Choosing The Best Telemark Ski For You

Welcome to Bishop Telemark, where we’re passionate about the free-heel life and helping you find the perfect Tele ski to elevate your adventure. Whether you’re just starting out or carving deep lines in the backcountry, we’ve got you covered. Let’s break it down and get you on the right pair of skis.

Here’s what to consider when choosing your ideal Telemark ski:

(Psst--don't want to read? Go to our Ski Finder and our team will work directly with you to choose the best ski for you)

Tele-Friendly Shape and Camber

Tip shape: Look for skis that have tips lifted further from the snow. Avoid “shallow” or flatter tips. This helps to avoid catching your tips (especially on your back ski) in a tele turn. Beware that most modern alpine skis have added some tip rocker (see below) but we are talking about the very tip of the ski. You shold avoid shallow shovels that don’t raise the tip of the ski very far from the snow because when your heel is up and driving that back ski, you putting extra pressure on the tip and you don’t want that ski to dive into the snow (possibly causing you to have to perform an unintended “Telemark Arabesque”).

Tail shape: We’ve found that most tele skiers benefit from a flatter tail, as it gives you a little more “effective edge” at the tail that is helpful in controlling your forward ski in the tele stance. It can also allow for a more effective recovery if you end up applying a bit to much pressure on the back of your front boot and avoid a “Tele Wheelie.”

Camber/Rocker Profile: This is the profile of the ski as you look at it from the side between the tip and the tail, and can make a big difference in how a ski responds. For Telemark, we like a ski that has at least some camber underfoot, but it is also a personal preference. The camber is an area of the ski that bows up in the middle of the ski if you lay it flat on a table. More camber allows the ski to store more energy when flexed in a turn and then can release it or “pop” you out faster. This is perfect for carving high speed groomers and when you want a lot of edge pressure on harder snow.

More rocker in the tip and tail will allow a ski to turn or “pivot” easier. This can make the ski feel more playful and easier to ski. Some tip and tail rocker can work well, but for tele, we tend to stay away from fully rockered or reverse camber  skis. If a ski is significantly rockered, it will lose some edge control on firm snow and at higher speeds. You don’t want your skis flopping around going Mach Shnell.

Bishop’s Telemark-specific ski design and core tech: Years of testing and design have resulted in our Telem-Arc Tech. This goes beyond ski shape and camber profile–our core materials are designed specifically to take advantage of the unique forces of the telemark turn.

Your Skill Level

New to Telemark: Look for skis that make it easy to turn and stay in control. Softer flex and a moderate sidecut (turn radius <16m) are your friends here, helping you build confidence and technique.

Gaining Experience: Ready to take it up a notch? Go for skis with a blend of stability and agility. A bit stiffer, they handle varied terrain and let you explore more of the mountain.

Telemark Master: For those who live for the challenge, opt for high-performance skis. Stiffer flex, long sidecut (turn radius >22m) and advanced materials let you push the limits, whether it’s steeps, deep powder, or hardpack. At this point you will benefit from having a quiver of skis of various shapes and camber profiles that you can use for different conditions and slopes.  

I’m new to Telemark… What Bishop ski is best for me?

TBH, we don’t really make a “beginner ski”... but if we had to start you somewhere, we’d recommend the Gonzo. The Gonzo’s 90mm width, deeper sidecut, and shorter (~16m) turn radius make it a breeze to turn quickly and its full camber gives incredible confidence on edge.

Tele Ski Styles

All-Mountain: These versatile warriors handle everything from groomers to off-piste adventures. Perfect for those who want to conquer the entire mountain.

Bishop Ski recs:

• The Chedi is our “do everything” tele ski, and is what we point to first for all-mountain skiers. However, the Chedi is also a pretty aggressive ski and was designed with Mountain West pow and big mountain skiing in mind.
• The Gonzo is actually our more popular East Coast daily driver, with edge-control you’ll want on those icy days, and is a very well-rounded tele ski capable of doing just about anything you want to do. For more, see our friend Rene-Martin’s “Quest for the Best All Mountain Telemark Ski”

 

Powder: Dreaming of deep snow days? Wide and rockered, these skis keep you floating in the fluffiest of powder.

