We do a really good job making ski selection, grinding, and waxing very complex. That’s what happens when you try for the highest possible performance. But we also know that many of you prefer a simpler process. We have put together this “easy guide” to ordering skis to help you navigate the decision making process […]

Over the past couple of years we have chronicled the development of the new Madshus Redline 2.0 model through the process of conception, development, prototyping, and testing. We’ve been able to do this because Madshus has been very open with their process, and has welcomed us to test the product at every stage, and write […]

Salomon has continued to push their development cycle relentlessly hard, with the introduction of new designs and models almost every year. This year we’re looking toward a totally new classic design, and we’ve got some limited but interesting testing feedback and lots of excitement about that. But we need to start with a review of […]

Tad Elliott’s “retirement” took a quick turn toward the unglamorous side of ski racing this year when he signed-on as an intern coach with Sten Fjeldheim’s Northern Michigan program. If you thought that life as a 30-year-old college freshman might hold some surprises and offer some new perspective, you’d be right. But you’re only part way toward […]

It’s time for our annual series of reviews and previews, discussing what we’ve found this past season, and what we’re looking forward to next season in new skis. This also marks the start of our annual ski request process. We’ll accept requests for new skis anytime. We travel to Europe to select skis in May, […]

If you just want to skip directly to the recommendation, scroll to the bottom. Otherwise, grab a cup of coffee, and enjoy my prose as I discuss how this recommendation was generated… Our Guy in Hayward When we first moved back to Vermont and started up the most recent iteration of Caldwell Sport, one of […]

This season Rottefella released their MOVE bindings – a system that allows skiers to adjust the position of the binding on the ski without taking the skis off; with a little practice and coordination, you can even adjust the position on the fly. The purpose is simple – with the bindings positioned forward and high […]

Last spring, when it came time to place a pre-season order for wax, the Vauhti guys mentioned that, “oh, hey, there’s a new Mid fluoro formulation coming for next year.” I sent a very nasty note back. We don’t like changes that we haven’t had a chance to test – how are we supposed to […]

On Saturday Amy and I will return to Europe for our second ski selection trip of the year, and we’ll spend a week in Norway where we’ll be working with the first full production of Madshus Redline 2.0 skis. The Redline 2.0 model is coming for the 2018-19 season in a limited release. The standard […]

We’ve just wrapped up an early season visit with Jean-Marc Draeyer, and the famous ski-farmer Willi Engelhardt (https://youtu.be/NZZ_Q0bNlQk) at Salomon’s factory in Altenmarkt. We selected a handful of skis for our 2018 order, but mostly we spent a bunch of time going over the new inventory – in particular, learning the parameters and variation in […]