From New Telemark Guide
Rottefella of Norway introduced their New Telemark Norm (NTN) system in early 2007 to an eager but skeptical sport of telemark skiers. The system's objective was to provide a freeheel telemark ski binding that featured lateral release, increased lateral rigidity, tunable performance, and free-pivot touring functionality.
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Binding
There are currently two NTN bindings currently available on the market:
- Rottefella NTN Freedom - Available for he 2012/2013 season.
Boots
See NTN Boots.
Tuning and Performance
Much like other brands of conventional 75mm telemark bindings, NTN uses cartridge compression springs to provide boot retention as well as resistance to pivot, and like those conventional binding springs, optional spring rate cartridges are available to change the activity performance level of the binding. Rottefella calls them "Powertubes."
Powertubes: Selectable Activity Level
Powertubes are what Rottefella calls the metallic tubes that contains springs for NTN bindings. They are essentially compression spring cartidges. Powertubes can be adjusted and swapped for different tensions by the user. See Selecting the Right Powertubes for spring suggestions. The tubes are marked along the body with index marks. When rotated, the spring is preloaded and the index mark that appears in the window of the binding indicates the preload level.
- White - Extra Soft
- Green - Soft
- Blue - Medium
- Red - Stiff
- Black - Very stiff (Black tubes were once available with NTN's debut but are no longer being manufactured as of the 2008/2009 season.)
Release Capability
The NTN binding is capable of lateral release (side to side) although it is not rated using any recognized standard (DIN, TUV, etc) The amount of lateral force required to release from the binding increases with preload of the Powertube, as does the "activity" level of the binding. Therefore, if a skier preloads their Powertubes to setting 4 for a high level of activity from the binding, he/she can expect the release to require much more force than if the Powertubes were preloaded at setting 1. It is for this reason that most NTN users recommend using a stiffer Powertube set to a lower setting, rather than a softer Powertube set to a high preload setting (unless the objective is to prevent release.)
Known Issues
Binding Failure
There have been recorded breakages, although it should be noted that vintage, differences in use, frequency of use, care and maintenance, and general ham-fistedness of owners can affect the reliability and longevity of bindings.
- Broken toe cup (NTN 2.1 @ 80 days)
Boot Failure
The cracking shell issue on the Scarpa TX Pro 2008-2009 was widely publicized. This has been fixed however, and no reports of breakage for the new production run have been reported. The newer TX-Pros have become a popular model.
Spring Failure
There has been one reported instance of springs breaking from rust. A possible remedy is to store the skis/bindings pointed down (i.e. tips down instead of tips up) so that any collected water in the springs can drain.
Tips and Tricks
Check out the NTN Tips and Tricks page.