 Poster: A snowHead
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I am doing some research for Mrs Yeti on suitable skis. Current skis are 10yo Blizzard X03 (very typical entry model/basic hire ski of the time). They are much loved friends, light nimble and easy on smooth pistes but (thanks to good physio and a knee brace) not up to increasing speed a bit. They are also unpleasant in afternoon slushy lumps, my heavy race skis go straight through and Mrs Y gets stopped and slapped about. Her style is finesse not power, she likes to cruise most of the time, and with concerns over knees a ski should not need lots of force to make it work so my suggestion (race SLs) did not go down well!
The brief is for a skier 5'6" 60kg ish skiing reds with confidence, occasional smooth black, enjoys fresh days on unpisted runs/ side piste but no desire for real offpiste. Skis at moderate speed in good control. No interest in moguls, park etc.
Skis should be;
light, both light feel in use and actually physically light to carry, lift into gondola holders etc
Relaxed and predictable for cruising reds and blues (90% of the time)
Able to hold a bit more speed on occasion without flapping/ washing out
Better than current skis in cut up slushy afternoon conditions
My questions are; would a piste biased "all mountain" ski (Atomic Affinity Pure/Air, Rossy Temptation, Head Absolut Joy) help or hinder on cut up pistes compared with a similar piste ski (Atomic Cloud 8/9, Rossy Unique 6, Blizzard Viva s5). The extra soft snow ability would be nice but all conditions on piste are much more important.
Any suggestions about suitable skis, comments on the possibles or other candidates? I have listed women specific skis as I think they would be lighter weight in general. Is this true or are there any good unisex suggestions. If we get a short list I feel a demo day coming on!
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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@Col the Yeti, I think the idea of "Wimmins" skis is marketing bollox.
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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OK so which "not wimmins" skis fit the brief for a light weight and I will add them to the list. The current skis were not women specific but smaller sizes (150 ish) seem to be limited in "mens" skis these days. choices seem to be 160 and up which would be a big step from current 143 (which are a bit short)
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
You need to Login to know who's really who.
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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@Col the Yeti, my other half spent our last holiday testing a variety of "womens" specific skis for similar reasons...wanted something light on her feet and light to carry...
Of the 6 days skiing, her best 3 days were spent on Atomic Nomad Blackeyes (non TI model). These are not gender specific, and whilst they were heavier than things like the Affinity's / Absolut Joys (which she did test), she found they felt so much better to ski on, and has since bought a pair.
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@Col the Yeti, Salomon W Karts! Decent ski, half decent price. If you've got the cash ..... Kastle LX82. 
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| Col the Yeti wrote: |
my heavy race skis go straight through and Mrs Y gets stopped and slapped about. Her style is finesse not power, she likes to cruise most of the time, and with concerns over knees a ski should not need lots of force to make it work so my suggestion (race SLs) did not go down well!
The brief is for a skier 5'6" 60kg ish skiing reds with confidence, occasional smooth black, enjoys fresh days on unpisted runs/ side piste but no desire for real offpiste. Skis at moderate speed in good control. No interest in moguls, park etc.
Skis should be;
light, both light feel in use and actually physically light to carry, lift into gondola holders etc
Relaxed and predictable for cruising reds and blues (90% of the time)
Able to hold a bit more speed on occasion without flapping/ washing out
Better than current skis in cut up slushy afternoon conditions
My questions are; would a piste biased "all mountain" ski (Atomic Affinity Pure/Air, Rossy Temptation, Head Absolut Joy) help or hinder on cut up pistes compared with a similar piste ski (Atomic Cloud 8/9, Rossy Unique 6, Blizzard Viva s5). The extra soft snow ability would be nice but all conditions on piste are much more important.
Any suggestions about suitable skis, comments on the possibles or other candidates? I have listed women specific skis as I think they would be lighter weight in general. Is this true or are there any good unisex suggestions. If we get a short list I feel a demo day coming on! |
The 2 ways to ski Crud/slush are usually "through" or "over"
Through needs mass and drive to punch through the obstacle.. - a heavier ski, probably with a metal/titanal sheet, stiffer to bend, with less deflection
Over needs Tip rocker to get over the top.... lighter, longer rocker, more chatter in crud and at speed , needs more control to stop deflecting in crud.
So you need to loo carefully at ski build and rocker profile . My Mrs liked the Scott all mountain Luna with a unusual "Venturi" rocker. She also liked the Cham 87 (pink one ) with a pronounced top rocker and light enough for occasional touring.
By the way, after several unmitigated disasters buying skis for her , I now leave it entirely to her!! 
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
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@Col the Yeti, I'm a bit shorter but similar weight. The problem I've found with some brands of unisex skis, is that the shortest length is still too long, but that may not be an issue for you. I tested loads last season and settled on the Atomic Affinity Storm (more due to getting a good price than anything else), which are more of an all mountain ski, but they are nice and lightweight so the others in the range might be worth a look. I was also impressed by the Volkl piste skis - Allura/Chiara which again are very light and handle well on hard pack, and my other favourites are the Kneissl black stars, for which you will find many rave reviews on Snowheads.
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@mishmash, Very helpful. My approach is definitely through and all my recent experience is race type skis, but that would not work as she would not appreciate the weight. All the options have some form of tip rocker so would a wider (77-80mm) ski help with the "up and over" approach compared with the more piste specific ones (W Karts for instance). Your options look a lot more backcountry than anything either of us has ever tried. We were only really thinking of piste type, system skis for familiarity (and at least 90% on piste use)
I definitely won't make the decision (much to dangerous to my future health ), just doing research.
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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Blizzard skis generally seem to be quite well liked and the Black Pearl gets lots of good reviews. It is exactly the same as the Men's Bushwacker so she buy whichever she likes the look of best/can get the best deal on. I demoed the Bushwacker and also the Brahma which is the same ski with metal and preferred the Brahma but am taller and heavier than your wife. A lot of newer skis will have some rocker and at 5'6 she should really be skiing skis in the 160cm range, especially with rocker, she'll probably find the extra length helps with going faster and feeling more stable at speed.
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And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
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I am not at all convinced that ski weight makes any difference, plus it's usually the binding that's heavy.
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K2 is a very popular brand amongst the ladies of Samoens including my wife.
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You know it makes sense.
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I have the exclusive eden elite light. I think they are equivalent to the 11 nowadays. love em; but then I also have some 85mm width and saffron 7s, so I am not sure how they would do with cut up stuff, as I rarely wear them when that is the case. They are what you ask for a lighter weight race inspired ski. I find them stiff enough and I think I probably thrash them around a bit more than she will.
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Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
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My wife loves her Volkl Alluras, well worth trying them out if you're anywhere near a fridge. She tried against a load of other skis at the Snowheads/EB Braehead day and even after 4 week's use she was still telling me how good they were after every other run.
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Poster: A snowHead
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@Valkyrie, @Scarlet, great feedback - just purchased a pair of Alluras for my wife from SnowInn sale for £105
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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@1556garyt, nice one! Hope she likes them, and if she doesn't you could probably recoup that - last time I looked they were about £440!
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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Thanks for the info. Volkls will go high up on the shortlist along with a few extra suggestions. The short list just got longer, must be an excuse to go demo-ing.
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FAQ
