• Join our Community
• Follow us on Twitter
• Register to our Newsletter
• Cool Links
• Tech Zone
• Skiing
• Gear Talk
• Snowboarding
• Tips and Tricks
• Safety First

Home > Tips > Gear Talk > From head to toes

On cold days, you need a warm hat that covers yours ears. It can be a traditional wool knit, a glamorous helmet-style number style that perfectly matches your jacket or ski suit, or a practical hat. Any of these will keep your head warm- and the rest of you. Save the headband, the baseball cap, or the fuzzy earmuffs for warm and sunny days. Helmets, which can prevent head injuries in a fall, will keep your head warm and are increasingly popular on adults as well as children and racers.



Waterproof, well-insulated gloves and mittens are essential too. Gloves can be made of leather or a heavy-duty synthetic, treated for water-repellency. Glove manufacturers are always coming up with new fabrics and insulation. The newest materials pull heat away from the hands if you’re working hard and that heat is stored until your hands get chilly. If your hands tend to get cold, wear mittens, which are warmer. Gloves should be high-cuffed, so that there is no space between the glove and the sleeve.



The most important thing about goggles and sunglasses is 100 percent protection against the ultra-violet rays that are stronger at higher altitude as 80 percent of sun rays are reflected by the snow surface. They also shield your eyes from wind and if you’re a contact lens wearer, you probably won’t leave home without them. In addition to the UV protection, look for goggles with shatterproof and scratch-resistant lenses, and always keep them in their soft cloth pouch when you’re not using them. Many goggles come with an anti-fog coating on the inside of the lens. Goggles may be functional first and have a style component, but these days sunglasses make a fashion of their own.



Some people stuff two many pairs of socks into their ski boots and sacrifice control while skiing. Ski socks should be quite thin (a thicker sock will not make your feet warmer; cold feet are often caused by wearing ski boots that are the wrong shape and size of your feet. Sock manufacturers make over -the- calf styles designed specially for skiing, with seam replacement where it won’t create problems in the ski boot. The most popular ski socks are made with synthetic fibers that do not absorb moisture or with wool blends that combine the warmth of merino and another wool. Synthetic stretch fleece is also making inroads as a sock material.