 Poster: A snowHead
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I know this topic has been covered in various guises in the past but my brain hurts.....
My wife and I have been skiing now for 5 years, we are due to go to Banff in just over a month and I've finally bitten the bullet and am going to buy some skis for this season. So..
We are both what I would class as intermediates, we can ski Canadian Blues with confidence and sometimes venture onto the odd black (if were feeling brave). We like to ski mainly on piste but are finding ourselves more and more venturing slightly off piste.
Which skis ?. I've spent ages with my head in catalogues, magazines and on the internet and think with about £300 +/- £50 each that I've narrowed it down to the following:
Atomic Izor 5.3, Metron M9, Head 240i, Rossi' Zenith, K2 Omni 4.5 (True luv), Nordica SUV 8.1. Salomon Rush No7.
I could go on but !!. I'm 6'3 and about 14 stone, my wifes about 5'5 and 11 ish stone. Are there any I should consider that I'm not, or are any of the above complete tish ??
Any help or suggestions that would help my aching brain would be gratefully appreciated, PLEASE !! 
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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tsmales, I can't answer your question but welcome to nowHeads  .
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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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You need to Login to know who's really who.
You need to Login to know who's really who.
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suggest if you can find them dynastar legend 4800. I'm a similar height and wieght to yourself, although I've been skiing for a little longer. Very easy to use. Get very good write ups.
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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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I skied on some sort of K2 Omni's on Monday, I'd have to say they were pretty hopeless, I didn't make a note of the exact model but I wasn't impressed. The Fischer RC Sport something's I'd used the day previous I'd say were a much better intermediate ski, nice skiing on ice and powder and all the stuff I could find in between, vastly superior in every way to the K2's.
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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tsmales,
What snowbunny says. Buy your skis in Banff. You should get a good exchange rate in Canada, and you can claim your GST back at Calgary airport. You really have to know how the different skis perform for you, before you part with your hard-earned.
Go to Ultimate, Monod's or The Ski Stop to check out demos and deals. The guys in these shops really know their stuff. Talk to them about your preferred type of skiing and they'll recommend what you should try out. Usually, if you buy a pair, they'll discount the demo fee.
- Also, check out whether there are any on-mountain free demo days. Manufacturers often have demo tents at Lake Louise and Sunshine: leave a credit card impression and your ID as security in exchange for the skis, and try as many as you can.
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I was in Banff in Dec and thought the range was small, however I realise that it was early season and the shops may have not stocked up yet.
TBH I was not overly impressed with Ulitmate which is where I hired from.
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Don't buy in the UK, wait until you get to resort and take your shortlist to a ski retailer and ask for test skis. Ski lots, and buy the ones that feel good
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I dont agree with this at all. I think everyone should buy there skis in the UK. I tested some K2 Crossfires thorugh Ellis Brigham at MK Xscape and loved them. I've since been away on two long weekends to France and and on both occasions i didnt see the skis cheaper in one single shop. I even spotted some £100 more expensive!! I found this common place and not just on K2, but on most other brands aswell. I think we in the UK should support skiing in Britain and try to encourage the growth of the sport in the UK rather than pumping our money into other country just to maybe save a couple of quid. Now im no economist, but surely the more skis that are purchased in the UK we will see a drop in prices and we wont see so many great independant shops close down due to lack of business and horrible faceless shops like Snow and Rock will dominate the market. Sorry to have a rant but i think the UK ski scene needs supporters if its going to grow.
Tsmales - with your ski choices, im not to sure because i've only skied the Omni 4.5 from your list and they were really good but they did feel very cruisy and not full of performance. Also my wife has some Tru Luv skis and shes getting on really well.
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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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| Quote: |
I dont agree with this at all. I think everyone should buy there skis in the UK. I tested some K2 Crossfires thorugh Ellis Brigham at MK Xscape and loved them. I've since been away on two long weekends to France and and on both occasions i didnt see the skis cheaper in one single shop. I even spotted some £100 more expensive!! I found this common place and not just on K2, but on most other brands aswell. I think we in the UK should support skiing in Britain and try to encourage the growth of the sport in the UK rather than pumping our money into other country just to maybe save a couple of quid. Now im no economist, but surely the more skis that are purchased in the UK we will see a drop in prices and we wont see so many great independant shops close down due to lack of business and horrible faceless shops like Snow and Rock will dominate the market. Sorry to have a rant but i think the UK ski scene needs supporters if its going to grow.
