Best Telemark Bindings Of 2026

As time has gone by, the pendulum has swung somewhat the other way. But while many have lamented that telemark seems to have eschewed its touring roots, becoming preoccupied with alpine parity, the lion’s share of telemark skiers are indeed found at the resort. And as the boots of the new telemark movement seem to be coalescing, so, too has emerged the moment’s quintessential resort binding–the Bandit from eminent maker 22 Designs, released last season.

The Bandit doesn’t so much mark a new innovation as much as a continuity of the brand’s well-regarded Outlaw X–the best-selling NTN binding of all time. The chief differences between the two firmly places the Bandit in the resort realm: it eschews a touring mode, and includes retractable brakes. Beyond that, the Bandit skis with the same prowess that made the Outlaw X not only a top-seller, but the binding that finally brought the NTN platform into maturity. With a taut underfoot connection, but also a decent level of customization, the binding takes to any condition well and in a way most skiers should find enjoyable. Most notably, the binding (and the NTN system with its stronger edge transmission) tackles icy and variable conditions with ease.

While the 75mm and XCD crowd may ever find bindings of this sort restrictive, the new guard has their resort binding in the Bandit.

Best Binding To Remind Us 75mm Is Still Tops: 22 Designs Axl

I know, I just gave a best-of nod to an NTN binding–a model that represents the modern vanguard in free-heel gear.

But no modern binding platform–be it the taut, rigid new telemark norm nor the innovative and customizable telemark tech system (no matter how close it comes)–has yet replicated the unashamedly supple and free sensation of duckbilled boots and 75mm bindings. And the binding still holding on, fighting that good fight, is 22 Designs’ Axl.

The aged 75mm norm is indeed woefully equipped for touring compared to the newer ones. And some say it can’t hold a candle to NTN and its ability to drive a turn. But no matter how disparaged beefy duckbilled telemark boots and cable/cartridge bindings may now be, the platform still leads in the realm that matters most: making a telemark turn.

The Axl is the direct descendent of the legendary, eminently influential Rainey Designs’ HammerHead, the preeminent, hard-skiing 75mm binding of telemark’s late-nineties, early-aughts high. It boasts three pivot points, a touring mode, but more than anything a bombproof platform for making sweet telemark turns. And it is still available at retail. For now.

While I take to a TTS or NTN-tech rig for any sort of turn-earning, and have come around to the merit of NTN resort bindings, my go-to setup to this day is mounted with the Axl, and it may always be. That is, until a new norm can replicate the sweet sensation of skiing the Axl with duckbilled boots. 

Let me know when that happens.

Best Touring Binding: Voile TTS Transit

Voile TTS Transit

While the disparate telemark DIY world has long represented the vanguard of free-heel gear innovation, with multitudes of breakthroughs over the years, its most important advent to date could well be the telemark tech system (TTS). This binding platform, marrying a tech-toe connection with a cable/cartridge heel assembly customary of legacy telemark bindings, has not only granted free-heelers the ultimate touring setup; it has allowed for a modern telemark norm that, while not directly mimicking it, continues the free flexing legacy of the 75mm norm.

But while the platform has long been known–it was first invented by Mark Lengel in 2011 and has long been distributed by his tiny firm Olympus Mountain Gear–it has always necessitated a certain amount of DIY finesse, keeping the binding norm from widespread use.

But the telemark tech system has at last emerged from the DIY shadows with Voile’s release of the TTS Transit; the first retail-ready, plug-and-play option on the platform, marking a quiet new dawn in telemark touring gear.

The TTS Transit is perhaps the most customizable telemark binding available today, with three pivot points offering engagement options from very active to neutral, and the choice between regular or stiff cartridges. This allows a breadth of sensations in the turn–from a rigid, taut connection not unlike modern NTN bindings, to a soft, free-flexing feeling reminiscent of legacy duckbilled gear. And with a light-weight package (Voile lists it at 1.1kg per pair) and the freedom of movement a two pin connection allows, the binding represents the pinnacle of modern telemark touring bindings, not to mention an alternative to the NTN system for those who prefer softer flexing equipment.

Best XCD Binding: Voile 3-Pin Cable

As telemark gear modernized, the sport slowly bifurcated into two distinct disciplines; the soft-boot, skinny ski-employing overland style known as cross-country downhill (XCD), the form telemark skiing took on this continent beginning in the 1970s; and the modern downhill telemark movement with its plastic boots, alpine spec’d skis, and stout bindings. Ever since, much of the attention has gone toward the downhill iteration with its penchant for aggressive skiing and mainstream adjacency.

But far from the hubbub of the resorts, XCD skiing quietly continues, its practitioners enjoying open spaces, rolling hills, and, yes, occasionally solid turns. And the binding that still brings all those ideals together in one package is Voile’s 3-Pin cable binding.

Introduced in 1989, the 3-Pin Cable binding pairs a standard 3-pin toe with a long coiled extension spring that connects at the heel like other 75mm telemark bindings. While this heel connection may not employ a modern compression spring, it is more than enough for tackling decent slopes in the backcountry, and marries well with softer boots of the XCD canon, including Scarpa’s T4, a low-cut plastic telemark boot, together creating an eminently skiable setup.

With its classic 3-pin connection and the removable nature of the cable, the binding is well situated to kick and glide, and paired with a fish scaled ski, offers seamless complete skiing; the hallmark of the XCD method.