cher@ihlpm.UUCP (Mike Cherepov) (03/08/85)
-- For quite a while that question has been torturing me: Is there such thing as left (right) ski? Or, maybe there is no distinction between my skis (does not look like there is). Oh, and what about the bindings? No, I'm not going to proceed to ask about boots. Mike Cherepov
waynez@houxh.UUCP (W.ZAKARAS) (03/12/85)
Yes there are left and right ski's The reason is the edges for carving. If you put your ski's on backwards you should notice it right away . P.S. I just returned from Lake Tahoe today, They had 4 feet of new powder in just 3 days. Needless to say my body hurts from skiing that much powder and having to sit back on my heels constantly. Also a warning beware of the Indian Hills Condo's at 'Northstar at Tahoe'. They were ill equiped, a 2 bedroom condo we had came with 2 cots in one room and 1 double bed in the other. Pretty poor for $340.00 a week, I feel every person should get their own bed at that price. That's my only beef to a great 'Pilgrimage to the Mountains' WayneZ...
seb@ahutb.UUCP (s.e.badian) (03/12/85)
REFERENCES: <518@intelca.UUCP> <3230@utah-cs.UUCP>, <169@ihlpm.UUCP>, <434@houxh.UUCP> It just ain't so! Most skis are not just a right ski or just a left ski. Sure there are some skis that are made a little differently for each ski, but there aren't that many of them. Blizzard is the only company I can think of that advertises this difference. Most skis are interchangeable. And that includes the bindings. Boot shells for the same size boot are almost identical, so the bindings will be set the same way. Therefore, there is no danger in wearing what you usually consider your right ski on your left foot, and your left ski on your right foot. Now, when you first change the skis you will notice a big difference, especially if you always put the right on the right and the left on the left, and if you ski a lot of hard snow and ice. All of a sudden you have edges again! Hey, what a concept! Don't worry; it doesn't take long until they get worn down also. But it does extend the time that you have a decent edge. And on boilerplate, things like that are very important! All of this information came from a ski instructor who was teaching our class a little racing. He said that in racing, when the course got icy, it was a good idea to switch your skis so that you have a fresh edge to carve with. Makes sense to me! Sharon Badian Think snow, PLEASE! We need it in Vermont!
pace@othervax.UUCP (03/12/85)
In article <169@ihlpm.UUCP> cher@ihlpm.UUCP writes: >-- > >For quite a while that question has been torturing me: >Is there such thing as left (right) ski? >Or, maybe there is no distinction between my skis (does >not look like there is). >Oh, and what about the bindings? > >No, I'm not going to proceed to ask about boots. > Mike Cherepov Yes, I believe that there is a difference between your left and right skis, but only after the bindings have been put on them. At least, when I bought some new equipment a few months ago, after I picked them up from the shop they had put left and right stickers on the skis (after they put the bindings on). My previous set of skis and bindings were also marked left and right. Cheers, Scott Pace, Philips Info. Systems, Montreal
al@psivax.UUCP (Al Schwartz) (03/12/85)
In article <169@ihlpm.UUCP> cher@ihlpm.UUCP (Mike Cherepov) writes: >For quite a while that question has been torturing me: >Is there such thing as left (right) ski? > Mike Cherepov I have always heard that when boots are manufactured, it is next to impossible to make a pair exactly the same outside dimension (because of the plastic in one shrinking more when it cools). Therefore to keep the binding settings on each boot accurate, the installer of the bindings will put some indication of which ski is which. -- Hey bud... Let's party. Al Schwartz Pacesetter Systems Inc., Sylmar, CA {trwrb|allegra|burdvax|cbosgd|hplabs|ihnp4|sdcsvax|aero|uscvax|ucla-cs| bmcg|sdccsu3|csun|orstcs|akgua|randvax}!sdcrdcf!psivax!al or {seismo|citcsv|engvax|wlbr|zeus}!scgvaxd!psivax!al
deb@haddock.UUCP (03/13/85)
I asked the same question when I bought my skis. One was tagged `right' and one `left'. The sales person said a) there is no difference between the skis and b) suggested that I switch them around for more even usage. -deb-
tj@utcs.UUCP (tj) (03/13/85)
Most people that race keep the left and right skis identified and just before they hit the course they swap skis so that the skis will have the sharpest edge in the most useful place. As for bindings, the shape of the DIN standard boots are symetrical so there really is no difference in the bindings. BUT most manufacturers usually put some indication on the bindings so that you can identify lrft and right. On TYROLIA you will find a little stub of plastic on the ski brake. One is on the left the other on the right.
dhl@browngr.UUCP () (03/14/85)
It is true that there is no difference between a right and a left ski.
However, many ski shops adjust bindings so that one binding will release
only the left boot properly, and one will only release the right boot
properly. Check with whoever adjusts your bindings for you before you
switch your skis.
