Type II vs. Type III skiers?

[MaineSkiLady]

If you're over 50 and athletic and want your DIN higher, the shop can do it. They will ask you to sign off that, that is what you asked for. Then they are covered if you should try to sue.

And even easier if you know the shop owners (and they've even seen you ski). Under "special instructions" I ask for a specific DIN, sign off, they write "customer request of <number> DIN." Done > easy. Although, last pair I got mounted, I couldn't help myself: in the age line, I put "OMG." They laughed.

 

[Serafina]

OK. So you can just ask for a particular DIN, and get it without telling a whopper about your age.

 

[Jilly]

I put "OMG."

That's like putting "beginner" on your application for a ski club....Did that for years. Especially when I was the ski school director!!

 

[marzNC]

The deep powder day at Alta last month was the first time I changed my DIN in several years. The normal setting based on my height, weight, age over 50, and Type II is DIN=4. After doing knee rehab at age 54, I figured I go with that even though I used DIN=5 that goes with Type III the previous season. I wasn't having pre-release issues even as I spent more time skiing harder terrain (more bumps, steeper). But after popping off rental powder skis twice in the morning in two feet of fresh snow for no real reason, when I changed to wider skis at lunch time I asked to set the DIN to 5.

DIN calculator:
https://www.dinsetting.com

From earlier in the thread:

The official stance is:
Type I = those who ski cautiously or at slower speeds, or who want lower than average release settings.
Type III = those who ski agressively or at higher speeds, or who want higher than average release settings.

Type II = everyone else.

Even though I race, I classify myself as a II on everything except my race skis....I want my skis to come off when needed!

Classifying your type has nothing to do with size or age, although type, size and age all play a role in setting binding DIN.

Correct. There are also a few lesser used sub-types, the main one being III+, which you know about if you need it.

The above descriptions are the only thing you should consider when deciding on a type.

The DIN system is based on a combination of skier type, height, weight (actually height OR weight, but you need to give both), age, boot sole length and binding manufacturer. Because these things are already factored into the calculation, you mess up the system if you try to second guess it (i.e. "I'm type II and I'm 50 but I know they'll reduce my DIN for that so I'll say I'm 49". Tell the truth. If you find your bindings are releasing too easily, you are a type III).

The DIN calculation works extremely well, if you let it!!

 

[tinymoose]

The calculator told me what I already knew; my DIN is 4 if I say I'm type 2, and 5 if I say I'm type 3. All of my skis are set to 4 with the exception of my race skis, which are at 5. To some extent, though, I don't feel like 4-5 is that huge of a difference. I've never pre-released with my skis set at 4 and at 5 they've always come off when I needed them to (so far). *knocks on wood*

I just aged myself up on the calculator and it looks like DINs 3 & 4 await me in my future. 3 seems low.

 

[bounceswoosh]

...Or you could go with your real age and say you are now a type III. Which I think is the point too - they ARE factoring your age and weight into this decision, so if you feel that you are skiing stronger than the average 50+ woman of your size, or that you would be perpetually losing skis if you bumped the DIN down so you want it higher - then you SHOULD be a type III, no?

Resurrecting this quote from a few years ago - that doesn't work for me since I already mark myself as Type 3 (prefer the bindings not to release) and am not yet 50. It's possible that by the time I'm 50, I will be more concerned about my bones and joints. Right now, my theory is that for the type of stuff I ski, losing a ski prematurely is pretty bad. At Type 3, I have still always lost the ski when I really wanted it to pop off - on long slides when I could feel the ski torquing my knee, the ski comes off.

Or maybe when I turn 50, I'll change to 3+. That would be pretty funny. ... Or maybe by that time, I'll be setting my bindings myself. The only thing is that I would love to have access to - whatever device they use at a shop to do binding checks? I assume it's a device? Googling doesn't help me here - @volklgirl ?

I found this, but it seems extremely subjective: https://www.ski-injury.com/prevention/st ... and I am not sure if it is correct that I necessarily want to be able to pull out with my own force even in these angles. Thoughts?

 

[altagirl]

Why not change to III+ if appropriate?

My opinion is that DIN charts are something akin to BMI charts. Use with a grain of salt (or a lot of salt) if you're not really the average build/musculature/etc.

It's there for insurance purposes and basic guidance. It's not like anyone is really forcing you to follow it to the letter.

 

[CarverJill]

Huh I've always checked type III because I ski fast but maybe I should do type II. I noticed a lot of places have 4 types now, type 1-3 and then type III+. That is what made me think I was a type III.

 

[snow addict]

I try to be conservative but on DIN5 I've been pre-releasing for a few seasons now, so I must be type III then. After knee injury I went down to DIN5 but this wasn't the best idea - it worked for the first few weeks, but this was before I built back all the lost muscles, so I quickly went back to DIN6 the following season.

