Piste

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This article is about the ski piste. For the fencing piste or for other meanings, see piste (disambiguation).

Piste in Seibelseckle, Germany

A piste is the name given to a marked ski-run or path down a mountain for the purposes of skiing, snowboarding, or other mountain sports. The term is most often used in Europe; in North America, a piste would more often be referred to as a trail, a slope, or a groomed run.

[edit] Piste Maintenance

Image:Cerv2.jpg

Piste in Cervinia, Italy

Pistes are usually maintained by the operator of the ski resort, where skiers may travel from one piste to another via a mechanical ski lift system.

Pistes are usually maintained using tracked vehicles known as "snowcats", "piste bashers", or "groomers", which compact the snow in order to improve the skiing conditions, remove moguls, and preserve the snow so the ski season can last longer. Pistes are often lined with artificial snow making machines so that snow can be created for skiing when the snowpack is low.

Pistes are usually graded according to difficulty. See Alpine Skiing#Ski trail ratings for more information.

Piste is also a term used by pompous skiers apres ski.