Weight of skier

A snowHead

Hope this is right place to ask this - bear with me - we were new to skiing at Christmas and taken by surprise at ski hire shop in resort to be asked our weight - height I understand but wasn't expecting weight - as adults we knew fairly accurately but only a vague idea of our teenage kids weight so we all just guessed really. They learnt to ski fine but I am intrigued to know what difference weight makes - do you get given different skis or is it to do with bindings which maybe do more than provide a slot for boots? My reason for asking is to know if it could have been dangerous at all if we had wildy over or underestimated for kids - thank you and apologies if a daft question

A snowHead

sally s, not a daft question, the weight is required so the rental shop can set the binding release settings correctly for you, they should ask for your height, weight, age, skier ability and boot sole length. that info is put into a chart which gives the correct release value settings [the numbered scale in the front and back of the binding] too loose and the ski comes off when you don't want it [results in shoulder injuries etc] too tight and the ski won't come off [ knee injuries etc]

do bear in mind that many hire shops do not set up kit like this as it takes a little more time [prehaps a minute] but this mounts up when you are dealing with hundreds of skiers.

there are a few shops using electronic testing devices that feed your info into and they calculate and set the binding release, you recieve a ticket which can be entered back into the machine....... which can tell if you played around with the settings..... including winding the screw by half a turn and winding it back, yep they are that sensitive.

this type of machine will become comonplace over the next few years as more people sue ski shops for injuries caused by binding settings being incorrect.

hope that answers your question Toofy Grin

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

To add to CEM's answer, weight is also a factor in determining ski length (more than height). While your height will raise your centre of mass, your weight will affect how the ski flexes - a light person carving a turn at 20mph will not flex the ski as much as a heavy person. And at higher speeds and steeper angles, a heavy person will probably go faster.
So heavier people should be on longer/stiffer skis than lighter ones (as a rule of thumb).

...but, CEM's answer is the more important one in terms of safety.

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Wear The Fox Hat, I always thought the hire shop gave me longer ski's 'cos they thought I was a better skier than I am! Now your telling me it's 'cos they think I'm a fat b@stard Toofy Grin

Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.

boredsurfin, it would help if you didn't walk into the pie shop and buy all the pies before asking about ski hire... Laughing

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Wear The Fox Hat, It's usually 'cos my pockets are bulging with beer for the ski tech's wink

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

boredsurfin,

After all it is free

Spyderman, no, but they do seem pleased to see me Toofy Grin

boredsurfin,
I suppose it gives them a chance to get rid of the longest skis in the shop. Laughing

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sally s, the third part Wink

of the answer is that it allows them to select the proper flex in boots, particularly relevant in junior boots.

You know it makes sense.

Thanks guys - I did have a feeling it would be a complex reason and hadn't picked up that if you fell your skis might fall off or not according to how your bindings were set nor that boots could flex - it is a whole new world of technie stuff to get to grips with isn't it although I guess in practice you just turn up tell them your size and off you go - at my level anyway. See you all in a few years for advice on which skis to buy! wink

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

sally s, I can tell you and I are going to get on well together here - that could almost be one of my posts!! snowHead

's now you've two of us!!

A snowHead

sally s As this seems a good place to add it I hope you will not mind me adding a follow up question:

In preparation for quick service at the hire shop at half term I sent my height and weight to them just after Christmas. Since then I have managed to lose 4-5 Kg (and am quite pleased with myself). The thing is, how sensitive are these binding settings - would this sort of difference be sufficient to change the settings and therefore should I let the shop know?

A snowHead

Megamum,
Run your weight loss by the rental shop when you pick them up, that way if you have a problem, you've informed them.
Mind you after your first cheese fondue, the 5kg will probably go straight back on. wink

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

A change in weight will be enough to change your DIN setting by about 0.5 to 1.0 on the scale, so the answer is yes that it probably will make a difference.

I would be very surprised if they still have your details by the time that you get there... Puzzled

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Spyderman,

Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.

Megamum

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sally s, slow twisting falls are the biggest cause of injuries, like the seatbelts and airbags in your car the bindings minimise the risk of injury...they don't however stop you from crashing the car

if the fall is at very slow speed, there may well be many times that the ski will not release, if you do this repeatedly then it may well be worth taking the skis back to the shop and having the settings lowered a touch [it won't take much more than a twist of the screwdriver but let the shop check them, they are after all their skis]
hope that helps Toofy Grin

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Weight of skier

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