Telemark / Touring Setup Advice

[Tom M]

Hi,

Looking for advice on a telemark / touring setup. Prefer 75mm. I need leather boots as my wonky ankle makes plastic shells painful. Terrain will be light in-bounds (Camden Snow Bowl, ME) meaning blue and green slopes and some mucking around off -trail – mostly flat, maybe some groomed tracks. Here’s what’ I’m looking at:

Skis: Voile Ultravector (I don’t want to mess with kick wax if possible)

Bindings: Voile Switchback (or the X2 model)

Boots: Alpina Alaskas 75mm

Oh, any thoughts on release plates for the binding?

Thanks!

 

[Edward John M]

That is the binding I use for touring Good binding for the purpose.

I have heard good things about the Alaska boot but my wonky ankles are why I went with plastic boots years ago, Scarpa T-2 boots with Intuition liners  and no more sore ankles

I wear two pair of socks inside, Injinji toe socks in ski boot liner style and over that a pair of polyester/nylon Alpine socks, both of these are ultra thin and dry quickly when I take the boots off. With Intuition liners my feet are warm all the time

I’ve never been able to afford Voile skis but I haven’t waxed on over 30 years although I still carry a couple of tubes of universal Klister just in case.

For the conditions you talk about skiing I don’t see the  need for release plates and if a safety binding is what you think you need get solid boots and a tech binding

So what is the medical condition with the ankles?

 

[Tom M]

No medical condition. Right ankle is pronated inward so that the medial whatever it is pushes out. Starts hurting almost immediately in plastic downhill boots. Are the Scarpa’s more forgiving?

[David Thomas]

Consider renting backcountry gear for a day to “try before you buy”.

Also, maybe give NNN BC a try.  I prefer it to 75 mm (and 50 mm and NNN and SNS) for backcountry use.

[Edward John M]

I’d say you have never had Alpine boots fitted properly from that description.

Fitting ski boots is both an art and a science and the fitting can cost as much as the boot itself if orthotics are needed

 

[Tom M]

FYI, I had a reality check with myself. Really, given my intended light use, I opted for an LL Bean ski package. Mixed reviews regarding the boots so we’ll see, but the skis get fairly decent reviews, considering how narrow they are for off track use. And the price is hard to argue with. Now I just need some snow.

Fischer Spider 62 BC Skis

Fischer Off-Track 3 Backcountry Ski Boots

Fischer BCX Auto Bindings

Link here

 

[Edward John M]

Invalid link so they must have sold out already

It’s an OK set-up for track and mild off-track skiing but not if you are carrying a nights gear on your back or hauling a sled for miles Lightweight gear can be a lot of fun tho and good learning tools

[Tom M]

Updated the link. Should work now.

Yeah, definitely not doing any load carrying with these. Just funning around for an afternoon. When I head out for a night or two, I’ll get some good boots and nice floaty skis.

[Edward John M]

OK LLB automatically directs non-US IP addresses to its international pages I found them tho.

That isn’t a bad package price. Did you go up a size from your normal street shoe so you can double up on the sock layer?

[Mike M]

I had that exact setup, albeit 3 years earlier, so slightly different

I found it to be a good all around touring setup. I have since changed to Altai Hoks as the areas I tend to hangout in are a little on the gnarly side. The Hoks are somewhere between a touring setup and snowshoes.

[Tom M]

John, I kept my regular shoe size. I’ve never had an issue with winter or heavier socks. Plus I’ll just be out during the day. If I need to exchange up I will. LLB really good about that.

 

Mike, glad to hear you were happy with the set up. I’m looking forward to it. YES, I’ve seen the Hoks! Those things look amazing! Do you use the universal binding?

[Mike M]

I do use the universal bindings; if I had more downhill skiing experience I would go with a different binding setup.  I have to be a little cautious (sometimes a lot!) on any significant downhill.

They don’t get me into all the places I can get with snowshoes, but more than my touring setup and quicker than my snowshoes. Always compromises :)

[Eric Blumensaadt]

On both my Atomic TM 22 tele skis and my Asnes Combi Combat backcountry touring skis I use Voile’ release plate with Voile’ 3 pin bindings screwed on them.

On my Atomic TM 22 skis I’ve ground off the pins and use Voile’ cable bindings to hold my Scarpa 3 boots in the bindings. Works great and I have the safety of release bindings in the woods.

[Brad Groves]

I have an old-school setup that I like a lot: Tua Mega MXs with Rainey Superloop bindings. 95-67-85. Paired with Scarpa T-3s. Awesome combo for kicking around the backcountry & skijouring. Not so awesome for a day at the resort.

I also have an old pair of Alpina waxless “backcountry” cross-country skis, no metal edges, with NNN BC bindings and Garmont hiking-ish boots. It’s an okay system. Certainly far lighter weight. Nowhere near the control or stability, gets freaky behind the dogs.

[Mike M]

we skied 15 miles (round trip) into a USFS cabin- pulled a pulk in with our supplies, had a great time playing around on the mountain behind the cabin. could have made it into/out of the cabin with a touring setup, but the mountain playing would have been much sketchy

 

 

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