equipment

ISPO Report 2018 | Ski

Little new, few exhibitors

by PowderGuide • 01/28/2018

Majesty Skis Carbon Line — Majesty Skis carbon line

The new products in the ski sector are very limited this year, as is the number of manufacturers still represented at ISPO. Amer Sports (Atomic, Salomon, Armada) was no longer at the trade fair this year and other companies are also exercising more and more restraint in terms of their stand presence.

It was also noticeable that the "freetouring" or freeride category, which in previous years tended to be the focus of the brands' new product presentations, now tended to be found at the edges of the stands. A fate that twintips and freestyle skis have known for a few years now. Whether this is due to poor sales figures, previous winters with little snow or the mature development of the respective products and a shift in the focus of the development departments to other areas can only be speculated on.

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The brands still represented at ISPO are mainly the larger traditional manufacturers and their subsidiaries. "Highlights" in the ski sector are a fishtail ski with a center width of 100mm from LINE, a descendant of the wider Pescado, and the elaborate layups in the constructions from Völkl. In the new Mantra (again slightly narrower at 96mm) and its women's version, Titanal is only used where it is needed for damping and carbon inserts are added to the ends of the ski. In addition, the V-Werks Katana gets an equally elaborately designed V-Werks Mantra as its little brother.

Most manufacturers focused on improving details in their lines this year and added a model with a specific middle width or additional lengths, for example. There were no major or marketing-heavy innovations, but this should not be seen as a negative and ultimately speaks to the maturity of the products. You can also find details on the innovations here (including Amer Sports, but unfortunately in English).

You can find lots of pictures of the new ski models in the gallery below and the captions provide more detailed information in some cases.

Line gives the Pescado a little brother called Sakana ( 174,181, 105mm center width)

Photo gallery

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ISPO Report 2018 | Avalanche safety equipment

Lea Hartl • 01/27/2018

In contrast to many large manufacturers of skis, ski boots and bindings, the avalanche transceiver and airbag manufacturers were all represented at ISPO. When it comes to avalanche transceivers, there are small to medium improvements rather than huge innovations, and with the exception of Scott/Alpride, hardly anything significant has changed in terms of airbags.
ISPO 2016 | Ski

Tobias Huber • 01/23/2016

Part 1 of the ISPO Report 2016: You could almost copy the text of last year's ISPO article, because the biggest trend in ski models is still: 15% lighter. Sometimes even 20%, but mostly with the same shapes. Balsa or paulownia wood in combination with carbon or particularly light fiberglass, depending on the price range, promise the same performance with noticeably less weight on the foot. Weight is now being saved on all wider ski models, not just the uphill-oriented ones.
ISPO Report 2015 | Part 3: Ski

Tobias Huber • 02/08/2015

$Scott Super Guide 88 & 95, Cascade 95 & 110, Fly\' Air, Surf\' Air, Rock\' Air$

The third part of our coverage of ISPO 2015 deals with the new products in the freeride and touring ski sector. As in previous years, a slow evolution continues to take place in the ski sector. We didn't see a revolution in ski design at the trade fair, but we didn't expect one either.