7B Skis - Handmade in Sandpoint, Idaho

If you want to try a pair first-hand next time you're up at Schweitzer, you can demo one of several pairs of 7B skis from their demo counter at the Ski & Ride center between the Ski School and the rental counters.

Getting to this thread a little late, but coincidentally I came across this post while looking for info on 7B Skis myself.

GOAT-AT definitely looks interesting for returning uphill on all the logging roads we've got after hitting resort sidecountry. Did you notice if they demo the AT/fishscale model? I talked to a guy at Silver a few weeks ago who skis on a mainstream brand of fishscale skis with freerides and it had me wondering..

msenske, you also might check out Sneva, they build skis locally as well (in Spokane): http://snevamfg.com/

Great post "msenske"  ...and thanks for the conversation on the chairlift :) 

"Skierish" is right: the demo's are typically found at the Ski & Ride Demo center on Schweitzer Mountain.  The demos departed the mountain in March, but next years skis will be returning in the fall for you to try out.  We now have screaming deals on last years demos on our website, 7Bskis.com

"Spkmike" - We DO have an AT model to demo if you're interested.   Just contact us anytime through our website, www.7Bskis.com   We were just riding the fish scales the other day and the conditions were perfect! 

Let us know if you have any other questions.

Thanks,

7B Skis

BC skis with fish-scale bases. Now there's a ski that screams for www.bindingfreedom.com inserts mounted with Dynafits or some other light AT bindings. It's definitely a niche part of the quiver, but if you can swap bindings easily to another ski, I could see an argument for the investment.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sinecure 

BC skis with fish-scale bases. Now there's a ski that screams for www.bindingfreedom.com inserts mounted with Dynafits or some other light AT bindings. It's definitely a niche part of the quiver, but if you can swap bindings easily to another ski, I could see an argument for the investment.

Heck, I can see some WVa skiers having that as their go-to ski.    Mounted tele.    If it had a raised base I'd be all over it.

We hope to get some time on the new 7B skis early next season...so stay tuned.  The bamboo sidewall idea is innovative, for sure.

Congrats to the 7B guys on their new adventure!

I actually have two pair of 7B Skis and I love them!  I started out with the GOAT model because I was looking for an AT setup for the backcountry.  Within the first week of owning them, I retired my resort skis and the GOAT's took over as my resort ski and backcountry ski.  All was well until I tried a demo of the Powder Claws and fell in love.  It didn't hurt that Schweitzer was the place to be this year if you're a powder skier.  So, the GOAT's went back to being my AT ski and the Powder Claw became my all mountain / powder ski for the rest of the year.

I can go on and on about how much I like these skis, but if you really want to know for yourself, get on a pair:  You won't be disappointed!  I've tried a lot of other powder skis and found that they are just too specific for my taste.  Sure, good float in powder, but I also like to ride on days where maybe there's only a couple inches of fresh.  Or maybe some crud.  Powder Claws have a lot of float, but can also shred other conditions as well.  I also love to promote anything LOCAL, handmade in the good ol' USA!   

Good luck and most importantly, have fun!!

Quote:

Originally Posted by TheNorthIdaho 

I actually have two pair of 7B Skis and I love them!  I started out with the GOAT model because I was looking for an AT setup for the backcountry.  Within the first week of owning them, I retired my resort skis and the GOAT's took over as my resort ski and backcountry ski.  All was well until I tried a demo of the Powder Claws and fell in love.  It didn't hurt that Schweitzer was the place to be this year if you're a powder skier.  So, the GOAT's went back to being my AT ski and the Powder Claw became my all mountain / powder ski for the rest of the year.

 

How tall are you/ how much do you weigh and do you mostly use skins on the GOAT?

I'm about 6'0", 195 lbs.   I have the 184 GOAT's and 185 Powder Claws.  As far as skins, it really depends on the weather and where I'm going.  I like to choose low angle ascents so I don't have to use skins.  I always throw them in my backpack just in case, but I'm surprised by some of the angles I can climb if the weather is just right.  High water content is key.

cantunamunch:  you mentioned a "raised base", are you talking about raised scales (extruded)?    For me personally I like the downhill performance of the recessed fish scales on the GOAT.  May not climb quite as well, but the best part for me anyway is going downhill ! 

Quote:

Originally Posted by TheNorthIdaho 

 

 

cantunamunch:  you mentioned a "raised base", are you talking about raised scales (extruded)?  

Indeed I was, since the overwhelming majority of my time is spent on crust and refreeze where recessed scales mostly just backslide.

Love the concept, tho.

ouch!  sounds like you're in-it-to-skin-it then

Thank you all for the great feedback.  Continue to post any questions you may have.  We have some new photos of the Powder Claws (see below).  

We also wanted to let you know that we're introducing a new ski for 2012:  the Mobius.  Find out more here:   http://7bskis.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=46&Itemid=51