When you purchase a new pair of skis or ski boots, the ski shop technician mounts or, in the case of new boots, remounts the bindings on your skis. Before doing so, he hands you a short questionnaire that helps determine the correct release settings for your bindings. These release settings are called DIN settings.
The DIN Acronym
DIN is an acronym for Deutsches Institut fur Normung, the German regulatory body that oversees the standardization of settings for every field of technology. To adjust the DIN on your ski binding, the ski shop technician must either compress or decompress the springs on your bindings. The compression indicates the amount of force required for the ski to release during a fall. A higher compression setting means that the the ski is less likely to release during a fall and a lower DIN setting means that less force is required.
DIN History
Falling is inevitable in skiing, but before the advent of the releasable binding, a skier's bindings would remain attached to his boot during the fall. This did not benefit skiers, says ski instructor and historian Seth Masia. Stress and complete fractures were common. The ski industry credits Norwegian ski racer and Portland, Oregon, ski shop owner Hjalmar Hvam for developing the prototype for the first set of releasable bindings. During the 1930s, Hvam created an internal binding mechanism that centrally stabilized the boot while enabling forward and lateral weight transference. The design gained sophistication over decades, eventually evolving into a system with adjustable release settings.
Determining DIN
The ski shop technician's questionnaire features questions regarding your height, weight, age, boot sole length, ski skills and skiing style. Since DIN standards are international, it's possible to have bindings adjusted in most parts of the world. Different brands of skis and bindings, however, have slight variations on their DIN settings. Just as auto mechanics must be certified to work on specific car brands, ski shop technicians require certification for each specific ski and binding brand.
DIN Adjustment
Gaining or losing a significant amount of weight, suffering from an injury or changing your skill and/or terrain preferences requires a DIN setting adjustment. The shop technician is required to ask your age and adjust your bindings to a lower DIN setting when you reach 50. Novices who have not yet mastered the art of falling have a lower DIN setting, which means that the bindings easily release during a fall. As you begin to ski more advanced terrain such as steep slopes and deep powder, your bindings requires a higher release setting. A binding released on a steep hill will cause the ski to slide down at top speed, possibly injuring other skiers. If you lose a ski in deep powder, it might be difficult to find. Reattaching the ski to your boot brings an unwanted challenge because you will not have even and solid ground, and will be unable to brush the snow off your binding before attaching your boot.
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