The ANUMC can provide all the gear you need for a club ski trip except for clothing at bargain hire rates. The club gearstore can provide skis, boots, poles, snow tents, snow sleeping bags etc. You will need to provide your own clothing. To check what clothing you need check out the XC Info Sheet.

What sort of gear does the club use?

Given that XC skiing is such a flexible sport with more than half a dozen styles, members used to skiing overseas are often confused by what type of XC skiing the ANUMC does.

The ANUMC uses metal edged backcountry XC skis which means our skis are designed to be used away from prepared trails and tracks (off piste) as opposed to classic or skating XC skis. Because of gentle rolling country in Australia, all of the ANUMC's skis are "waxless" which means they have scales on the bottom which enable you to ski up hills without the need for skins or wax.

The club equipment is split between heavier skis with Telemark bindings and lighter skis with NNN-BC bindings. Both Telemark and NNN-BC are "freeheel" in that the ski boot is only connected to the skis at the toe unlike the Alpine Touring/Randonee XC skis which are common in Europe.

Telemark equipment is better for turning (eg backcountry downhill) as you obtain greater stability from your plastic boot, wider curved skies and the cable around the back of the boot. NNN-BC skis are better for long distance on flat (eg long "bushwalk" like tours) as you get less tired travelling long distance with light leather boots and the long thin skis.