Telemark Talk / Telemark Tips Forum

Hello all,

New to the forum here. I've been big into backcountry XCD the last several seasons but looking to try out skate skiing at nearby groomed course. My partner bought me Madshus Endurance Skate Skis for Christmas but I think they may be too small. I'm used to a backcountry xc ski length being determined by skier weight. These skate skis appear to have a length and a weight that needs to be selected when ordering on the site below.

https://madshus.com/en-us/p/endurace-skate-skis-2023

The ski size my partner bought me is 182 and 50-65. I am 5'11 and about 160 to 165 lbs. It seems that 182 might be ok based on the madshus size chart but I may need to upgrade to 65-80. Am I thinking about this right?

Is there no way to rent some gear before using your new skis? Might give you an idea of correct wt range to buy. Or ask those same questions from a shop that specializes in track skiing.
Fwiw, it might be easier to learn to skate ski on skis with a lighter rather than heavier camber, plus it will be less fatiguing on long workouts; sacrifice at most a little glide for a smoother stride.

I wish. I live in northern New Mexico so not many places to rent xc gear and the snow this year has been pretty poor. Makes sense to go lighter to learn I suppose. Thanks.

A lot of skate skis seem to be made in 2 or even 3 different flexes for different weights at the same length. Can be confusing, especially if you are buying used.

It feels like glide is everything for skate skiing; too little glide and it is hard to work on technique, and not much fun. Get the right flex for your weight and be very diligent about glide waxing.

I ended up reordering the skis with a stiffer camber/weight range. Glad to hear confirmation that it was the right decision.

Now to find someone who will buy the 1st pair off of me. I posted them to craigslist with no bites just yet.

Thinking of trying the Chama Chile Cross Country Ski race later this month. Will probably do classic since I haven't done skate much. These are my options in northern NM since there is no snow in the back country at the moment. Only resorts.

NMXCSki wrote: ↑

Mon Jan 06, 2025 10:09 am

I ended up reordering the skis with a stiffer camber/weight range. Glad to hear confirmation that it was the right decision.

Now to find someone who will buy the 1st pair off of me. I posted them to craigslist with no bites just yet.

Thinking of trying the Chama Chile Cross Country Ski race later this month. Will probably do classic since I haven't done skate much. These are my options in northern NM since there is no snow in the back country at the moment. Only resorts.

Have you tried the flex test with paper?

Ive been to Chama in late summer, I imagine itd be a beautiful ski!

NMXCSki wrote: ↑

Mon Jan 06, 2025 10:09 am

I ended up reordering the skis with a stiffer camber/weight range. Glad to hear confirmation that it was the right decision.

Now to find someone who will buy the 1st pair off of me. I posted them to craigslist with no bites just yet.

Thinking of trying the Chama Chile Cross Country Ski race later this month. Will probably do classic since I haven't done skate much. These are my options in northern NM since there is no snow in the back country at the moment. Only resorts.

I cannot give direct recommendations for the right stiffness. Sounds what you have done, makes sense. Short skate skis should be nice, when they are stiff enough.

Just a general point about skate ski flex FYI. Skate skis are stiff to give directional stability. That point is opposite to having xcD skiis soft enough that you can press a ski to banana shape easily, (which enables turning the ”floating banana” ski) . Like Capercaillie pointed out above, skate skiing is about gliding, and directional stability can make that nicer.

Several years ago now I did a Worldloppet season in Europe, and started off on Atomic Worldcup skating skis. These were superlight, but the tails especially were too soft so control and glide were poor at times. When we were in Lahti I bought a slightly shorter pair of Fischer skis (50% off due to the poor season), which the guy in the store confirmed with a flex tester should be okay for my weight. The shape of the longitudinal flex was very different from the Atomics - much stiffer in the rear half. These were much faster, and handled much better on descents too, which wss obvious in literally the first few metres. If you can demo skis or get the flex checked - by somebody competent - do so!