The Speaker Following The AGM on 11th October 2013, Andrew Ferrari From Snow & Rock

Reporter: Janet Winstanley

Andrew has been in the skiing industry for 15 years, working for various companies, but is now manager at Snow and Rock at the Chill Factor^e. During that time he has been fortunate to work at his hobby, testing new boots and skis and helping people choose the right equipment.

welcome new offering to some skiers is replacement boot linings. They will fit any ski boot and will extend the life of old favourite boots. Do be aware though, that boots have a finite life after which the plastic becomes brittle and hence very dangerous.

There are some really positive developments regarding ABS air bags this year which will be interesting to any back country skiers or tourers. No longer will the decision of ABS or extra equipment be needed to be made. Now, with the addition of a custom backpack on top of the ABS rucksack, it will be possible to carry the extra equipment.

New boots covered:

• The new custom shell boots from Salomon,
  (Where the boot itself is heated to take the shape of the foot).
• Way Maker boots from Atomic.
• All Trax boots from Rossignol.
• Briefly covered was a new alpine boot from Scarpa.
• New offerings from Dynafit that go with the tilt pin type binding for your ski tourers.
• The K2 Pinical Hike and Ride ski boot.

Some of the new skis & bindings covered:

• The Q range from Salomon.
• The Rossignol Soul Seven skis incorporating the new air tip design.
• The Arc binding system from Atomic that is partnered with the Nomad range of skis.
• Hike and ride bindings from Salomon, ie the Guardian, Marker, Duke & Barron.

If you would like to talk to Andrew in Snow & Rock at the Chill Factor^e, he will be pleased to discuss your queries, and possibly help if you have problems with the fitting of your existing boots. However as the shop can be very busy at weekends, he will have more time to help you if you can manage call in during the week.

Thankyou Andrew for this interesting and informative talk. There certainly have been some great innovations in ski equipment this year, which could prove very tempting to our club members!