1 BINDING: G3 Targa T/9 $195 For the same reason that bikers obsess over the weight of their wheels, telemark skiers pay dearly for light bindings. A set of T/9s, introduced this year from Vancouver, B.C.­based G3, will burn a substantial hole in your wallet, but they'll also ensure that you don't have to kick flimsy three-pins up your peak de resistance. At just 2 ounces over 2 pounds, it's 8 ounces lighter per pair than the proven G3 Targa, which we tested last June, making the T/9 (along with the Rainey Superloop, $125) the lightest cable binding on the market. With stainless-steel springs, a titanium-and-aluminum toe box, and a cable rated to 1,000 pounds, there's no question that it's also the strongest binding available. The Downside? The accompanying ski leash attaches to the boot via a plastic clip. In half a season, one clip ripped off and another shattered during a hard fall.

2 BOOT: Scarpa T2 $450 Nine years ago Scarpa introduced the first all-plastic telemark boot, the Terminator I, whose "collapsible" bellows were famous for mashing toes into raw burger meat. Thanks to some diligent testing, tweaking, and fine-tuning of design, that's not an issue with the T2, a softer, lighter (7 pounds, 11 ounces), version of the Terminator that achieves a superb balance between stiffness and flexibility. In other words, it drives a ski with force and precision but doesn't chafe feet. The Downside? The liners pack out at least a full size, so buy small or you'll be swimming in them.

3 SKI: K2 World Piste $440 When snow conditions flow from black ice to death cookies to cold smoke powder on the same run, one pair of skis won't carve it all with aplomb. So the question to ask when choosing boards for ski mountaineering is, which conditions do you enjoy most? Stiff, narrow, quick-turning skis can make a disheartening descent tolerable, but since mediocre snow never makes for great memories, invest in something that turns good fortune into godsend—something fat like the World Piste (dimensions 107/75/98). Ample sidecut helps you turn through heavy Sierra cement without reefing on your ACLs. Moderate toe-to-tail stiffness holds an edge well enough—barely—to descend a couloir you'd feel safer down-climbing. On the best winter days it floats like a water ski. The Downside? With a 75-millimeter waist, the World Pistes are understandably slow edge to edge. —E.H.

TIP: Finicky Goldilocks-types should also try Garmont's Gara (slightly heavier, $500) or Crispi's CX-A (slightly softer, $370) to find a boot and feel that's just right.