All information from the ISMF Website.

ISMF Ski Mountaineering competitions are usually based on the use of lightweight equipment, for which the ISMF has set rules and safety standards. Skis are light, so they don’t weigh the athlete down when they are strapped to the backpack, boots are made to be easy to wear both in ascent on skis, ascent on foot and while descending on skis with quick opening fastenings to adapt the boot to the right situation, bindings have to be able to switch between the uphill and the downhill necessities of the skier. In most races, athletes are required to wear a helmet, and some there is also the use of more technical equipment such as ice axes, harness, rope and crampons. All races require the use of skins, which are wide, self-sticking strips of synthetic fur, more like bristles where the hairs slightly dig into the snow as the skier ascends, therefore stopping the skier from sliding backwards.