Thread: Beginner Touring Option

I am thinking of getting into a little touring this coming year, primarily in the Stowe area. I am looking at a few options in terms of bindings, MFD+FKS/STH 14, Duke, or the Guardian. However, coming from a racing background, I am very hard on my bindings, and have heard about Dukes breaking from recreational skiing. I have not heard a lot in terms of the durability with the new atomic/salomon bindings, so I am hesitant to invest in those as well. That leaves me with the MFD plate and bindings. Can anyone give me any insight on where I should invest my money? I plan on using these skis as a daily driver to accompany my Opus.

Me:
Height-6'0
Weight-175
Skier Type-Ex FIS racer.
Touring Experience-None.

Hi,

I have some Marker Barons.......for what it's worth I have been riding them inbounds for a couple of years on my daily driver ski (had them on some Line SFBs, then Opuses now some Moment Rubies). All banged up but no issues breaking.

One thing I about Marker's AT bindings....is that I can quickly switch them back and forth between my Alpine (Tecnica) and AT ski boots (Scarpas)....as my Alpine and AT boots have the same sole length. You just quickly adjust the toe to make more room for the thicker AT sole. Likely other AT bindings can do that too. But the feel of the Barons (and I'm sure the Dukes) is similar to my Marker Jesters on my other skis.

And check out Sierra Trading Post for AT boots.....I got some Scarpa Spirit 3s on there a short while back for just over $200 (on one of their 40% off secret sales). Even came with an Intuition liner.

K

If you're going to be really hard on your bindings, the MFD plates have also had issues where they would bend...

Just get some Dukes. They're not perfect but they're a known entity and hold up pretty damn well. I'd bet you won't break them. I am of similar weight and of race background and have had zero issues, and my ex-racer friends have used and abused their Dukes also with no problems. Most of the known issues are documented here: http://www.tetongravity.com/forums/s...ukes-or-Barons. And you can find them cheap on Gear Swap these days. As an ex-racer, I appreciated the flatter ramp angle and extra height on the Dukes. I could not tell I was on a touring binding when using them.

Another great option is to go with Sollyfit or Dynalook plates. Use alpine bindings when skiing in-bounds and screw in some Dynafits when you go for a tour. As long as you're not bashing the Dynafits in bounds day in day out, it's unlikely you'll have issues. That's pretty much a no-compromise solution for both alpine and touring.

I'm not sold on MFDs because of weight and concern for what it does to the ski's flex.

I agree in wanting to see more real-world data on the Guardian.

If you don't want to invest in boots with tech fittings, then go with the dukes. They've been out for some time now and are a proven binding. You get the down hill performance with the ability to tour. The guardians sound great, but I'd be reluctant to purchase the first year model. Let them work out the kinks first.

Originally Posted by D(C)

Just get some Dukes. They're not perfect but they're a known entity and hold up pretty damn well.

Agreed. Plus, you can get a used pair for around $250 these days.

Try calling these guys and see if they have any stock left. New 2011/12 Dukes for $199. $240 with taxes and shipping.

http://proskiseattle.com/

Can anyone argue against the MFD alltime? I have some FKS I can use, or Sollys I can get my hands on. As of right now, its the cheapest option.

Also, anyone have any use of the new Marker EPF Dukes?

Some people can break anything. If you are truly in that category, then it is possible to bend the alloy cage of the MFD, and a number of people have broken the plastic lock-down mechanism. That's before you get into a discussion of weight or pivot point or ski flex.

Many of the ski tourists I know have extensive racing backgrounds but have refined their technique over the years so that they can now ski pretty much any touring binding. If you intend to approach it from the other direction, and ski like you've always skied on the lifts in the BC, then the Duke is probably a pretty good candidate - it's essentially a Jester 16 stuck on a plastic rail frame. I've not skied the wider footprint Duke and only have a couple hours on the Guardian/Tracker, so can't comment on their potential durability but both look solid.

the thread should be called "fast skier learning to tour"

A ski bud got his grown kids into touring and they go big, one of them blew up a newish FR+ and was gona fix it so I pointed him at the dukes probably the best choice until you slow down a bit and want the light weight of Dynafits more than you need to go fast but the dukes break too

Originally Posted by nyskirat

Can anyone argue against the MFD alltime? I have some FKS I can use, or Sollys I can get my hands on. As of right now, its the cheapest option.

Also, anyone have any use of the new Marker EPF Dukes?

Here's the link to some problems with the MFD plates. Don't know in how far the info is accurate.
http://www.tetongravity.com/forums/s...t-MFD-All-Time

^I saw that thread, thats why I am hesitant to invest in them. Weight isnt too much of an issue for me. I dont plan on doing any long tours on them, just have some fun with some friends away from the lifts. But, the bindings will be stuck on my every day ski (either Vicik or Cochise), and I tend to bomb around. Ive really considered the Dukes, but I just hear of so many issues at inopportune times.

i'm gonna chime in here as another to-be-tourer.

how important is it to have boots with a walk mode for touring? i just invested (really, really invested) in a pair of scorpion sf 130s w/ intuitions and would die a bit inside if i went on the market for another boot.

Originally Posted by .jon.

i'm gonna chime in here as another to-be-tourer.

how important is it to have boots with a walk mode for touring? i just invested (really, really invested) in a pair of scorpion sf 130s w/ intuitions and would die a bit inside if i went on the market for another boot.

It usually it depends on how young/broke you are

Thankfully, depending how you look at it, I am both..Besides, no interest in a full touring set up yet. Not enough around me that interests me. Anyone have any insight on when the Atomic/Salomon binding will finally go on sale

Originally Posted by .jon.

how important is it to have boots with a walk mode for touring?

Depends on a lot of things. Pain tolerance. Budget. Who your touring partners are. How efficient you want to be in terms of stride.

Go out and try them with a touring binding and see how they work. For me, it's not just having "a" walk mode, it's important to have a really good one.

Originally Posted by .jon.

i'm gonna chime in here as another to-be-tourer.

how important is it to have boots with a walk mode for touring? i just invested (really, really invested) in a pair of scorpion sf 130s w/ intuitions and would die a bit inside if i went on the market for another boot.

I've spent two years in Chamonix without a walk mode. I don't know any better so I just deal with it, and I don't feel held back at all.

I toured for 2 whole days in some 120 flex alpine boots, after that my heel started to grow a little, developing cartilage or something. So i went on to buy some real AT boots, for just a slack country tour now and then regular alpine boots are just fine imo.

As to the bindings, its true the guardians havent been tested much by the public yet, but salomon has outfitted nearly every one of their sponsored athletes with them. Seth Morrison among others and also a local guy at my resort here in Norway. Havent spoken to the local guy about them, but he skis like a madman.

Personally im leaning towards guardians to put on my Ragnarok's for next season.

Originally Posted by nyskirat

Thankfully, depending how you look at it, I am both..Besides, no interest in a full touring set up yet. Not enough around me that interests me. Anyone have any insight on when the Atomic/Salomon binding will finally go on sale

Fall time.

If you want a cheap and pretty solid setup to start with. Get dukes like everyone is telling you. They have some minor issues. You won't break anything major on them. And they are $200-250 used.

Guardians are going to be $500+ to start with and won't be at a sale price anytime soon. They will probably be a very solid binding. Cody does some wild shit on them. That being said no one noes the issues that will come up in the 1st production year.

So just buy dukes already.

I am in the same boat but I am going as suggested earlier with bindingfreedom plates and use some FKS's and Radical Ft's. Boots: Cochise Pro. (as long as they fit me well).