Carving skis are great for intermediate skiers and people who just want to have fun on the snow and mostly on the piste (that means the groomed runs). They are easy to turn and control in most situations. Skiers do not have to expend too much energy. The higher level carvers are designed to perform and are ideal for individuals who are looking to improve and develop their skiing. They are designed to help you progress towards perfect carve turns, with a stiffer tail to give more stability at a higher speed.

All-Mountain skis are designed to perform in all types of snow conditions and at most speeds. With wider waists and increased surface area, these skis will ride over difficult crud and variable snow with ease, while the wider tip helps to initiate the turn. This type of ski suits a lot of people because the majority of skiers don’t have the luxury of having several sets of skis to choose from and match to a day’s conditions.

Big mountain skis have a large surface area due to their wider waist width, this provides excellent flotation in all conditions from fresh powder to crud. Fat skis provide a real advantage if you want to learn to ski deep snow. Most of these skis have deeper sidecuts so they are easy to turn on piste when you need to. Suitable for people who prefer riding off-piste at least 60% of the time.

Powder Skis are designed to float atop powder, these are a popular backup pair of skis for those lucky enough to live in or visit places that get the big snow days! The mega-wide waist widths – ranging from 95mm to 130mm – keep the skis from sinking deep into fresh snow, but they can be challenging and sluggish to control on groomed runs.

Twin tip skis have a curved-up tail along with the standard curved-up tip. Originally, twin tips were most popular with the freestyle set and were used to take off or land jumps backward. Nowadays, twin tips are also available as all-mountain skis, though most are actually “directional twins” – slightly longer and wider in the front. These work well off-piste and in the powder due to their bigger surface area and increased sidecuts.

Typically stiffer, longer and narrower than the average ski. Most race skiers know what they want, so there’s no point in going too deep here. If you’re not a racer, don’t even consider race skis. Sometimes they are known as Slalom or GS skis.

At BaseNZ we understand that women are built differently to men and that they have different needs in their equipment. Women are generally lighter and smaller than men and, as a result, tend to develop a skiing style based more on technique and finesse rather than raw power. And women’s equipment has been developed with this in mind. Women’s skis are lighter and softer to make pressuring the ski into an arc easier and help ease you into the turn. The binding position is moved forward, shifting weight to the tip of the ski making turn initiation easier. Women’s bindings are also lighter with lower release settings. Some include an angled ramp under the heel moving your body weight forward on the ski to compensate for a lower center of mass.

Skis for children come in shorter lengths than adult-size skis and are lighter and softer flexing. When buying equipment for children, make sure to get them the right size skis and boots so they’ll be comfortable, rather than expecting them to grow into larger sizes. Very young children often don’t need poles, which can interfere with learning proper balance.

This is the level for skiers who are just beginning their skiing careers. The skier has either never skied before or has skied only a few times.

When a skier is comfortable on the green runs (beginner runs) and is moving up to blue runs.

The comfort level is on groomed blue runs that can be skied with relative ease.

The skier is moving up to black diamonds and other terrain.

Black diamonds and other terrain are comfortable.

All-terrain including powder, out of bounds, moguls, etc. are skied with ease.

Technically speaking, sidecut refers to the long, inward curves on both sides of a ski. It's designated by 3 numbers: the widths, in millimeters, of the ski's tip, waist and tail. The greater difference in these numbers means the larger the sidecut.

All modern skis have a sidecut so that they can turn when you tip them onto the edge. Without it, your skis would want to go straight when you decided to cut left or right.

Very basically: Shorter = easier. Longer = harder, but faster. Because of the sidecut, skis no longer need to be long in length to give you plenty of stability at high speeds. As a general rule, most beginner skis should come up to your nose, intermediate skiers around eye height and expert skiers your forehead to head height. But you need to consider the type of skiing you’ll be doing, your skill level, and your weight. All these things impact how long a ski should be.

Generally, beginners and intermediates should stick with shorter skis for ease of turning and better control. Once you move up to greater speed and different kinds of conditions, you can begin to play around with your ski length — longer might in time be better for you.

Skis continue to get wider in most user groups. Ski width is typically measured in three areas: the width at the tip, at the waist, and at the tail (for example, 122/90/115). These measurements give you an accurate idea of the uses for a ski.

Generally, your ski needs to be wider if you’re going to be skiing in powder. The more time you plan to spend off-piste  /in powder, the wider you want your skis to be. This spreads your weight out and lets you glide over the snow, instead of plowing through it. Wider skis also provide a more stable platform, which makes it easier to balance when moving through variable snow conditions.

Ski flex is the term used to describe how hard it is to bend the ski in order to make it turn. A softer flex is used a lot in beginner skis, as it makes them easier to handle. As riders improve they ride faster and more powerfully meaning they require a stiffer flexing ski to get the most control and performance.

While sorting through skis, you’ll notice many come with bindings attached. These are known as integrated bindings, as they are built into and are a part of the skis themselves. So, what set-up should you choose? Unless you’re an experienced racer or freestyle skier with specific binding needs, integrated bindings are highly recommended.