David Laidlaw, Brown Computer Science
{allegra,ihnp4,decvax}!brunix!dhl
dhl.brown@csnet-relay
dhl@browncs.bitnetpaul@wjvax.UUCP (Paul Summers) (03/14/85)
There are two reasons I can think of for keeping track of which ski is which.
The first (and more important) is ski tuning. I worked in a ski shop in
southern Michigan (ice capitol of the USA) for three years mounting bindings,
tuning skis and occasionally (when the manager needed an extra salesman) selling
skis. When we tuned a ski, you could almost shave with the edges. Now, having
edges that sharp would make it very likely that you would catch an edge at an
embarassing moment (like after saying 'Watch this!' at the top of a black
diamond slope), so we would 'dull back' the edges at the tips and the tails.
Since the inside edge of the ski is where you need the most grip on the snow
(ice), we would dull back the inside edge about six inches from the tip and
tail, depending on the length of the ski. The outside edge is less critical,
so it would get dulled back almost half way to the middle from the tip and tail.
This decreases the chance of catching an outside edge.
If your skis are tuned in this fashion, you would definately want to keep track
of which ski is which.
The second reason concerns interaction between the boot and the binding.
If you put a ski on the release checker, you will get a different release
reading between the left boot and the right boot, especially if the boots
are old/worn. Usually it is desirable to get the same release pressure
on both skis. With the invention of teflon anti-friction devices and better
boot designs, this has become less critical.
--
<*><*><*><*><*><*><*><*><*><*><*><*><*><*><*><*><*><*><*><*><*><*><*><*><*><*>
Paul Summers
Watkins Johnson, Co.
2525 N. First St.
San Jose, Ca. 95131-1097
(408) 262-1411 x3203
( {pesnta,twg,ios,qubix,turtlevax,tymix}!wjvax!paul )
Working is fine, but I wouldn't want to make a career out of it.wagner@uw-june (Dave Wagner) (03/16/85)
I asked the guy at the rental shop why the skis were tagged L and R
when there seemed to be no difference between them. His answer: in
case of an accident in which both skis come off and in which you hurt
only one leg, you can identify which binding ought to be loosened up
a bit. (I can see why this is important in a rental operation; it may
not apply to folks who own their own skis, except for the first few
times out on a brand new pair.)
Dave Wagner
University of Washington Comp Sci Department
wagner@{uw-june.arpa|washington.arpa}
{ihnp4|decvax}!uw-beaver!uw-june!wagner
"Oh no! I've got . . . . . HAPPY FEET!"
kjima@tekchips.UUCP (Jim Alexander) (03/18/85)
People used to worry about Left and right skis because boot size was not so consistant and your left binding might be adjusted differently than your right binding. Thus if you inadvertently switched them you would have one lose ski and one tight ski (which is worse?). However, people don't seem to worry about this aspect as much anymore.
lowell@fluke.UUCP (Lowell Skoog) (03/18/85)
Most ski companies make no distinction between left and right skis during production. There's a good chance that both your skis came out of the same mold. Then they were matched according to flex. This leaves the bindings. Most, if not all, of the bindings made today are designed according to DIN (German) standards. This means they are compatible with your DIN standard boots, and that they are symmetrical--there is no left or right binding. If your boots have different lengths, then it may be necessary to adjust the fore-aft position of the heel pieces differently. This is usually done by moving a toothed clamp--not by drilling the binding holes differently--so you can easily check it. If they are different then you do have a left and right ski. Most likely, however, your heel pieces are adjusted identically, and the minor variations in boot length are accomodated by the binding springs. The last consideration is the toe and heel hold-down adjustment. This is also easy to check. Unless your boots are worn very differently (do you hop through the parking lot?) this adjustment will probably be the same for both skis. You will find that ski shops are very cautious on this subject. They will refuse to mount your bindings unless they have both your boots, so they can make fine adjustments. They don't want to be sued. As for me, I regularly switch my skis from one foot to the other. This way they get beat up evenly. Lowell Skoog Somewhere at Crystal Mtn, Washington
ben@moncol.UUCP (Bennett Broder) (03/19/85)
> BUT most manufacturers usually put >some indication on the bindings so that you can identify lrft and right. On >TYROLIA you will find a little stub of plastic on the ski brake. One is on the >left the other on the right. Does anyone know if and how they do it on the Salomon 747? Ben Broder {petsd,pesnta,princeton}!moncol!ben
shelby@rtech.ARPA (Shelby Thornton) (04/03/85)
> > BUT most manufacturers usually put > >some indication on the bindings so that you can identify lrft and right. On > >TYROLIA you will find a little stub of plastic on the ski brake. One is on the > >left the other on the right. > > Does anyone know if and how they do it on the Salomon 747? > They don't (At least not on my 747s). If your ski shop tunes your skis and tells you that there is no difference left to right it means only one thing, it's time to find a new ski shop! Shelby Thornton ucbvax!mtxinu!rtech!shelby