This is my first time on this forum so please be gentle with me!
I am going skiing with work in March having not been for 6 years, last time i went (and for a few years prior) i had just used snowblades, this was due to the fact i was never a great skiier but with snowblades i could do any run i wanted and keep up with the better skiiers i went with.
Do people still snowblade and will I still be able to hire them ? Or is there soemthing similar people do now a days, i remember someone telling me that snowblades had changed from very short (less than 100cm) with fixed bindings to short the skis but with ski bindings !
Thanks in advance.
M
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
I haven't seen "skiers" on them for years. Seem to have gone out of fashion??
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?
I still have a pair. Take them out for a blast when my boarding legs give up. Lot of fun.
Bust my collarbone the last time I used snowblades, I overdid the carve and got highsided.
I was in the lift with a young instructor and said the blades were great for carving, he said that you can't carve snowblades, he wasn't impressed when I offered to give him a lesson on how to carve blades!
Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...
Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...
You have to carve snowblades, else the inside one wobbles about and scares the c**p out of you. The more radical you can get the edge angles, the better.
I still have a pair of the Salomon Buzz 99cm ones.
Not seen anyone else blading for years. And that was probably us messing about on those 99cm ones and the Big Foots several bashes ago.
Personally, I say that if you don't want to ski full size skis then try renting the 125-140 mini skis. Or take some more tuition.
After all it is free
After all it is free
In a barely related post, I saw a kid boot-skiing last week. I was on a chairlift and looked as closely as I could, and I'm 99% certain he had nothing on his ski boots, not even those old 'Big Foot' things. Kid could ski, and was more than keeping up with his mates on regular skis. Was impressed!
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.
I hired some short skis (blades? big feet?) about 5 years ago when teaching my little girls to ski; they had full size skis, I had short ones. I thought it would be easier to show them basic principles rather than having great long things getting in the way, and I could move quickly around them if and when needed. Seemed to work really well for that.
Jittery going down the slopes at speed though, and I think they really made my knees hurt, either following every tiny bump or because my muscles were tense as I didn't trust them. I don't feel the need to go back.
Ski the Net with snowHeads
Ski the Net with snowHeads
Thanks for all the answers, sounds like the long and short of it (excuse the pun) is we don’t think they do them any more. So maybe I’m looking at short skis, 120-140 cm !
I’d love to learn to ski properly but I just don’t want to waste any time I have as it is only 3 days !!!
Any other ideas from anyone ?!
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
One of the group I ski with has a pair he generally swaps to for a couple of afternoons.
I saw a few people on blades in Les Arcs this month.
Google suggests you can still buy them.
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.
rob@rar wrote:
In a barely related post, I saw a kid boot-skiing last week. I was on a chairlift and looked as closely as I could, and I'm 99% certain he had nothing on his ski boots, not even those old 'Big Foot' things. Kid could ski, and was more than keeping up with his mates on regular skis. Was impressed!
Back in the late 1980s when UK ski shows were still very popular I remember going to one and seeing the Dalbello SnowRunner boots on display. The plastic boots had metal edges
on a slick, flat base and came in men’s, women’s and children’s sizes. Here's a video of a chap using them on the slopes:
It seems that a Norwegian firm picked up on the idea recently and they now produce a very similar product called Sled Dogs. It seems the generic term for these devices is "snowskates" They sell several models, ranging in price from €199 for the cheapest to €395 for the "ultra high performance" model! Having owned a pair of Big Feet I guess the skiing experience will be fairly similar, although from what I can see the Sled Dogs don't have much or any sidecut, unlike the Big Feet which certainly did, and influenced Kneissl to bring in their first "carving" ski in the early 1990s, the Kneissl Ergo, which I had.
So if you're just off somewhere snowy come back and post a snow report of your own and we'll all love you very much
So if you're just off somewhere snowy come back and post a snow report of your own and we'll all love you very much
Mackers74 wrote:
I’d love to learn to ski properly but I just don’t want to waste any time I have as it is only 3 days !!!
These two clauses don't sit well together.
If you want to enjoy yourself, find some blades and mess about on them. Next year you'll be in the same position.
If you want to learn to ski, dedicate some time to it. Three days should be about right if you've already got some ideas from the blades, though there might be some bad habits to eliminate, eg posture.
I view all real learning as investment for future fun. I "sacrificed" a couple of weeks on the snow making sure my little children were learning to ski. Result - at their age 8 we were all out skiing together and I don't have to worry about them.
Good luck
You know it makes sense.
You know it makes sense.
Didn't those Snowskate things feature on one of the event/races in The Jump?
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Thanks for all you’re replies I guess I’ll just have to wing it and see what happens when I get there !
If I had more time I would probably get a lesson and some skis but there you go I don’t !
FAQ
Poster: A snowHead
They sell several models, ranging in price from €199 for the cheapest to €395 for the "ultra high performance" model! 
Having owned a pair of Big Feet I guess the skiing experience will be fairly similar, although from what I can see the Sled Dogs don't have much or any sidecut, unlike the Big Feet which certainly did, and influenced 
