Requirements for our tours
What do beginner and advanced splitboard tours mean? What skills are required?
Our splitboard tours offer you a safe and exciting off-piste experience. We plan the tours, choose the best ascent routes and ensure optimal downhill routes, but assume that you already have the necessary riding techniques and fitness.
The conditional requirements relate to your endurance, while the technical requirements relate to your board control. To make it easier for you to choose, we have summarized both requirements on separate scales below.
Basic principle: On tours, you must be able to ride safely in difficult conditions and also have sufficient reserves to master the descent safely.
Skiing ability: Rating levels 0-3 for splitboard tours and ski touring
| Level | Technique | Course type |
|---|---|---|
| Level 0 Beginner |
Experience on the slopes, but no freeride experience. Can turn safely on flatter terrain. Able to stand up independently in all types of snow. | Tours are not yet possible. Start with our freeride technique course. |
| Level 1 Beginner |
Safe skiing on pistes and in freeride terrain, you also feel comfortable on black pistes. However, you have little or no experience with ski or splitboard tours and no alpine skills. | Beginner tours are possible without any problems. For additional support, we recommend our freeride technique training and basic avalanche transceiver courses. |
| Level 2 Moderate |
You have deep snow experience and some touring experience. You can master short, steeper passages at around 30° on the ascent and 35° – 45° on the descent. | We recommend taking part in moderately difficult tours. |
| Level 3 Experienced |
You have experience with ski or splitboard tours and are confident in deep snow. You can also manage hairpin bends in steeper terrain over 30°. | Advanced tours with steep gullies and exposed terrain are possible. |
Condition: rating levels 1-3 for splitboard tours and ski touring
| Level | Fitness level | Course type |
|---|---|---|
| Level 1 Low |
You do sport and feel healthy. You manage a 3-4 hour ascent, which is up to 800 m in altitude at a leisurely pace. | We recommend tours with up to 600 meters of altitude. So you have enough energy left for the descent. |
| Level 2 Moderate |
You are sporty and feel fit. You master daily ascents of 4-5 hours with up to 1200 meters of altitude with ease. | We recommend tours with up to 1000 meters of altitude. |
| Level 3 Top fit |
You are athletic, including endurance sports, and feel healthy. You can manage daily ascents of 5-6 hours with up to 1500 meters of altitude without any problems. | You will have a lot of fun on multi-day tours and day tours up to 1500 meters in altitude. |
Explanatory video: These are the skills you need for level 1-2 off-piste beginner tours
Explanatory video: Requirements for advanced tours of level 2-3
Difficulty levels for ski and snowboard tours: what you need to know
The SAC scale (Swiss Alpine Club) rates the difficulty of ski tours and ranges from L (easy) to EX (extreme). Our tours are always in the range of maximum WS (less difficult up to 35°) for tours of maximum S (very difficult up to 45°) for freeride tours. This means that they are easily feasible for advanced beginners and offer a safe yet exciting challenge.
Important to know: The overall rating (grade) of the snowboard and ski tours corresponds to the highest value of the main criteria. If auxiliary criteria are included, the level of difficulty increases by a third (e.g. from L+ to WS-). A minus (-) means less difficulty, a plus (+) means more difficulty than the degree indicated.
The difficulty ratings refer to the steepness of the terrain and are guidelines under good snow, weather and visibility conditions. The rating relates exclusively to the skiing/snowboarding part of the tours; technical alpine difficulties such as climbing sections are rated separately according to the UIAA scale and with a textual description for the foot ascent.
Your first splitboard tour
Congratulations! You have chosen the most exciting and versatile winter sport: splitboarding. We’ve put together the five most important tips for you to make your entry into the backcountry a complete success. Ready? Let’s go!
Practical and uncomplicated: Reserve rental equipment directly in our online store.
Our test days – completely free of charge!
Our exclusive test days give you the opportunity to put our entire product range through its paces. Whether skis or snowboards – you can compare all models directly with each other free of charge and without registration and find out which one suits you best.
Just drop by, bring your ID as a deposit and off you go! We make it easy for you to find the perfect equipment.
Important note for those interested in splitboards
Unfortunately, we do not carry splitboards on our regular test days, as the effort involved in setting them up is too great. If you would still like to test a splitboard, you are welcome to hire one from us. Our guided splitboard tours are also an ideal opportunity to get to know the equipment in practice. Click here for the tours.
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