How to Choose Skis with the Right Base – Part 1: Don't Be Blinded by the Brand
A new skiing season is approaching, so let's start with a bang!
Do you have several children and find yourself buying new skiing equipment before almost every winter?
Skis, boots, poles, bindings...
And just when you've finally bought everything, the children grow again.
We adults have at least one advantage in this respect.
We've stopped growing.
Well, at least vertically. 😀
Does the thought of how much all this will cost make you nervous? And do you sometimes worry that buying another pair of skis might turn out to be another expensive mistake?
Then let me begin with one simple recommendation.
Don't be blinded by the brand.
You Don't Ski on a Brand Name
A well-known manufacturer can be a good starting point.
But even a reputable brand doesn't automatically guarantee that every model has the same quality and characteristics.
Within one manufacturer's range, we may find top-level racing skis, very good recreational models and simple touring skis.
Each is designed for a different purpose.
And that is usually reflected in its construction, ski base and price.
The ski base, in particular, has a significant influence on how the ski glides, how it responds to waxing and how its surface behaves during use.
Unfortunately, the ski base has one serious disadvantage.
In a shop window, it doesn't look nearly as impressive as the colourful graphics on top of the ski.
So sometimes we end up buying with our eyes.
Beautiful graphics.
A famous logo.
Racing colours.
And underneath all that, a ski base we know absolutely nothing about.
But we ski on the base, not on the advertising space.
In fact, I sometimes think I should have that sentence printed on my wallet before buying another pair of children's skis.
A Little Story from Our Family
I don't want to sound like a grumpy old sceptic, but let me share something that happened to us.
Once, Grandma bought new skis for the boys.
I have no idea whether it made any difference that she and Grandpa arrived at the local specialist ski shop in a brand-new BMW X6.
But Maty came home with a truly impressive pair of cross-country skis from a prestigious manufacturer.
And they certainly weren't cheap.
They looked magnificent.
You could almost believe that skis like these would glide all by themselves.
Unfortunately, after just a few training sessions, the bases began turning noticeably grey.
Their glide performance gradually deteriorated, and during the second half of the season, even regular waxing no longer produced the results we had been accustomed to.
By the end of the season, instead of a beautiful pair of sports skis, we had something that was beginning to behave rather like a cheese grater.
And believe me, skiing on a cheese grater isn't much fun, even for a ten-year-old boy.
What exactly caused the problem?
Without a more detailed examination of the ski base material and its surface, I can't say for certain.
A grey appearance alone doesn't prove oxidation. It can also be associated with mechanical wear and changes in surface structure.
But there was one thing we learned beyond any reasonable doubt.
A high price, a famous brand and an impressive arrival at the ski shop don't guarantee that the skis will actually glide well.
All show and no substance?
Not always, of course.
But sometimes that old saying comes surprisingly close.
What About Specialist Ski Shops and Sports Clubs?
Perhaps you're thinking that none of this applies to you.
After all, you have your favourite specialist ski shop, where the staff always give you excellent advice.
Or perhaps you buy your skis through a sports club.
And that's perfectly fine.
A knowledgeable salesperson or an experienced coach can be extremely helpful when choosing skis.
But even then, I wouldn't stop thinking for myself.
A specialist ski shop is still a business.
And a sports club doesn't necessarily have access to every model and material option available on the market.
Attractive club discounts can be a great opportunity. But a discount alone tells us nothing about whether a particular pair of skis is suitable for our child.
So I wouldn't rely exclusively on other people's recommendations.
Ask questions. Take an interest. And make sure you understand what you're actually paying for.
Not because we should automatically distrust every salesperson.
But because even the nicest person behind the counter won't be doing the skiing for our children.
Extruded or Sintered Ski Bases?
Once we start asking questions about ski base materials, we quickly encounter two basic terms.
Extruded bases.
And sintered bases.
Both are commonly made from polyethylene, a polymer abbreviated as PE.
The main differences concern the characteristics of the material and the manufacturing process.
Extruded Ski Bases
In extrusion, suitable polyethylene is processed in a molten state and formed into a continuous sheet.
This is a relatively straightforward and economical manufacturing method.
That is why extruded bases are commonly found on less expensive recreational and touring skis.
Their main advantages are fairly obvious.
Reasonable price.
Simple maintenance.
And perfectly adequate performance for many recreational cross-country skiers.
Extruded bases can also be waxed, although their response to wax preparation and their ability to retain wax may differ from those of high-quality sintered bases.
Of course, not all extruded bases are identical.
Different polyethylene formulations and manufacturing processes can produce different properties.
So if you're looking for skis for occasional family outings, an extruded base isn't necessarily a bad choice at all.
But if you're buying sports skis for a child who trains and races regularly, I would expect more detailed information about the material used.
In other words, we don't need to condemn extruded ski bases. We simply need to know why we're buying them.
