2011 K2 Hardside, Marker Tour12, Dalbello Virus

My set-up of choice at the moment is the new 2011 K2 Hardside teamed up with the 2011 Marker Tour 12 binding. I thought this was going to be my new touring set-up, but after a good rip around today I’m thinking it’s going to get way more everyday use. The Hardside is stiff enough so you get heaps of edge grip and dare I say it carvability. Wide enough for the soft stuff, its wide rocker tip makes light work of powder, crud and chop. The Tour12 is the new lightweight touring version on the Duke. It’s really a dream to use and just as solid as its chunky brother the Duke. I’m also on the new Dalbello Virus Touring boot and to be honest I was thinking ‘touring binding + touring boot = wishy washy no feeling and no fun’ but I couldn’t have been more wrong. The whole set up is just super solid and the best alpine ski performance I’ve had to date with this sort of kit. Its great, the gap between touring performance and alpine performance is closing fast. The Dalbello boot fits well once you get the liners heat moulded, the three clip system works very well holding the foot in place. The forward flex is progressive and lateral flex is nice and stiff.

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