Choosing the right skin

Skins are extremely simple. You attach a strip of material to the soles of your skis. Now you can ski uphill.

All skins are faced with adhesive. All skins attach to the ski with some kind of fastening at the front. Longer skins may have a rear attachment, too. If you’re touring for turns, you peel the skin off when you get somewhere suitably high, fold it in half, stick it in your rucksack and point yourself downhill. Whee.

There are several factors to be aware of when choosing the right skin – material, width and length are the most important. And it’s also important to understand how to cut and trim the skin so it’s adapted perfectly to the width and length of your skis. It helps to know the best way to attach your skins, too.

Most of us expend a lot of thought on sexier considerations such as skis, bindings and boots. We’d like to make the case here that skins are equally as sexy!

Skins – the alpine tourer’s best friend

Skins are the crucial contact surface between you and the snow for most of the time you spend on the mountain. Roughly 70–90% of the time we spend on skis, from car to summit to car, is spent with skins on! If you’re a cyclist, your first ride of the spring is probably on a beautifully lubed, gleaming machine with tyres to race pressure and brakes tensioned to a mm clearance. It’s curious, and noticeable, that many of us don’t seem to be so invested in taking care of our skins, though. The true value of skins seems to be somewhat under-communicated. There are, we regret to say, misconceptions about the value of skins.

Skins: short or long?

Short skin:

It’s never a bad idea to take a short skin out if you’re touring cross-country in the backcountry. Some of use take a couple of pairs. If conditions make waxing difficult, a skin can save the day. If you’re pulling a load, the hill is steep, or you simply need grip, stick on a short skin. On longer tours and expeditions, skins are considered essential equipment.

Åsnes X-Skin short skin

  The Åsnes X-Skin is ideal for cross-country skis in the backcountry. They’re so functional that if you’re buying a pair of Åsnes fjellski, an X-Skin is basically essential equipment. Short skins don’t require much maintenance and offer superb grip regardless of the conditions. Being attached to the grip zone, the right skin shouldn’t affect your glide too much. They really shine in deep snow, whether you need to drag a pulk or you want guaranteed grip in poor conditions. Expedition skiers routinely keep them on from beginning to end. Our short skins are, without question, the industry standard: the inserts and lock have been tested and refined in the course of years and are now routinely used on the most demanding polar explorations. They’re the best solution on the market. The materials (nylon, mohair, synthetic hybrids and Race) are made by Colltex and Pomoca; there are none better.  

ACCESS SKIN (short skin for alpine touring)

  A skin lock for alpine touring skis is something unique to Åsnes. Our Access skins are suitable for long approaches when good glide is desirable, short summit tours from the ski lift, or as a lighter and more compact alternative to a standard long skin. The Access skin, taking up very little space, fits in the inner pocket. There’s no excuse not to take one with you when visiting a ski resort. If you’re visiting avalanche terrain, though – remember your safety equipment.  

Langfell:

Long skins are skins for the steeps: when you have to make serious altitude before the descent, or when the maximum grip is required (pulling a load up a high gradient, for example).

2. Width

Most skins are sold in 5mm increments from 80 to 145mm in width. Wider skins will, of course, cover more of the ski’s sole, giving better grip; the contrary applies to narrower skins. The best solution for cross-country skiers in the backcountry using short skins is usually to take one or two different ones. The vast majority of alpine touring skiers choose to cover as much of the sole as possible, but this isn’t actually entirely necessary – you can get buy with narrower skins, and enjoy better glide.

For maximum grip

To achieve maximum base coverage, take the ski’s widest point (usually the front tip) and subtract approximately 5 – 7mm. A skin of that width will cover almost the entire base; you’ll probably have to trim the skin to match the shape of your ski with the knife that often comes supplied.

If your ski measurements are, for example, 132/105/116mm, buying a 125mm-wide skin will cover the base nicely. Wider skins are more expensive, so you pay more for that cover and the grip it affords when your skinning up to the summit.

Lower weight and better glide

Some prioritise weight and good glide. For them, the solution is narrower skins. For alpine touring skiers concerned about weight, the volume of their backpack and better glide, we’d advise choosing a skin that fits inside the waist without covering the steel edge.

If your ski measurements are, for example, 121/95/109mm, choose 90mm-wide skins. Sizing skins based on the waist sacrifices some grip; unable to march straight up a high angle slope, it might pay to practice techniques such as kick turns and to factor in time spent traversing. Many find this a a compromise worth making; it’s down to individual choice.

3. Length

After choosing the right width, it’s time to consider length.

Skis come in different lengths – and so do skins.

Common standards

You might find a pair of skins for alpine touring sold in four lengths: 162–172 cm, 171–181 cm, 180–190 cm and 189–199 cm. If your skis are 185 cm long, you’ll l want to buy the 180-190 cm length and fine tune the length with the adjustable mounts. You usually have about 10 to 15 cm to play with this way.

Some skins are also sold in a length of about 200 cm. If you buy one of these, you’ll have to trim it to the length you want yourself; you may have to clip in the tip hardware yourself. You can probably fine tune the length with adjusters. If the skin doesn’t have a rear attachment, we recommend cutting it about 15cm shorter than the ski.