Fischer Men's Speedmax Skate Boot ©Conor Wallace

February 04, 2015 (Denver, CO) – The 2015 SIA Snowshow took place in Denver, Jan. 29-Feb. 1, and SkiTrax was on the ground getting you the scoop on the latest in Nordic gear, skis and tech that we’ll be seeing soon on the snow. Check out what’s happening in 2015/16 with leading brands Fischer, Solomon, Madshus, Atomic, and OneWay.

Fischer Women's Speedmax Skate Boot ©Conor Wallace

Fischer
For the 2015/2016 season Fischer focused on completing their World Cup level Speedmax line with the development of both a Speedmax skate boot and a Speedmax pole. Fischer prioritized weight and performance in the Speedmax skate boot, eliminating all but the most essential components. The integral carbon chassis provides an extremely light and rigid foundation, which sits atop the brand new Super Skate Race Sole – a two piece NIS race sole that is 50% lighter than the popular Xcelerator sole. The World Cup Carbon Cuff gives your ankle the excellent lateral stability and forward flex needed to ski at the World Cup level. If you’re wondering why this new boot looks familiar, it’s probably because Therese Johaug and Martin Johnsrud Sundby used it to ski to their respective 2014 overall World Cup titles.

Fischer Speedmax Pole ©Conor Wallace

Fischer utilized UHM “Air Carbon” fibres in the construction of the Speedmax pole and mounted it to the newly developed Speed Strap and the Racelite aero basket to ensure that power is transferred from your body to the snow as efficiently as possible.

Madshus
The buzz in the Madshus exhibit was centered on the release of their new IntelliGrip® Integrated Base, available on the Terrasonic IntelliGrip® Classic Ski. This year Madshus focused on bringing race performance to a skin-based wax-less ski. The IntelliGrip® system utilizes a mohair/nylon mixed progressive skin that is low profile in the front and back of the kickzone and beefy in the middle. The progressive profiling improves glide while the mohair/nylon mixture prevents icing.

Madshus Itelligrip ©Conor Wallace

The skin is completely exchangeable thanks to the hot melted glue application system, and the skin-based kick zone can be altered based on your weight and ability level to prevent drag and maximize both kick and glide. These skis will be great for tough waxing conditions, or when you need to get in an efficient training session but don’t have the time or patience to cork in some kick wax.

Madshus Terrasonic Intelligrip ©Conor Wallace

Salomon
Our stop to the Solomon exhibit provided us with a different take on carbon skis and skate boots. The 2015/2016 season will mark the release of Solomon’s new World Cup level line of skis, boots, and poles, called the Carbon Skate Lab. The Carbon Skate LAB boot consists of a 360° carbon monocoque frame mounted to a two-piece SNS Pilot sole.

Also mounted to the carbon frame is the full carbon cuff and the instep strap for added stability and power transfer. Inside the boot is a 3D constructed heat moldable liner, which offers great comfort and foothold. What sets this boot apart is that both the outsole and liner are completely exchangeable and easily removed for greatly extended product life; and at 900g a pair this boot is definitely in the lightweight category.

Salomon Carbon SK LAB Boot ©Conor Wallace

The Carbon Skate LAB ski is a thing of beauty. Constructed completely from ThinPly Carbon, the Carbon Sk LAB possesses much greater torsional stiffness for added stability and energy transfer, a lower profile for better ski feel, and a weight of just 490G for better swing-weight and ski return. After feeling the torsional stiffness of this ski I expect it will perform especially well on hard snow conditions.

Solomon Carbon Skate LAB Skis ©Conor Wallace

OneWay
Among many notable additions to the OneWay lineup for 2015/2016 are the Premio 10 Skate Carbon Boot, the Premio 9.5 Skate ski, and the Premio Carbon 13 Rollerski. The Premio 10 Skate Carbon Boot boasts a carbon cuff, an anti-torsion midsole, Thinsulate insulation, and a 3d foam heel, all mounted to the SNS Pilot system to provide a light, stiff, and comfortable boot.

One Way Premio Carbon Skate Boot ©Conor Wallace

The Premio 9.5 skate ski serves to fill the disparity in performance and price between the Premio 9 Skate and the Premio 10 HD. The 9.5 achieves this by incorporating World Cup technology like the Premio racing base and carbon laminate, but skips out on some of the HD’s bells and whistles like the honecomb core so you can have a performance ski without breaking the bank.

OW Premio 9.5 ©Conor Wallace

The Premio Carbon 13 is a top of the line rollerski for those ready to get serious about their summer training. It is built on a 3D monocoque frame for stiffness and response, with a 1cm offset from axel to binding for more control. These features come together to create a very ski-like feel. It comes with medium-slow wheels pre-mounted, and costs $240 USD.

OW Premio Carbon Skate 13 Rollerski ©Conor Wallace

Atomic
Atomic plans to kick off the 2015/2016 season with the release of their new Redster Worldcup Skate boot. The Redster Worldcup Skate boot is centered around a custom fit liner for comfort, which is seamlessly bonded to the boot’s carbon chassis for optimal power transfer. Atomic utilized a dissociated Quicklace system so the skier can separately adjust the lace tension over the forefoot and the instep with ease. The carbon chassis is connected directly to both the midfoot ratchet closure and the carbon arms of the ankle cuff for power transfer and control. All of these features highlight Atomic’s emphasis on fit, comfort, and performance in their boot production.

Atomic Worldcup Redster Boot ©Conor Wallace

As for their skis, Atomic developed two brand new skate models: the Redster Worldcup Skate-A2 and the Redster Wolrldcup Skate-A1. The A2 Plus model is stiffer and sits atop a white base for warmer snow conditions, while the A2 universal works in a broad range of snow temperatures.

Atomic Worldcup Skate A1 and A2 ©Conor Wallace

The Skate-A1 performs on cold hard snow conditions. Atomic also completed their Skintec classic line with the addition of the Pro Skintec model, making Skintec available across a much broader price range.

Stay tuned for more coverage and videos from the on-snow Demo.

Atomic Skintec Line ©Conor Wallace