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Touring Skis
Ski touring is skiing in the backcountry on unmarked or unpatrolled areas. Touring is typically done off- piste and outside of ski resorts, and may extend over a period of more than one day. It is similar to backcountry skiing but excludes the use of a ski lift or transport. Ski touring combines elements of Nordic and alpine skiing and embraces such sub-disciplines as Telemark and ''randonnée''. A defining characteristic is that the skier's heels are "free" – i.e. not bound to the skis – in order to allow a natural gliding motion while traversing and ascending terrain which may range from perfectly flat to extremely steep. Ski touring has been adopted by skiers seeking new snow, by alpinists, and by those wishing to avoid the high costs of traditional alpine skiing at resorts. Touring requires independent navigation skills and may involve route-finding through potential avalanche terrain. It has parallels with hiking and wilderness backpacking. Ski mountaineerin ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sierra Nevada (U
The Sierra Nevada () is a mountain range in the Western United States, between the Central Valley of California and the Great Basin. The vast majority of the range lies in the state of California, although the Carson Range spur lies primarily in Nevada. The Sierra Nevada is part of the American Cordillera, an almost continuous chain of mountain ranges that forms the western "backbone" of the Americas. The Sierra runs north-south and its width ranges from to across east–west. Notable features include General Sherman, the largest tree in the world by volume; Lake Tahoe, the largest alpine lake in North America; Mount Whitney at , the highest point in the contiguous United States; and Yosemite Valley sculpted by glaciers from one-hundred-million-year-old granite, containing high waterfalls. The Sierra is home to three national parks, twenty wilderness areas, and two national monuments. These areas include Yosemite, Sequoia, and Kings Canyon National Parks; and Devils ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Crampons
A crampon is a traction device that is attached to footwear to improve mobility on snow and ice during ice climbing. Besides ice climbing, crampons are also used for secure travel on snow and ice, such as crossing glaciers, snowfields and icefields, ascending snow slopes, and scaling ice-covered rock. There are three main attachment systems for footwear: step-in, hybrid, and strap bindings. The first two require boots with welts, or specialized mountaineering boots with dedicated front and rear lugs, as a cam-action lever attaches the crampon to the heel. The last type (strap bindings) are more versatile and can adapt to virtually any boot or shoe, but often do not fit as precisely as the other two types. Oscar Eckenstein designed the first 10-point crampon in 1908, dramatically reducing the need for step cutting. This design was then made commercially available by the Italian Henry Grivel. Characteristics Materials Crampons are made of steel alloy, light weight alumi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ski Wax
Ski wax is a material applied to the bottom of snow runners, including skis, snowboards, and toboggans, to improve their coefficient of friction performance under varying snow conditions. The two main types of wax used on skis are glide waxes and grip waxes. They address kinetic friction—to be minimized with a glide wax—and static friction—to be achieved with a grip wax. Both types of wax are designed to be matched with the varying properties of snow, including crystal type and size, and moisture content of the snow surface, which vary with temperature and the temperature history of the snow. Glide wax is selected to minimize sliding friction for both alpine and cross-country skiing. Grip wax (also called "kick wax") provides on-snow traction for cross-country skiers, as they stride forward using classic technique. Modern plastic materials (e.g. high-modulus polyethylene and Teflon), used on ski bases, have excellent gliding properties on snow, which in many circumstances d ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Alpine Touring Binding
A ski binding is a device that connects a ski boot to the ski. Before the 1933 invention of ski lifts, skiers went uphill and down and cross-country on the same gear. As ski lifts became more prevalent, skis—and their bindings—became increasingly specialized, differentiated between alpine (downhill) and Nordic ( cross-country, Telemark, and ski jumping) styles of skiing. Until the point of divergence in the mid-20th century, bindings held the toe of a flexible, leather boot against the ski and allowed the heel to rise off the ski, typically with a form of strap or cable around the heel. To address injuries resulting from falls while skiing downhill on such equipment, ski bindings emerged with the ability to release the toe of the boot sideways, in early models, and to release the boot forward and aft, in later models. Downhill ski bindings became standardized to fit plastic ski boots and incorporated a built-in brake that drags in the snow after the ski detaches from the boot. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Cross-country Skiing
