buyers guide

Start your ski boot research here. Because a good skier starts with good boots.

At the flip of a hike-mode switch, you’re ready to trek beyond the boundaries in search of fresh snow and untamed terrain. Or, you know, just be a lot more comfortable hanging out in the bar.

Walkable boot soles for alpiners. More customizable shells than ever. And what’s up with shrinking ski widths? Find out here.

To get the best ski gear, start at the bottom and work up.

Here are the ins and outs of how we conduct the best ski test in the industry.

We pull back the curtain on our industry-leading ski test.

Check out SkiMag.com Editors's author page.

For skiers that like to go hard and fast, here's a few of our favorite 73-87 mm skis.

Comfortable fits, but with increasingly high performance (102 mm plus).

These bottoms are tops in our book.

Sneak Peek: See what our testers tagged as their go-to skis for skiing the East. Get full results in this year's Buyers Guide, on sale now.

Sneak Peek: Here are the top two men's and women's powder skis from this year's test. Check out the full results on newsstands now.

Sure you want to be a boot tester? It’s a special breed, because testing can be an uncomfortable ordeal. But our testers are happy martyrs, since good boots are the key to every skier’s success.

We returned to Mt. Bachelor, Ore., last spring and called in the pros from America's Best Bootfitters and Masterfit University—the guys who teach bootfitters how to fit boots—to help us evaluate the 2012 offerings.

Check out Kimberly Beekman's author page.

It may seem like rocket science. But if you learn how to decode some basic information about gear, it goes a long way in helping you find your perfect setup. Here’s your key.

Olympians, freeriders, coaches, retailers, our testers occupy every niche in the industry. They do have one thing in common: They know gear— and how to use it.

Your first step to improving your skiing? Your boots. Here’s a look inside.

Ski designer Bertrand Krafft’s singular mission? Have a blast—and take you along for the ride.

Have an appetite for big mountains and big snow? SKI’s Director of Instruction, Michael Rogan, takes a closer look at the expert ski categories from the magazine’s 2008-09 Buyers Guide. Check out this clip and see which skis are right for you.

If you’re looking to push yourself beyond blue runs and venture off the groomed, check out this clip. Michael Rogan, Director of Instruction for SKI, helps define the ski categories that the magazine uses in its 2008-09 Buyers Guide.

Get all sorts of gear-buying tips from the experts at SKI’s annual gear test, including hints on fitting a boot to your foot, dissecting the Buyers Guide, and using the “try before you buy” method.

Test Director Joe Cutts guides you through the inner workings of SKI’s annual gear test at Deer Valley, Utah. Find out who writes the reviews for the magazine’s Buyers Guide, how the testers push each ski to its max, and what inspires them.

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