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I agree 100%. The UK scene is on the grow lets help it. Dark Summer ski magazine is running a 'Buy in Britain' campaign. Come on snowheads lets show a bit of national ski pride.
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Viceversa, Ski4uSki4me, It's not about the money, or National Ski Pride, or supporting UK Snowsports retailers. For me, its about testing a ski's potential, objectively, under various conditions, which is not possible at an indoor slope, or on plastic. BTW Welcome to
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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It's not about the money, or National Ski Pride, or supporting UK Snowsports retailers. For me, its about testing a ski's potential, objectively, under various conditions, which is not possible at an indoor slope, or on plastic. BTW Welcome to
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I appreciate the welcome thanx snowbunny. Your right the UK slopes are a bit limited i just think we really underestimate what the UK shops can offer. There are some experts in the UK who are as good as anyone in any country. I think everyone should just be careful what they are saying. I used to work in the industry and it ennoys me to see some of the comments made on here by some people who really dont seem to be looking at the big picture. It was just refeshing to hear what Ski4uSki4me was saying.
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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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| Viceversa wrote: |
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It's not about the money, or National Ski Pride, or supporting UK Snowsports retailers. For me, its about testing a ski's potential, objectively, under various conditions, which is not possible at an indoor slope, or on plastic. BTW Welcome to
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I appreciate the welcome thanx snowbunny. Your right the UK slopes are a bit limited i just think we really underestimate what the UK shops can offer. There are some experts in the UK who are as good as anyone in any country. |
You only need one expert when you're buying skis, it's you. Really, if you need someone to tell you what you need then you probably don't even need a pair of skis and would be better off renting. Sorry, but that's really how it is
It's just like buying a car without a test drive, and taking the car for a spin round the dealers car park is just like testing skis at a snow dome
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Nick_C,
Rental isn't a big part of Ultimate's business. Their sales and servicing is excellent though.
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You know it makes sense.
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[quote]
You only need one expert when you're buying skis, it's you. Really, if you need someone to tell you what you need then you probably don't even need a pair of skis and would be better off renting. Sorry, but that's really how it is
[quote]
Thats absolute rubbish. You can test a ski as much as you like but that doesnt mean you have got the best piece of equipment you can. The whole point of getting an expert opinion is to give open your eyes to skis that you wouldnt have intially gone for. If you test a ski and find it too soft an expert can point you in the direction of something stiffer and something that will suit your needs better. Also if you try a ski and hate it whats to say your probably not skiing the right ski for you rather than making that a bad ski. Experts aren't there to force you into what to buy they are just there to point you in the right direction, otherwise you got a salesman. Sorry but that you cant say that the expert is the person buying the equipment, the person buying the equipment needs the expert.
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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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Viceversa,
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Thats absolute rubbish. You can test a ski as much as you like but that doesnt mean you have got the best piece of equipment you can. The whole point of getting an expert opinion is to give open your eyes to skis that you wouldnt have intially gone for.
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The expert will only have my "view" of how I ski, which may/not not be an accurate depiction.
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Experts aren't there to force you into what to buy they are just there to point you in the right direction, otherwise you got a salesman.
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I have only ever met salesmen/women in the many UK ski shops I have visited, they all talk skiing like experts though, which makes me sad, since I don't like to be railroaded when choosing skis. Still nowhere in England to verify the "experts'" claims that they would be perfect for me though.
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Poster: A snowHead
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| Viceversa wrote: |
Thats absolute rubbish. You can test a ski as much as you like but that doesnt mean you have got the best piece of equipment you can.
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Sorry, but yes it does. What limiting factor is there? Why doesn't it mean it's the best peice of equipment?
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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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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I came back from Banff a couple of weeks ago and although there were sales on the prices still seemed higher than the UK to me for skis. M9's which are about £330 here (and I bought in the summer sales for £230) were going for $800. However I did buy a couple of items of clothing which were cheaper and they were willing to haggle a little (took off GST) so it's probably worth trying for skis too.
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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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In all the times I've looked at ski prices in Canada both in Banff/Whistler prices seem cheaper in the UK.
I've recently returned from Whistler and was skiing some M9's (like all Atomic skis these were considerably more expensive in Canada).
