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Looking for New Skis

post #1 of 5
3/6/12 at 2:48pm
Thread Starter 

I am a relatively new skier, skiing for only 3 years. I ski 30 times per year. I am 55, 5'11", 165 lbs. Pacific Northwest, skiing the Vancouver hills and Wistler-Blackcomb. I consider myself an intermediate skier, usually on blue or easy black groomers. Perhaps easy green bumps. The only skis I have ever used are Head XRC Pro 163 cm. 113-68-97

I find that in the morning, when the runs are freshly groomed, I do fine. Later in the day, once the snow has been shoved around into loose piles, my skis dig in and become hard to turn and control. I'm sure that part of the problem is my technique, but I'm guessing that my narrow skis aren't well suited to late day and/or untracked conditions. I want to buy skis that will give me more enjoyment later in the day.

Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

Dave

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post #2 of 5
3/6/12 at 4:27pm

Try a ski that is around 75-85mm in the waist and has metal in it for a bit more mass, perhaps also the tip rocker, although that's not required and that will help in the afternoon chop.


Suggest you stop by the rental shop and talk to them to ask for some demos.  

 

Be sure it's a true "demo" and at most just 1season old that is still being manufactured new for individual sale;

and not an outdated model not made anymore, but still good ski that the shop calls a "demo".

 

I don't think you can go wrong with any new recent ski from any of the big names, and then it becomes personal preference.

Come back with what you tried and what you liked or didn't like;  Or have a handful of skis you are interested in and want to compare/contrast and I think then you'll get more responses. 

 

If you want a pure suggestion as a baseline, you can start with k2 rictor, it's a couple years old, so it should be cheaper to rent. 

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post #3 of 5
3/12/12 at 6:02pm
Thread Starter 
Up at Sun Peaks right now, hoping to demo some skis. The local shops have recommended:

Kastle Lx82
Head Peak 84
Volkl RTM 80
Volkl RTM 77
Rossignol Experience 76
Rossignol Experience 83
K2 Impact

I'm not going to be able to demo all of these skis in one day so does anyone have any ideas on the best place to start? Am l on the right track with these choices or is there something else I should consider?

To add to the profile in the first post, I am confident in easy groomed conditions but quickly become tentative and hesitant when conditions are less than optimum. Never would I consider myself a power skier.

Really looking for a ski to give me more confidence.

Any suggestions greatly appreciated.

Dave
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post #4 of 5
3/13/12 at 7:51pm

I would recommend trying something even wider, like 85-95mm waist, camber and at least early rise tip.  Line Prophet 90, Nordica Steadfast, Rossignol Experience 88, Blizzard Bushwacker are all good candidates to try.

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post #5 of 5
3/14/12 at 9:52pm
Thread Starter 
I really liked the Volkl RTM 77s, they carved very nicely for me feeling very stable and also able to deal with several inches of chopped up powder. The RTM 80s felt much stiffer, and I didn't feel capable of pressuring the ski sufficiently. I did get used to the ski after a while. The Head Peak 84 I didn't like at all, it was just way too stiff.

How would the Head i.Peak 78 or 78 Pro compare to the RTM 77s? Or is the 78 Pro basically the same as the 84, just in a narrower width?
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