The Longines Conquest Alpine Skiing

For many seasoned veterans and fans of horology, Longines has always been a source of dependable timepieces that rarely go over the top – both in design and in price. This tenet remains true also for this new addition to the Conquest collection – the Alpine Skiing.

My first thoughts leaned to curiosity about what new feature, apart from a chronograph, that Longines was going to add. Perhaps a new kind of tachymeter that would give a relevant reading for average speeds through the slaloms? There was no tachymeter, but what the brand gave was an extremely precise chronograph that gives a 1/100^th of a second readout from a central red hand. The chrono-seconds is also indicated by a central hand.

The relevance of the central 1/100^th of a second readout is the fact that in 1978 two skiers tied down to the 1/100^th of a second at the FIS Alpine Ski World Cup. Longines was the official timekeeper then, and is set to be the timekeeper for the 2014/2015 edition. Longines has been the timekeeper for these games since 1933.

The watch is made from polished and brushed stainless steel, with a 41mm diameter. What I especially like about this watch is its streamlined lever chrono-pushers, and protected main crown. This timepiece carries a sophisticated H-style bracelet, equipped with a triple deployant clasp. As a sports watch, the Alpine Skiing is expected to have a hefty water resistance, but I was blown away by its 300 meters worth.

The dial is neatly put together with a clear emphasis on legibility at-a-glance. The rhodium toned sword shaped hands and indexes are luminous for readability at night. Each of the subdials is bordered by a silver toned ring, which helps it stand out against the black dial. At the 4 position is a date aperture. For scratch resistance, this model is fitted with a sapphire crystal.

Powering the watch is the L440 chronograph quartz movement, which is developed and manufactured by ETA.