Cross-Country Skating Skis
Skating skis are the core piece of gear for skate skiing when you want fast, efficient movement: the right length and the right stiffness for your weight instantly make skiing more stable and smoother. At Kärkkäinen you’ll find skating skis across the full range—from relaxed fitness skiing to race-ready, pro-level models—and you’ll also find boots, bindings, and poles in the same place, so putting together a complete setup is easy in one go.
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Skating skis bring a whole new dimension to skiing
It’s worth choosing skating skis carefully, because skiing is exactly the kind of sport where equipment makes a real difference. Skiers of all levels get the most out of skiing when their gear is right. Your skis, poles, and ski boots should match the intended use—and also the skier’s own individual characteristics. Skating skis are designed specifically for skate skiing. You can explore a wide selection of skating skis in Kärkkäinen’s online store.
How to choose skating skis
The first factor that affects the choice of skis for the free technique (skate skiing) is ski length. A common guideline is that skating skis should be 5–15 centimeters longer than the skier. The second factor is stiffness. Skating skis are noticeably stiffer than classic skis. Skill level and strength also matter: a beginner doesn’t need skis as stiff as an experienced and powerful skier.
The skier’s weight also affects ski stiffness. However, it’s good to remember that even skiers of the same weight can differ a lot in how they get the ski’s pressure zones to engage with the snow. That’s why weight and stiffness together influence the right ski choice.
Snow and weather conditions have a big impact on choosing skating skis. For example, in snowy conditions and dry snow, a black-base ski works well—typically with a milder camber and longer pressure zones. In dry, fine-grained snow, a fine base structure helps the skier. Moving the binding backward can also make skiing easier when there’s a lot of soft snow. In slushy conditions, a softer ski is needed. In that case, for example, men can ski on women’s skis and women on junior skis.
If you often ski in damp conditions with a slight frost, an all-round ski with a transparent (i.e., colored) base is a good choice. It glides better on snow than a black-base ski and is easy to wax. In wet conditions, a coarser base structure is used. A finer structure works in abrasive snow down to about minus ten degrees Celsius, as long as you remember to hot wax the base from time to time.
Get a skating ski package from Kärkkäinen’s online store
Once you’ve got the right skis in your cart, you’ll also need bindings and ski boots. It’s important to check and make sure the bindings and boots are compatible. Different bindings have different attachment mechanisms, which in turn affects what kind of boot you need.
Kärkkäinen online store offers a wide selection of cross country skis, including skating skis, skin skis, and classic skis. If needed, you can also add ski waxes to the same cart.