 

[altagirl]

I try to be conservative but on DIN5 I've been pre-releasing for a few seasons now, so I must be type III then. After knee injury I went down to DIN5 but this wasn't the best idea - it worked for the first few weeks, but this was before I built back all the lost muscles, so I quickly went back to DIN6 the following season.

That's really the thing, IMHO. What really matters is if your skis stay on when you want them to and release when you don't. The DIN chart is a guide to find that sweet spot. But experience like that tells you more than anything where you should be.

 

[volklgirl]

Holy crap....I forgot about the "50+" thing. Guess I need to either lower all my bindings to 6 or just go with a 3+ now. Yikes.

 

[heather matthews]

I haven't slowed down or become less aggressive/athletic so the din will stay where it is for the time being. We're not a very litigious bunch here in NZ so the idea of signing off on maintaining a higher din post 50 probably doesn't enter the heads of most ski techs here. For this season I have some new skis and when the bindings were going on the tech just asked what din I normally have.So far my skis have always come off when they should and stayed on when they needed to(touchwood)

 

[marzNC]

By last season, I'm comfortable with DIN at 5 for pretty much any conditions or skis. For free demo days, I go with the default for Type II, my age (over 50), height/weight. That comes out DIN = 4. My demo runs are mostly on groomers or a short section of off-piste terrain that I know well (at Alta). If I rent powder skis when I get lucky, I ask for DIN=5 and sign off. Quicker than figuring what combination of Type and height/weight ends up with what I want.

When my friend's tween son was renting skis at Alta last April, he was technically too light to meet the guidelines for the lowest DIN setting. The suggestion was for his mother to increase the weight on the form by something like 4 pounds. Since he's an advanced skier, that's what she did and he had no problems. Even on the powder day.

 

[newboots]

Apparently my calculations this year brought me to a 3.5. That's where it was set most of last year, and I was pre-releasing (especially in the spring snow). These are new skis this year. I suppose I can start with 3.5 while I get accustomed to the skis, but I think it should go up. These are new bindings as well - does it differ one binding from another? Because he entered Type II into the equation and the rest of it should be the same. I've been over 50 for a number of years now!

 

[santacruz skier]

I go with age, height, weight, type III and I come out at 4.5......which works fine for me (over 60). Any lower I release too easily, BUT when I had my injury last season, I was on attack demo's and set at the lowest setting but got hurt as I didn't release from those heavy demo bindings. Also being fair, I was not moving as the person in front of me starting backing up and forced me to widen my stance until I fell. I was so twisted it took several minutes for friends to release my ski for me. It was an odd situation but was later told to stay away from heavy demo bindings where the lowest setting is 4.

 

[Obrules15]

What I'm bothered by is the abrupt changes. I've been skiing at a DIN of 6 for the last three years including 2 days this season when all of a sudden supposedly dropped to 5. Does anyone ski on Friday at a DIN of X at age 49 yrs 364d then the next day just drop it? That doesn't make sense, I didn't change that much overnight.

 

[santacruz skier]

What I'm bothered by is the abrupt changes. I've been skiing at a DIN of 6 for the last three years including 2 days this season when all of a sudden supposedly dropped to 5. Does anyone ski on Friday at a DIN of X at age 49 yrs 364d then the next day just drop it? That doesn't make sense, I didn't change that much overnight.

No. I used to the liability waiver

 

[marzNC]

What I'm bothered by is the abrupt changes. I've been skiing at a DIN of 6 for the last three years including 2 days this season when all of a sudden supposedly dropped to 5. Does anyone ski on Friday at a DIN of X at age 49 yrs 364d then the next day just drop it? That doesn't make sense, I didn't change that much overnight.

Clearly changing the DIN based solely on someone's birthdate that happens to be in the middle of the ski season is arbitrary for someone who skis regularly. The choice is undoubtedly a function of what makes insurance companies happy. But it makes sense to me that at some point there are advantages for an older skier to lowering the DIN. Just as it makes sense to increase the DIN for deep powder conditions to avoid a pre-release that leads to hunting for a ski hidden under the snow.

That said, I probably won't think about lowering my standard DIN until after age 70 or 75. Not as long as I'm still improving and skiing more challenging terrain from one year to the next.

 

[Tvan]

Yes, something magical, very special. You'll just have to wait and see

*cough* hotflashes *cough*

verrrrrry magical indeed.

 

[bounceswoosh]

At this point, I figure I'll just lie and stay 49 forever, starting in 2027. At some point I'm sure I'll want to dial it down, but so far the by-the-book skier type 3 number seems perfect.