October 2019 Archives

14Oct 2019 by DS News Team

You Could Become Big Cheese Next Season!

" A thrilling three-day trip for two to the legendary "La Maison du Gruyère" in Switzerland upon invitation by Le Gruyère AOP..." That's what the winner of the brand-new «Le Gruyère AOP Cheese Challenge» will get at the end of the World Cup skiing season next year [caption id="attachment_13085" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Massive slabs of Le Gruyère stacked awaiting future FIS World Cup stage winners in Dresden in January this year [/caption] In the joint press-release the FIS and the Fribourg, Switzerland-based cheese-maker announce that are launching a new "competition within competition" in the upcoming season [caption id="attachment_13084" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Le Gruyère AOP is a long-term partner of the FIS Cross-Country World Cup [/caption] The «Le Gruyère AOP Cheese Challenge» is designed to award athletes that collect the most podium spots…

12Oct 2019 by DS News Team

Review: Best Ski Boots For Skating Right Now, Part 2

Gear News, Newsfeed

This is part 2 where we look at what Madshus, Rossignol, Salomon - and an exciting newcomer, Spine - have to offer to discerning users. Part 1 where we looked into Alpina, Atomic and Fischer could be found here Once again, briefly on definitions: “best” means racing boots, those used by the world’s elite skiers to compete & win. In 2019 those are invariably carbon-fiber soled – and, naturally, with carbon cuffs for ankle support. Madshus, Norway The brand from Biri was long known for the relative warmth of its top-line racing boots - which is entirely expected given the company roots & location. [caption id="attachment_13067" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Super Nano were among the first carbon-soled boots on the market and still could be found in elite competitions. Super Nano are…

11Oct 2019 by DS News Team

Review: Best Ski Boots For Skating Right Now, Part I

Gear News, Newsfeed

On definitions: "best" means racing boots, those used by the world's elite skiers to compete & win. In 2019 those are invariably carbon-fiber soled - and, naturally, with carbon cuffs for ankle support. For all SNS fans: sorry, folks - the only athlete we know of still using once-dominant system is Jessie Diggins. Atomic, once a firm " SNS camper", stopped supporting it altogether - Salomon is still holding out but, likely, not for long. Most if not all producers follow a simple maxim: test with top athletes & win the first year of production - sell the next one. In other words, there is often a considerable gap between what you see on TV and what you could actually buy at your friendly local store. We have an issue…

10Oct 2019 by DS News Team

Jean-Marc Draeyer, Man Who Picked SLABs For You ( If You Are Maja Dahlqvist That Is)

Gear News, Newsfeed

Meet Jean-Marc Draeyer, Salomon Nordic head of race ski production. " Production" means that Jean-Marc calls Altenmark im Pongau his home ( and not Annecy where Salomon Nordic's main unit is located) and makes sure that Maja Dahlqvist and Sjur Rothe along with other Salomon athletes get best gear to fight for the podiums. S/LAB Carbons and Redster Carbons are made on the same production line, by the same skilled workers but are very, very different skis, developed by two different teams. Moreover, the Carbons Sjur and Maja use and those you could buy in your nearest friendly Intersport or XXL are made exactly the same, from the same components by the same people. What's different is that Jean-Marc and personal waxers of the stars have a first peak of…

09Oct 2019 by DS News Team

Core Of The Matter

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Know-your-skis Wednesday on Dailyskier.com This photo could have been taken at virtually any ski-making factory but happens to be from Atomic in Altenmarkt im Pongau, Austria. Meet Nomex ® honeycomb aramid core that is to be found inside virtually every pair of true racing skis ( except for Madshus- they use a different material ) Nomex is a veteran - DuPont started selling it at the end of 1960s, although back then it was used in fancy applications such an aerospace industry. It found its way into racing ski construction in 1980s and continues to dominate, as already mentioned: nothing provides comparable strength to weight ratio. True Nomex ® is expensive and is only used in top models - cheaper skis get similarly constructed knock-offs. It will continue to underpin…

Month: October 2019