A Snow and ski forum. SkiBanter

If this is your first visit, be sure to check out the FAQ by clicking the link above. You may have to register before you can post: click the register link above to proceed. To start viewing messages, select the forum that you want to visit from the selection below.

Go Back   Home » SkiBanter forum » Skiing Newsgroups » European Ski Resorts
Site Map Home Register Authors List Search Today's Posts Mark Forums Read Web Partners

Anyone skied the 'laub' at Engelberg?



 
 
Thread Tools Display Modes
  #21  
Old February 16th 05, 03:09 PM
Mike Clark
external usenet poster
 
Posts: n/a
Default

In message
Ace wrote:

On Wed, 16 Feb 2005 12:36:19 GMT, Mike Clark wrote:

In message
Ace wrote:


As Sue suggests, by twisting it. In this instance it was all my own
fault - having bought touring boots (Scarpa Denali TT) And used them
for about ten days with my Alpine bindings,


snip sprained ankle

Yep, using touring boots with ordinairy bindings is a bad idea, because
the vibram sole on the Denali tends not to allow a proper sideways,
twisting release. Proper touring bindings such as the Fritschi Diamir,
and Freeride, have a twisting plate under where the boot sole sits.


I went out and got them fitted first thing the next morning. Miss a
day's skiing just 'cos I couldn't walk properly? Naah, not me.

If you're going to routinely use touring boots I'd get Fritschi bindings
put on all of your skis. At present I have separate skis and boots for
touring and for lift-assisted downhill skiing so I need to make a
decision as to which set to take with me.


Fortunately, I nearly always have only one pair of skis on the go -
currently last year's Pocket Rocket, which is a splendid all-round ski
and lightweight enough to not be a pain for touring. Must get some
skins and give them a proper try some time...


Given how few years I've been skiing I seem to have worked my way
through quite a few sets of skis! When I first started touring I hired
the gear from Argentiere (Traditional touring skis and Silveretta 404
bindings), but then I bought my first full set of personal touring
equipment for our Haute Route trip in 1999 (with the
technical improvement of Fritcshi Diamirs mk I bindings). The skis were
Dynastar 4x4s which lasted me a couple of seasons until I broke both
skis in an off piste accident in a steep sided gully, when the tips
buried themselves into the gully wall and so something had to give! I
then had a pair of Fischer Freerides, which lasted another couple of
seasons, but I did have to replace the bindings with Diamir mk IIs when
I broke the titanium bar (fortunately it was literally on the first hour
of the first day of a multi-day tour, so I was able to rush back into
Val D'Isere and get new bindings put on). Two years ago I finally
trashed the Fischers when I accidentally ended up trying to ski a piece
of tarmac road in the road tunnel descending from the Grande St Bernard
pass into Italy (there is usually a very narrow strip of snow or ice
maintained to allow skiers to negotiate a section of road). I then
replaced the skis with Atomic Beta Rides 9.22, which are so far my
favourites for touring. My wife has been using Atomics the whole time
since 1999 and has just swapped her original pair of 9.22 Beta Cruises
for a pair of 9.22 Beta Rides. Her original pair had Mk I Diamir
bindings, but she too eventually bent the titanium bar. Her new skis
have Mk III bindings. The other thing I have seen break on Diamir
bindings is the toe piece so we usually carry a spare on long tours.

One reason I have now bought myself separate skis and boots for general
downhill is that I don't think the Fritcshi Diamir bindings are up to
taking a lot of heavy punishment if skiing aggressively, particularly in
icy bump fields. The Fritcshi Freeride bindings look more solid however,
but are heavier if you want to tour with them.


Mike URL:http://www.path.cam.ac.uk/~mrc7/cccc/hauteroute/
--
o/ \\ // |\ ,_ o Mike Clark
\__,\\ // __o | \ / /\, "A mountain climbing, cycling, skiing,
" || _`\,_ |__\ \ | immunology lecturer, antibody engineer and
` || (_)/ (_) | \corn computer user"
Ads
  #22  
Old February 16th 05, 03:53 PM
Ace
external usenet poster
 
Posts: n/a
Default

On Wed, 16 Feb 2005 15:09:34 GMT, Mike Clark wrote:


snip

Her original pair had Mk I Diamir
bindings, but she too eventually bent the titanium bar. Her new skis
have Mk III bindings. The other thing I have seen break on Diamir
bindings is the toe piece so we usually carry a spare on long tours.


Hmmm. I've never broken anything on a binding - how does this happen,
direct impact or excessive twisting? Bending the bar, I'd have
thought, could only happen with the heel free, and even then I'd
expect the pivot to go first.

One reason I have now bought myself separate skis and boots for general
downhill is that I don't think the Fritcshi Diamir bindings are up to
taking a lot of heavy punishment if skiing aggressively, particularly in
icy bump fields. The Fritcshi Freeride bindings look more solid however,
but are heavier if you want to tour with them.


I was going to go for the Freeride, given that the vast majority of my
skiing is lift-served, but given the emergency nature I had to make do
with what was available in a small resort (Praz de Lys, nr les Gets)
and have the Diamir II. Seems sturdy enough, though.

--
Ace (brucedotrogers a.t rochedotcom)
Ski Club of Great Britain - http://www.skiclub.co.uk
All opinions expressed are personal and in no way represent those of the Ski Club.
  #23  
Old February 16th 05, 06:03 PM
mike
external usenet poster
 
Posts: n/a
Default


"Mike Clark" wrote in message
.uk...

