As started by some manufacturers last year, the trend towards lightweight construction is continuing in a wide range of variations. Some brands have tidied up their product portfolio and a large proportion of freeride skis are now so-called "freetourers", medium-width, relatively lightweight skis with a 50:50 ratio of ascent to descent. In mountain biking, this category would probably be referred to as "enduro".
The following is a brief overview of the trends in freeride and touring skis, more information on most ski companies can be found in the image galleries.
Trends
Nearly every manufacturer now has its own method of making wide skis as light as possible. Most readers are probably aware that super-light skis don't always ski super well. Manufacturers are working on various designs to counteract fluttering or the somewhat "brittle" ride of carbon etc.
Traditional ski companies usually offer freetourers in the mid-width range of 95-115 mm, plus two freestyle models for park and backcountry. Intermediate sizes and medium-width BC twintips are more likely to be found among pure freeski brands. Of course, this does not apply to all traditional manufacturers, but the trend in this direction can be seen in many of them.
A few years ago, a good ski was characterized by a classic sandwich construction in the eyes of freeriders; at some point, semi-cap constructions were added to reduce the flaking of the topsheet somewhat. Piste skis with their 3Dtm-something -*marketing term* constructions were rather ridiculed. However, the designs of today's "freetourers" are somewhat more reminiscent of such shapes and the marketing departments can also let off a little more steam again.