Bishop Ski recs:

• The Powderhound is obviously our purpose-built tele powder ski. That said, we get a lot of tele skiers that will take their first few laps on the Powderhound and tell us “holy crap, this thing skis better on groomers than my (insert your daily driver here)!” Its shorter sidecut allows you to pivot and carve up hard stuff, and it skis surprisingly well over chop and spring slush. If you’re in an area where you’re getting freshies on the reg, you might consider the Powderhound as an everyday ski.

 

Backcountry: Lightweight and efficient for the uphill, but solid on the descent. If you’re heading off the beaten path, these are your go-to.

Bishop Ski recs:

• We don’t hide the fact that we’re a company focused on “the down.” We’re not making skis for the weight-conscious uphill runner (yet). That said, the Gonzo, Chedi, and Powderhound are all designed with flat tails for skin clips. At the shop in Edwards, we are typically grabbing a pair of Chedis for our backcountry missions.

 

Park: Designed for the freestyler, park skis are perfect for hitting jumps, rails, and boxes. They’re usually twin-tipped for easy switch riding and have a flex that’s dialed in for tricks and landings.

Bishop Ski recs:

• The Gonzo is our go-to park ski. Its full camber gives it a ton of pop and energy, and its twin shape is ideal for skiing and landing switch.

Choosing The Right Length

Your height, weight, skiing style, and ability are all things to consider when determining ski length.

The old rule of thumb for alpine skis is a length “between your chin and the top of your head.” But with many modern skis having significant tip and tail rocker, this advice is a bit outdated–really you should be paying attention to the length of the effective edge of the ski. There are multiple factors that contribute to the effective edge when skiing, like technique and snow conditions, but you can get a feel for it by laying the ski on a flat surface and looking at the distance between the the two areas that hit that surface near the tip and tail. A fully cambered ski (like a bow) will touch very near the tip and tail and so the effective edge is close to the actual length of the ski. 

Conversely, a highly rockered ski with a lot of tip and tail rocker, will have much less distance between those two points and give you an effective edge that is much shorter than the ski length.  It will turn and pivot much more quickly and easily, but you will lose some edge control and ability for energetic carving.

Also, when choosing our telemark skis, we must look at how we differ from alpine skiers. Consider the telemark turn–when in our tele stance, our fore-and-aft skis extend our ski edges further out in front and behind us, so a shorter ski may actually give us an edge-contact area as long or longer than if we were making an alpine turn.

For this reason, many tele skiers will choose a ski that is slightly shorter than the length they might choose for an alpine ski.

Based on those variables, here is our general recommendation for tele ski length based on skier height and skill level, along with suggested lengths for our skis.

Telemark Ski Sizing Chart

Skier Height FT / IN	Tele Ski (general)	Gonzo	Chedi	Powderhound
< 5’	<140-158	n/a	164	n/a
5’2”	145-163	n/a	164	n/a
5’4”	150-168	170	164	176
5’6”	155-173	170	164 / 174	176
5’8”	160-178	170 / 180	164 / 174	176
5’10”	165-183	170 / 180	174 / 184	176 / 186
6’	170-188	170 / 180	174 / 184	186
6’2”	175-190+	180	184	186
6’4”+	180-190+	180	184	186

When to choose a longer or shorter telemark ski

In general, longer, heavier skis are more stable at higher speeds. Shorter, lighter skis are easier to turn. Skis with significant rocker have a shorter effective edge, so they “ski shorter” than their measured length.

Reasons to choose a shorter ski:

• You are a beginner or intermediate tele skier.
• You weigh less than average for your height.
• You like to make short, quick turns, bumps, trees, and don’t often ski fast.

Reasons to choose a longer ski:

• You are skiing fast and aggressively.
• You weigh more than average for your height.
• You ski variable terrain and/or powder frequently.
• That model ski has significant tail and/or tip rocker, with a shorter effective edge.

We’re Here to Help

Still have questions? Our team at Bishop Telemark is stoked to help get you on the right gear so you can shred with confidence.

Fill out our Ski Finder and a real human (Tom) will work with you to pick out the right ski for you!