The M9's were absoluletly fantastic in fresh/cut up deep snow and good on soft pisted runs. On harder pisted runs the had a tendency to chatter if you didn't load them properly. They also don't tolerate lack of concentration.
As there was lots of snow over the period we were in Whistler the M9's were ideal. Don't think they would be too good for LL or some of the pisted runs in Sunshine though.
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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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I'm just back from Canada
Skied Panorama, Kicking Horse and Lake Louise. I bought my skis before I went out to Canada and that was a mistake, everywhere I looked out their the skis that I bought were more expensive in the UK and cheaper in Canada. Add to that you get the tax back when you leave and I know what I'd do every time, you get the plus of trying as many models out as you want as well.
Snow is great in all the above resorts at the moment, Panorama is having their best season for years the snow has been pucking down - go try taynton bowl if your a good skier, their was still loads of untracked powder when I left tuesday and its so quiet you have the slopes to yourselves - the resort was at 30% occupancy when I was there, also I'd reccomend kicking horse as well if your a strong skier some great powder bowls you can get at from the top of the mountain.
AlpineBullit
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This is a problem I am now facing.
I am an Intermediate 80% on piste not a big fan off of piste.
I want to buy skis this trip but do I buy in the UK, I have seen some locally which look a decent price £300 - £350 but of course I don’t know how they ski. I have read reviews of them and they seem to be what I require.
But I could buy in resort. I am going to pelsey-nancroix (les Arcs) anyone got any advice about the resort as to where to try/buy.
I am thinking of hiring for the first day just to get my legs back into skiing then spend the second demo’ing if possible but I don’t really fancy spending my holiday bouncing from shop to shop
I am going to the 2 local ski shops tomorrow to price up and see what they offer.
Are skis cheaper in France?
Do I want to spend time when I should be enjoying myself with shopping (I hate shopping)?
Am I really a good enough skier to notice the difference between skis other than bad and good?
This is a confusing decision, if anyone can answer the first question that would be great.
Thanks
Nick
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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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my experience was cheaper in france but advantage of testing before you buy
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I've tested a few pairs just recently and would say that (even having asked the question myself!!) that no-one can tell you which ski you'd like. I've asked advice, read the reviews etc., but I can honestly say you won't know until you try some. Also, not all the skis I wanted to try were available. I actually really liked the Rossignol B1. I don't know what this says about my skiing! I couldn't find the Zag le Rouge in Lech. The other ski that I wanted to try was the K2 Burnin'Luv, but we ran out of time. Mind you, all the shop keepers said they might me a bit too 'sportive' for me.
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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What might be helpful - the B1 was easy to get on the edges ( I felt confident on hard packed snow ), very stable - could do fast, medium carved turns, skied through chopped up snow a lot easier than my C9s.
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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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If you can get by for this year, there are a huge new range of women only skis for 2006/7. 
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SMALLZOOKEEPER, Have you seen them? Have K2 got rid of the flowers? (I skied the One Luv and really liked it but didn't buy as I couldn't live with the pinky/purpley bouquet  )
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You know it makes sense.
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maggi, you'd need to speak to the designers, who thought that it wa a good idea.
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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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Wear The Fox Hat, Presumably they did market research? They must know some odd women 
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Poster: A snowHead
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| maggi wrote: |
| Wear The Fox Hat, Presumably they did market research? They must know some odd women |
I'm sure they do. But they designed the skis for themselves, men weren't involved. Perhaps it could be called "post-feminist irony", but that's how they wanted them to look.
A lot of wmoen reject the skis, considering them to be sexist, designed by men, etc, except many of these women are suffering from inverted sexism, beleiving that a woman could not have designed the skis!
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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Wear The Fox Hat, Wow! Do you know everything?  I never thought of women designing them. I rejected them, not because they were sexist, (never really thought of that) but just plain ugly! I like flowers, but just not on skis.
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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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maggi, The Phat Luv is a sad story, for me at least it is the best womens powder ski on the market. I still have tree of five pairs left. I can only assume the designers were thinking of us guys buying them as xmas gifts. No need to wrap 'em up the look gift wrapped.
The Phat Luvs at the test had the same graphics, forgot otherwise to ask if they would change the graphics, had my mind on, well the snow.
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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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FAQ
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