How to choose your freestyle skis

A practice that was still unknown a few years ago, freestyle is now making its mark in snow parks as well as on the slopes and off-piste. It didn't take long for manufacturers to follow the trend and offer a range of adapted equipment. Jumps, tricks, grabs: in the world of freestyle, English has taken over the slang. Ekosport tells you everything you need to know to choose your freestyle skis properly.

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Anatomy of a freestyle ski

Although it's possible to do jumps with any ski, if for you, gliding is as much about snow as it is about air, you're well advised to equip yourself with freestyle skis. What do they have that is different from slope skis?

Freestyle skis have twin-tips, meaning that unlike a piste ski, the tail has the same shape as the front (or tip) of the ski. Thus, with a twin-tip, it is possible to ski forward as well as backwards, the so-called switch. This is particularly useful when landing a backward rotation.

For backcountry skiers (understand freestyle skiing in the wilderness) one could opt for a ski that is still twin-tip shaped, but also with a double rocker. The rocker is a raised tip. This allows for lift-off and better "floating" in powder snow. As for bindings, freestylers prefer a centered mounting for a more balanced ski, faster aerial rotations, and an easier forward or switch landing.

There are different ways to position your bindings on the skis. The first is a perfect, 100% symmetrical centering. Balance and forward/switch performance are prioritised. Secondly, there is a more all-mountain approach with the bindings positioned further back from the centre of the ski. In this case, forward motion will be favoured. Nevertheless, this "quasi-central" positioning will always be more marked than on a slopes ski. Thus, you keep the advantage and performance in switch, while being more competitive outside the snowpark.

Finally, the camber is designed to create a "pop" that allows for a more solid take-off and a smoother landing during tricks and jumps. The freestyle skis are also made more durable than recreational skis because they experience more shocks and pressure during take-offs and landings, but also when sliding on rails.

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The various freestyle practices

Worthy heir of mogul skiing, freestyle is now a branch in its own right in the world of snow sports. It itself has made little ones: the freestyle park, the jib and the backcountry.

Originally, the real daredevils rivalled inventively to achieve the best tricks on the piste. They relied on bumps and other natural obstacles for propulsion. Nowadays, freestyle is mainly developed in snowparks, spaces created by the hand of Man, dedicated to this breathtaking practice. This is "traditional" freestyle. Here you need a playful ski to enjoy the kickers, half-pipes and slopes. Twin-tip and centered mounted bindings, you also aim for a more pronounced camber to ensure good "pop" and maximum grip in the pipes. We keep a slim ski, with a waist around 80-90 mm. If it is all-mountain oriented, you can afford a waist up to 105 mm.

Another use, another ski. The JIB, the "street" version of gliding, invites itself to the snowpark. Inspired by urban riding, this new variant of freestyle consists of skiing on everything but snow: modules, rails, plastic boxes and any other crazy object. For maximum fun on the bars, you need a true twin-tip shape. This is the basis of the JIB. Symmetrical and balanced, this type of ski is perfect for spins with forward or backward landings. It should also be ultra-resistant because pressure and wear on objects other than snow damage the ski more quickly. Finally, on the width side, stick with a slim waist to save weight and be more responsive in the air.

Finally, the backcountry is full of ravines, bumps and rocky bars to explore. This is backcountry skiing, a hybrid discipline mixing freestyle and freeride. You combine the best of both worlds for a characteristic ski: a very wide waist, two generous rockers, a marked camber and the twin-tip. We choose it a little longer than its companions in the park because in powder, it's buoyancy that counts.

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What ski size to choose for freestyle skiing?

Once you have found your style and model, the next step is to determine the size of your freestyle skis. This mainly depends on the practice and your level. Generally speaking:

• For the snowpark and pipes: a ski to your height
• For the JIB: -5 cm or to your height
• For freestyle backcountry: 5 to 15 cm more than your height
• For a versatile ski, between your height and down to 10 cm shorter.

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Ski size and child weight

In the ski shop, when the team that welcomes you asks your weight, it is for two reasons: one, to offer a ski with an accommodating flex (the stiffness of the ski), and the other, to adjust the bindings to avoid injury in case of a fall.

As far as the child is concerned, weight is also synonymous with strength. Between a strong pupil and a puny classmate, the power he/she applies will not be the same. Because it takes muscles to control your planks. Any skier realises this, when they get to the bottom of the slope, they feel their thighs heating up, or even tetanising, under the strain of the effort.

So, apart from the weight as such, it is above all the strength and power that you need to know how to estimate in order to know the size of skis to choose for a child. Not to be confused with endurance: a child can be frail but tonic. However, he will not have the strength to bend his skis during a hard turn.

Depending on the morphology of your offspring, it will be preferable to adopt shorter skis for a thin child, and longer for a muscular child.

Taking these recommendations into account, we now must adjust according to his/her level. A shorter ski will be more playful, more maneuverable, lighter, so more geared towards beginners or progressing skiers. A longer ski will show its strength especially in off-piste. Better lift but more difficult to manoeuvre, choose the high end for backcountry skiing, which is mainly for seasoned skiers.

Although they are classified in the same category, a backcountry ski will be very different from a ski designed for the park. That's why before you opt for freestyle skis, it's vital to get a clear picture of your needs. This way, your ski will have the perfect technical characteristics for you and the use you are going to make of it!