier:
1. Age: the age of the skier is a relevant factor because older skiers generally have a different level of strength, durability and reflex speed than younger skiers.
2. Skiing Style: the skier's style of skiing is also a relevant factor. What is your preferred style of skiing? Do you seek and enjoy the thrill of speed or do you prefer slower skiing with an emphasis on balance and speed control? Would you describe yourself as an aggressive or a conservative skier? Do you have a high or low level of anxiety when skiing? Are you a risk taker or is your goal to avoid potential injury at all cost?
3. Terrain Preference: a skier's terrain preference is also an important factor in choosing ski length. What terrain do you currently ski and what terrain would you like to ski (groomed runs, moguls, powder or gates in a race course)? Is your goal to ski groomers, off-piste or some combination of the two. Do you want to ski easy or moderate runs or is steep and deep your thing? Will you be skiing in-bounds at a ski area or out-of-bounds in the back country?
4. Fitness Level: Are you young, athletic, strong, durable and have fast reflexes? Or are you older, not in as good as shape as you used to be, fatigue sooner that you used to and have noticed that your reflexes are slowing? How well do you adjust to high altitude? Have you have had any orthopaedic injuries (e.g. knee surgery or knee replacement or hip replacement or any other broken bones). Do you have any medical condition that may impact durability or fatigue and/or any other disability (either physical or cognitive)?
5. Frequency Of Skiing: How often you ski is another important variable. How many days do you ski each year? And, do you ski for a full or half-day? Do you live in a mountain town and ski 100+ days a year or do you live in a big city and consider it fortunate if you can find time to ski 7 - 10 days a season?

Part 3
This section of the ski length discussion is not about proposing a "one size fits all" approach to choosing ski length. It is specific to our audience. Given our target demographics (Baby Boomer and older skiers) and their skiing goal (moguls and powder inside a ski area boundary) the following ski length selection guidelines apply:
(1) How you choose the length of your ski should be based primarily upon your age, skiing style, terrain preference, fitness level and how frequently you ski.
(2) The older you are the shorter your skis should be. Not because you are older but because there is a correlation between age and a general decline in strength, fitness level, durability and reflex speed.
(3) If you are more interested in balance and speed control than you are in speed you want to consider a shorter ski. If you prefer to ski slower, select a shorter ski with a smaller turning radius. If you prefer to ski fast, select a longer ski with a larger turning radius.
(4) The more conservative (less aggressive) you are the shorter your skis should be.
(5) The higher your level of anxiety the shorter your skis should be.
(6) If your terrain preference is moguls (versus groomed runs) the shorter you skis should be.
(7) The fewer number of days you ski per year the shorter your skis should be.

Part 4
Note: Don't base your ski length decision entirely on ski length. The turning radius of a ski is equally as important as ski length. Longer skis usually have a larger turning radius and shorter skis usually have a smaller turning radius. But two skis of equal length can each have a different turn radius. The words "the shorter your skis should be" can be substituted with the words "the smaller your turn radius should be".
So what is short or shorter when it comes to skis? Several years of experience has shown us that when our mogul and powder clinic participants ski on shorter skis (150cm - 160cm for men and 146cm - 150cm for women) - irrespective of their height and weight - that they have substantially better results (better balance, better speed control, less fatigue, more confidence, lower anxiety, and ability to ski more challenging off-piste terrain) and with no apparent downside for stability from the shorter ski length.
The bottom line: There is no simple formula to give you a precise answer for choosing the right ski length. Rather, it is a judgement call given the above rules-of-thumb.

A snowHead

nwhitta, that is a good discussion on all the various factors involved.
But me - the average simple punter - just want a length. Using your height is a good one.
It used to be above the head. Then they got shorter with so-called carvers.
But then it got all complicated again with "Rockers" which are only in contact with the snow for 70-80% of length.
This diagram seems quite useful.

Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?

So basically to sum it up, get shorter skis!

You need to Login to know who's really who.

The diagram gives a very clear indication. The above discussion is really aimed at 50+ Baby Boomers, which includes me. It may not be so appropriate for 20 somethings seeking the fastest way down the mountain.

Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.

That term "Boomers" really irritates me. Evil or Very Mad

You'll need to Register first of course.

pam w, then you haven't heard me fart. wink

I don't much like it either (and I'm from '49 so I definitely am one) but we're stuck with it. My preferred ski length now is up to eyebrows - but I don't bomb it. In fact I never did.

Jonpim, nice to see you posting on sH again. The diagram is a good un. (Your second link for 'shorter' is blocked in UAE - being a bit naughty are you?)

Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...

I think their heart is probably in the right place, but it's unscientific. Perhaps it's the rhetoric, but they seem to fail to comprehend the basic design principles of skis and boards.

This seems to be the original source.

I ride a lot with a guy who weighs over twice what I weigh. He's fitter than me, and he rides more than I do. Which of us rides stiffer/ longer gear? Without the benefit of those silly "boomer" people, we just ride stuff and choose what works. The answer's what you'd expect, because of he basic physics involved. To that extent the boomer people are taking garbage.

Bear in mind that that is an American site, and Americans traditionally did ride 2.1m skis (and still ride longer snowboards than anyone else). I assume it's a cultural thing, as mostly the people on the biggest gear ride the worst. So perhaps the "boomer" chappies are trying to address that. They still retain the basic assumption that "longer is better", because if you ride a lot, they suggest you should go longer. Very American.

I've snowboards from 1.84 down to 1.56, all perfectly sized for me. They're different designs, so for example the short boards are stiffer, the longer ones floppier. The GS boards only work at Mach 2; the slalom boards work at slow speeds. The powder boards have tails that work in powder. None of the boards know how tall I am or how many days I ride. They do know how heavy I am, how fast I go, and how aggressively I turn.

"Length" is just a nominal sizing indicator - it doesn't represent how good the rider is or how long the board is even (running length is different). It's there just so you know which board is "one size up" and which is "one size down", that's all. You have to ride the specific design of board, then ask "should I go up or down", then repeat until you find the best size. That's all there is to it. The answer could easily be 156 (my SL board) or 184 (an old design powder board), and both are perfectly correct because the boards are designed to ride at different lengths.

After all it is free

philwig, Yep +1. My skis range from 165cm (SL) through all sorts of things on and off piste to 203cm (SG). Horses for courses.

*Ski* the Net with snowHeads

Dubaian, on revue of the "Shorter" image, I can see the problem: it features a guy holding a ski in a rather inappropriate manner.
His left hand is definitely well out of order.
Comes from
this Youtube video

snowHeads are a friendly bunch.

Ski stiffness is a major factor, get on a really stiff but short slalom ski and it can surprise you how fast you can go without losing any stability.

The thing I agree with is... for people who just come out to ski once per year for simple enjoyment a shorter ski may be easier to manage.

snow reports

Throwing a bit of personal experience in this. I now ride 163cm Head carving skis, which work well for me. I have never felt that they are too short or unstable when I am maxing out (to the limits of my ability) but I do find 170 skis a bit "clunky" for me. I should try my wife's 156 skis but her boot size is different so I have never got round to it.
Incidentally, wandering off topic a bit, my wife really struggled with learning to ski until she tried snow blades. They gave her the confidence to persevere. She now enjoys longer skis and has no wish to go back to blades but she acknowledges she wouldn't be skiing now without them.

You know it makes sense.

TBH, the approach that works best for me is to walk into the ski hire shop, tell the guy that I am a typical English intermediate (i.e. crap) and then wait for him to size me up and hand me a pair of skis. Not scientific, but seems to work pretty well Very Happy

Some of the responses above just left me feeling even more confused than ever. I liked Jonpim's diagram. I lost the will to live long before getting to the end of the OP's quoted explanation as I could sense that ultimately all it was saying was that ski length is dependent upon lots of things and there is no formula so ...... that was helpful.
[/quote]

Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:

under a new name, People who go in straight lines on SL's need a sound whipping with birch twigs by a krampus Wink

A snowHead

foxtrotzulu, Yup, and then if they feel too long, go back the next day and swap them. If they start wobbling at high speed get a longer / stiffer pair. Pretty simple really Cool

A snowHead

Avalanche Poodle, My wife changes hers frequently until she finds a colour that works.

Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?

You need to Login to know who's really who.

foxtrotzulu, Well you wouldn't want the dreaded skis / boots / pants clash Shocked

You could end up like a traffic light.

Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.

You'll need to Register first of course.

The original ref is full of sh*t - a mogul clinic and powder are entirely different things - sure you can get round moguls easier on a kiddie sized ski but it isn't going to provide the best platform in powder. Neither means it's the best length for general skiing. I think the author is basically saying their clients aren't very good and then stating the obvious (lucky I've just upgraded to some 250cm skis wink

)

Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...

After all it is free

Part 4 is more balls than even I could toss into an argument regarding shape/size/width/turn radii . . . and not one word about 'effective edge length' as affected by camber and rocker.

Help!!

What length of skis should one be on?

snowHeads Forum Index >>> The Piste