La Sportiva North America, makers of the world’s finest mountain products, introduces three new skis and a redesigned line of ski boots for the 2012-13 winter season. La Sportiva will debut its new skis and boots at the 2012 OR Winter Market, SIA Snowshow and ISPO tradeshows.

“Ski mountaineering continues to grow in North America and we’re excited to add more innovative products to our award-winning lineup,” states Colin Lantz, winter sports director at La Sportiva. “Our RT Binding and Hi5 ski were well received last year and now we’ve expanded the line to accommodate powder chasers with the Hang5 ski and deliver all-mountain versatility with the Lo5 ski. In addition, our full line of ski mountaineering boots will provide demanding ski mountaineers with the performance that La Sportiva’s customers have come to expect from our technical footwear.”

In the ski line, three new ultra-lightweight skis are debuting that are all made with paulownia wood cores and high tech carbon fiber laminates. The Hi5’s little brother, the new Lo5 ski is an all-mountain ripper that has enough rocker to comfortably handle a variety of snow conditions. With measurements of 125-95-115, the Lo5 is available in 168, 178, and 188cm lengths, and weighs 1695g in the 178cm length to keep it light while providing ample downhill performance. At 145-117-135, the new Hang5 is the big daddy to the Hi5 and a pure powder machine that is at home in soft snow. Available in 178 and 188cm lengths and tipping the scales at 1885g in the 178cm length, the Hang5 is still light enough to be comfortable for long, demanding tours. The GTR is a touring-friendly ski that measures 114-82-104, is available in 158, 168, and 178cm lengths and weighs just 1245g in the 168cm length so that it goes up as well as it goes down.

With the focus on lightweight design, the Spitfire, Sideral, and Starlet are all two-buckle boots that are optimized for the ascent while still providing ample power for driving modern, fat skis downhill. The 1165-gram Sideral is ultra-compact and quickly transitions from touring to ski mode using La Sportiva’s patent-pending Fast Lock System to create a boot that suits a wide variety of backcountry enthusiasts. The Starlet boots feature a women’s specific cuff made from Grilflex PEBA polymer that creates a versatile women’s ski boot that is perfectly suited for demanding ski tours. The Spitfire is a powerhouse 120-Flex boot that represents a crossover between the lightweight demands of randonee racing and the performance requirements of freeride touring. Featuring a Grilamid shell and a unique Vertebra Technology, the Spitfire utilizes a Carbon Reinforced Polymer cuff to improve stiffness and downhill performance.