The ski touring industry is growing as fast as ever. More and more people are being introduced to the freedom of ski touring and the adventure of exploring mountain terrain. But how do you involve the kids? We can't let us adults have all the fun!? Introducing kids to ski touring will allow them to learn and grow within the world of backcountry skiing at a young age. After a few years of skiing uphill, they'll have a completely different perspective on what it actually means to go skiing.
We are happy to report that there are some great options now to get the family ski touring all together - kids included. Brands are cognizant of the challenges of raising a family and have introduced a slew of ski equipment to lower the barrier to entry for youth uphill skiing. Let's talk through the gear necessary to introduce kids to the world of alpine ski touring.
We are happy to report that there are some great options now to get the family ski touring all together - kids included. Brands are cognizant of the challenges of raising a family and have introduced a slew of ski equipment to lower the barrier to entry for youth uphill skiing. Let's talk through the gear necessary to introduce kids to the world of alpine ski touring.
Photo courtesy of Hagan Ski Mountaineering
Kids Alpine Touring Packages
An alpine touring package will be the easiest way to get your kids into the world of ski touring. No more hassling with matching skis to bindings to boots. No more worries with wondering if skis will fit or if bindings will work. Dynafit is offering kid's alpine touring packages that include the following:
- Touring skis that come in kid sizes
- Bindings with an extended adjustment range to fit growing feet
- Precut climbing skins ready to tour uphill
These packages can be adjusted to to a kid's alpine touring boot in the shop, and are then ready to take into the mountains. As easy as that. We want to make it as easy as possible for kids getting into ski touring. This is the best way to do that.
Dynafit Seven Summits Youngstar Alpine Touring Set
The Dynafit Seven Summits Youngstar set includes Seven Summit skis, Rotation 7 bindings and Pomoca skins. It's an friendly and safe set up that is ready to ski out of the box.
Kids Alpine Touring Skis
You quit carrying your heavy alpine skis uphill sometime ago, and now it’s your kids’ turn. Nowadays, many brands including Dynafit, Scott, and Hagan are making kids' touring specific skis. Having a lightweight ski will allow your kid to be more comfortable and to have more fun while hiking uphill. One of our favorites is the Hagan Boost JR Ski because of its lightweight and twin tipped design. It also goes all the way down to a 125 cm length.
Kids Alpine Touring Bindings
As tech touring bindings continue to grow (tech means having a pin style toe piece) in popularity, the lower limit of release values remained around 5. There are now options from Dynafit and ATK that offer lower release values to keep your kids safe while enjoying the awesome benefits of lightweight tech touring. The Dynafit Rotation 7 Binding goes down to a 2.5 RV. The ATK Crest 8 is another great option, with a slightly higher RV at 3. For the little ones that we can’t quite get into a tech boot yet, check out the Contour Startup adapter. These are great to try out ski touring at a young age without too much hassle or commitment. The tikes don't need anything high tech for the little bit of plodding about you may get them to do. Simply clip their little alpine boot into the adapter, skin up, and off they go!
Kids Alpine Touring Boots
Alpine touring boots now are offering smaller sizes to help introduce kids to ski touring. Scarpa has been leading the way here. The Scarpa F1 W comes down to a 21.5 which fits kids with sizes 3 and up. The Speedfit from Dynafit is just a size bigger at it’s smallest and is a great price point for a foot that’s not quite finished growing. The Atomic Backland Sport is a another great option for kids, sizing down to a 22. Lastly, the Salomon Shift 80T Jr is a kids-specific touring boot that also sizes down to a 22 and at the best price point. As with any kids boot, we will generally want to size comfortably with a 2-3 finger fit so that they can stay in them a full season or two.
Photo courtesy of Hagan Ski Mountaineering
Get Out Ski Touring with the Whole Family
While the backcountry ski market may highlight extreme skiing, ski touring can be a very simple and fun family outing. Touring around a nearby mountain pass and transitioning to ski mellow meadows is a more common occurrence in the backcountry. Finish a day of backcountry skiing with a parking lot picnic and you've just made for a perfect winter day. We are now able to provide the gear to make a family backcountry ski day more efficient for the whole team. No more burn outs for the parents or kids. Just lots of smiles and fresh snow.