Sintered Ski Bases
Sintered bases are generally produced from polyethylene powder, consolidated into a solid material under controlled pressure and temperature.
Thin sheets of ski base material are then produced from the resulting block.
This technology makes it possible to use polyethylene with very high molecular weight.
Such materials are common in many high-quality sports and racing skis.
Sintered bases can offer excellent wear resistance, a suitable foundation for precise surface structuring and very good possibilities for wax preparation.
However, production is generally more expensive.
And quality can vary considerably within this category, too.
Not every sintered base is automatically a world-class racing base.
It would be wonderfully simple if that were the case.
Just buy something labelled "sintered" and consider the matter settled.
Unfortunately, ski manufacturers haven't made life quite that easy for us.
What About Ski Base Colour?
Here comes another interesting detail.
Ski bases may be black, transparent or coloured.
But colour alone tells us surprisingly little about quality.
Black colouring may be associated with carbon-based additives, such as carbon black or graphite particles.
These additives can influence material properties, including electrical conductivity, radiation absorption and mechanical behaviour.
But that doesn't mean every black ski base must be faster than a transparent one.
Nor does it mean that a transparent base is necessarily cheap or inferior.
High-quality transparent sintered bases also exist.
Colour may reflect material composition, a particular technical design or simply a manufacturer's aesthetic choice.
So if someone tells you that black bases are always the best, I'd recommend a little caution.
After all, black paint has never made anyone faster by itself.
As owners of black cars know very well.
Especially owners of very expensive black cars. 😀
Polyethylene Isn't Just One Material
To understand why ski bases differ so much, we need to explain one more thing.
Polyethylene isn't a single material with one fixed set of properties.
It consists of long molecular chains. Their length, arrangement and other characteristics significantly influence the resulting polymer.
That's why we encounter several different designations:
- HDPE – High-Density Polyethylene.
- HMWPE – High-Molecular-Weight Polyethylene.
- UHMWPE – Ultra-High-Molecular-Weight Polyethylene.
Technical specifications may also mention cross-linked polyethylene or specially modified blends.
But ordinary customers certainly don't need to memorise every abbreviation.
What matters is understanding that the label PE alone may not provide enough detail.
And that two polyethylene ski bases can have very different characteristics.
We'll leave the finer points of polyethylene molecular structure, crystalline and amorphous regions, and interactions with waxes for our more technical articles.
Because today we're supposed to be choosing skis.
Not taking an examination in polymer chemistry.
So What Should We Ask the Seller?
When buying skis, especially more expensive sports or racing models, we should consider not only their length, stiffness and intended use, but also the ski base.
It's worth asking a few simple questions:
- Is the base extruded or sintered?
- What material or commercial base grade does the manufacturer use?
- What type of skiing is this model intended for?
- What maintenance and waxing procedures are recommended?
- How does this model differ from cheaper and more expensive skis from the same manufacturer?
For higher-quality skis, I'd also welcome more detailed technical information.
However, it's fair to remember that manufacturers don't always disclose the exact composition of their bases.
Some formulations and manufacturing methods are trade secrets.
So if a salesperson doesn't know the exact molecular weight of the polyethylene or the percentage of each additive, that doesn't automatically mean they're selling bad skis.
But if they can't explain even the basic differences between the models, perhaps I'd look elsewhere.
Because spending several thousand crowns on a pair of skis based solely on the assurance that they're "really excellent" strikes me as rather adventurous.
Especially if that's the only technical information available.
So How Do We Choose the Right Skis?
Let's begin with what we're actually going to use them for.
Children's touring skis, sports skis for regular training and top-level racing skis all have different requirements.
We must also consider the correct ski length, stiffness and geometry.
The ski base material is very important, but it isn't the only selection criterion.
And the most expensive ski base isn't necessarily the best choice for every skier.
For a beginner enjoying relaxed winter tours, a simple extruded base may be perfectly reasonable.
For someone skiing regularly on groomed tracks, a good sintered base may provide substantial benefits.
And for a racer chasing the last fractions of a second, an entirely different world opens up.
A world of materials, structures, waxes and almost endless experimentation.
And a world in which it's possible to spend an astonishing amount of money on something most people consider an ordinary piece of black plastic.
My advice is simple: Don't buy skis because of the logo. Buy them according to your actual needs, and take an interest in the surface you'll be skiing on.
Because a good ski base isn't recognised by how beautiful it looks in the shop.
It's recognised on the snow.
And if you do somehow manage to buy an expensive pair of branded skis that start behaving like a cheese grater after just a few training sessions, at least you'll have another good reason to start your own skiing blog.
After all, it's worked rather well for me. 😀
Coming Up in This Series
In Part 2, we'll look at the additives used in ski base materials and explore what might actually be hiding inside that seemingly ordinary layer of black polyethylene.
And in Part 3, we'll focus on ski base ageing, wear and proper maintenance.