The other thing I have seen break on Diamir
bindings is the toe piece so we usually carry a spare on long tours.


I recall a previous post here a while back saying the screws holding the
front binding can shear off?

One reason I have now bought myself separate skis and boots for general
downhill is that I don't think the Fritcshi Diamir bindings are up to
taking a lot of heavy punishment if skiing aggressively, particularly in
icy bump fields. The Fritcshi Freeride bindings look more solid however,
but are heavier if you want to tour with them.


There is little difference in weight if you fit brakes to the Fritschi
binding and there doesn't seem a significant difference in strength between
them, IMO. But then a touring ski and binding has got to be weaker than a
downhill freeride ski and binding ie my Atomic Betaride 11.22 weighs nearly
7 kg (pair) whereas my Atomic R9 + Diamir Freeride weighs about 5 kg. Some
touring skis are really light but I wouldn't want to use them agressively on
hard snow. One problem I experienced is snow building up in the Freeride
binding preventing the brake from openning when the boot is released, which
is obviously dangerous both on and off piste. Also I've heard the brakes can
snap off. But the touring from the Albona to Kaltenberg then Langen am
Arlberg was fantastic...
Mike



  #24  
Old February 16th 05, 06:38 PM
Mike Clark
external usenet poster
 
Posts: n/a
Default

In message
Ace wrote:

On Wed, 16 Feb 2005 15:09:34 GMT, Mike Clark wrote:


snip

Her original pair had Mk I Diamir
bindings, but she too eventually bent the titanium bar. Her new skis
have Mk III bindings. The other thing I have seen break on Diamir
bindings is the toe piece so we usually carry a spare on long tours.


Hmmm. I've never broken anything on a binding - how does this happen,
direct impact or excessive twisting? Bending the bar, I'd have
thought, could only happen with the heel free, and even then I'd
expect the pivot to go first.


My wife and a friend have both suffered from a broken toe piece on the
Diamir MkI. It seems to be a problem if you have a sudden collision (in
my wife's case it was when she had someone ski into her on piste), and
it results in a fracture of the plastic surrounding the height
adjustment screw thread. It seems to be a problem many of the Guides and
Ski technicians in Chamonix are aware of because many seem to carry
spares when out touring, and we had no trouble getting hold of a spare
from a local ski shop in Argentiere (The colours of the MkI and Mk II
toepiece are different but the shape is similar and they appear to be
interchangeable as spares, whilst the Mk III is a different shape).

The "titanal" bar breaking or bending is another known problem. If you
ever get a chance to compare the Diamir MkI, II and III you will see
changes to the profile of the cross-section of the bar which are
obviously designed to increase the strength. Another change has been to
the shape of the heel-lift mechanism. This is because the early MkI
versions were prone to releasing when fixed to some more bendy brands of
ski. There was a "fix" for this problem that involved putting a raised
nut on the rear mounting screw, however the technician who did this for
me did point out that it might have the side effect of putting more
force on the titanal bar when the ski bends severely.

One reason I have now bought myself separate skis and boots for
general downhill is that I don't think the Fritcshi Diamir bindings
are up to taking a lot of heavy punishment if skiing aggressively,
particularly in icy bump fields. The Fritcshi Freeride bindings look
more solid however, but are heavier if you want to tour with them.


I was going to go for the Freeride, given that the vast majority of my
skiing is lift-served, but given the emergency nature I had to make do
with what was available in a small resort (Praz de Lys, nr les Gets)
and have the Diamir II. Seems sturdy enough, though.


I've had no problems with the Mk IIs.


--
o/ \\ // |\ ,_ o Mike Clark
\__,\\ // __o | \ / /\, "A mountain climbing, cycling, skiing,
" || _`\,_ |__\ \ | immunology lecturer, antibody engineer and
` || (_)/ (_) | \corn computer user"
  #25  
Old February 17th 05, 08:40 AM
Ace
external usenet poster
 
Posts: n/a
Default

On Wed, 16 Feb 2005 18:38:43 GMT, Mike Clark wrote:


snip Diamar problems

I've had no problems with the Mk IIs.


Thanks for the info. Duly noted. I think I'll stick with them and risk
it then. Although the spare toe-piece might not be a bad idea, but
I've always got the old garden wire for emergency repairs, so I should
be OK to get home in resort, IYSWIM.

--
Ace (brucedotrogers a.t rochedotcom)
Ski Club of Great Britain - http://www.skiclub.co.uk
All opinions expressed are personal and in no way represent those of the Ski Club.
 




Thread Tools
Display Modes

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

vB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off
Forum Jump

Similar Threads
Thread Thread Starter Forum Replies Last Post
Call my crazy, but I'm going to Engelberg, Switzerland; I think it is snowing there ! Edward Arata Snowboarding 3 June 3rd 04 02:15 PM
Off-Piste in Engelberg? Alan van Wyk European Ski Resorts 4 February 8th 04 10:08 AM
Transport in Switzerland - Zurich to Davos, Wengen, and Engelberg! Alan van Wyk European Ski Resorts 9 November 27th 03 12:50 PM
Have you ever skied in England ? Enotrio Pallanzo European Ski Resorts 23 September 25th 03 06:35 AM


All times are GMT. The time now is 03:00 PM.


Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.6.4
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, Jelsoft Enterprises Ltd.
Copyright ©2004-2024 SkiBanter.
The comments are property of their posters.