Cross-country skiing is a form of skiing where skiers rely on their own locomotion to move across snow-covered terrain, rather than using ski lifts or other forms of assistance. Cross-country skiing is widely practiced as a sport and recreational activity; however, some still use it as a means of transportation. Variants of cross-country skiing are adapted to a range of terrain which spans unimproved, sometimes mountainous terrain to groomed courses that are specifically designed for the sport. Modern cross-country skiing is similar to the original form of skiing, from which all skiing disciplines evolved, including alpine skiing, ski jumping and Telemark skiing. Skiers propel themselves either by striding forward (classic style) or side-to-side in a skating motion (skate skiing), aided by arms pushing on ski poles against the snow. It is practised in regions with snow-covered landscapes, including Europe, Canada, Russia, the United States, Australia and New Zealand. Competiti ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Alpine Skiing
Alpine skiing, or downhill skiing, is the pastime of sliding down snow-covered slopes on skis with fixed-heel bindings, unlike other types of skiing ( cross-country, Telemark, or ski jumping), which use skis with free-heel bindings. Whether for recreation or for sport, it is typically practiced at ski resorts, which provide such services as ski lifts, artificial snow making, snow grooming, restaurants, and ski patrol. "Off-piste" skiers—those skiing outside ski area boundaries—may employ snowmobiles, helicopters or snowcats to deliver them to the top of a slope. Back-country skiers may use specialized equipment with a free-heel mode, including 'sticky' skins on the bottoms of the skis to stop them sliding backwards during an ascent, then locking the heel and removing the skins for their descent. Alpine skiing has been an event at the Winter Olympic Games since 1936. A competition corresponding to modern slalom was introduced in Oslo in 1886. Participants and venues ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ski Skins
Climbing skins are strips that attach to the bottom of Nordic, alpine touring or randonnée skis to help while ascending backcountry slopes. They are designed to be removed for skiing downhill. They are typically attached to the skis via a loop on the ski tip, a hook on the tail, and adhesive on the base of the skin. They are called skins because they resemble sealskin, from which the first ski skins were made. They are typically made from nylon or mohair Mohair (pronounced ) is a fabric or yarn made from the hair of the Angora goat. (This should not be confused with Angora wool, which is made from the fur of the Angora rabbit.) Both durable and resilient, mohair is notable for its high luster ... or a combination thereof, and are designed to let the ski slide forward on snow but not backward. They are usually narrower than the ski to allow the ski edges to get a grip. Some ski resorts permit skinning. History Various ethnic groups living in the Arctic regions created a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Kilian Jornet Burgada
Killian or Kilian, as a given name, is an Anglicized version of the Irish name Cillian. The name Cillian was borne by several early Irish saints including missionaries to Artois and Franconia and the author of the life of St Brigid. The name is said to derive from Saint Kilian, an Irish missionary to Germany in the 7th century, who, according to the Acta Sanctorum, was born in Mullagh, County Cavan, Ireland c. 640. He departed for his mission to the continent with 12 apostles from Kilmacologue in the parish of Tuosist, County Kerry, Ireland. In 689 he was martyred in Würzburg, Franconia, Germany, and subsequently became the city's patron saint. The most likely meaning of the name is "little church", a reference to someone prayerful or spiritual, ''cill'' meaning "church" in Gaelic while the suffix "-ín" is used affectionately to indicate a 'pet' or diminutive status. The Rev. Patrick Woulfe wrote that Cillian is the 'pet' diminutive of Ceallach which means "war", "strife" or " ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Patrick Vallençant
Patrick Vallençant (9 June 1946 in Lyon – 28 March 1989) was a French alpinist/skier and pioneer in ski mountaineering. He was a pioneer in ski mountaineering and leader of the French school of ski mountaineers. His motto was: "si tu tombes, tu meurs", translated as "you fall, you die". In addition to numerous first descents, he was responsible for the creation of the "Pedal-Jump Turn" and co-founded the Degré 7 ski apparel company. He died on 28 March 1989, in a non-skiing related climbing accident as a result of a broken carabiner, while abseiling from the top of La Beaume Rouge, in France. Skiing Vallençant became known for a number of first descents on skis within the French Alps that had previously been considered too steep to ski. To achieve this he developed a ski technique known as the "Pedal-Jump Turn". His feats required him to first climb the mountain in order to make the descent on skis, at the time it was uncommon to use helicopters to reach the top. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ottorino Mezzalama
Ottorino Mezzalama (born September 25, 1888 – February 23, 1931) was an Italian mountain climber, and is deemed to be one of the two pioneers of Italian ski mountaineering besides Luciano Roiti. He died in an avalanche accident in the Rochemolles Valley. The ''Ottorino Mezzalama'' Hut of the Club Alpino Italiano (CAI) below Pollux as well as the famous Mezzalama Trophy competition and the Mezzalama Skyrace were named in honor of him. Life Mezzalama was born in Bologna and moved with his family to Turin on March 28, 1892. In his teens he gained first experiences in mountain climbing. He was a good friend of the Swiss engineer Adolfo Kind and of the artillery Lieutenant Luciano Roiti, who published "Delle marce sulla neve" (Italian for ''about marching on snow''), a paper about ski mountaineering in the army. All three became members of the CAI and founded the Ski Club Torino. After he finished school, Mezzalama began his studies at the university faculty of trading and economy ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
