 Poster: A snowHead
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I've been very pleased with my B2s. They have been good all over the mountain, not out and out speed demons, nor fat boys, but at the time and for my level of skiing, I don't think I could've found a better all purpose ski. They've coped with long and short carved and skidded turns on piste, friendlier moguls down the fall line, and were wide enough to give rather small me the support to make it comfortable for my first time back to proper off piste for 7 years. For me, they made it easier and therefore more fun to ski what and how I wanted.
However, it's time to move on. I want to do more off piste. I want more support to help me in softer snow. That means going wider. But I'm too lazy to change my skis during the day, so they need to be good (enough) on piste too. Thing is, the technology has moved on. Not that I'm that discerning but I didn't ski a single bad ski at the MK test. Nordica, K2, Salomon, Scott, Head, every ski I skied on seemed fine and dandy. The last time I tried a "WC" slalom ski, I found it difficult to ski on without really concentrating. This time I wasn't punished each time my weight went back - it then just didn't do what it was designed for, but it didn't throw me off in disgust. The last time I tried an 85mm ski it was like having two oil tankers strapped to my feet. This time I found the Nordica Afterburners and Scott Mission/Santiago Rosa instantly comfortable and easy and short turns were no problem and very enjoyable. I didn't try anything wider, 'cos I think 85mm-ish will be wide enough for me when the 76mm B2 were ok anyway, and also 'cos I haven't yet fully suspended my disbelief and still suspect 90+ skis just won't be easy on piste at my level of skiing.
Any thoughts on this? Still need to try the K2 Outlaw. Anything else I should try?
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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slikedges, I have 89mm (Intuitiv Big - similar to Legend 8000 ?) - Mrs Ski 90 (Phat Luvs) ...I'll happily ski on them all day, wherever.
Mrs Ski tours on her Phat Luvs too.
They're NOT going to be as all round easy to use as the B2 - but they're not
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two oil tankers strapped to my feet.
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either.
Mine are quite short (170) - 'cos that's what the shop had (I'm 5'3")....
I think you should a) try some Legends and b) try some Apaches - especially the Recon 
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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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slikedges, What's your gender, I think you're a chick, so; Nordica Olympia Conquer, Rossi B3 lady, Scott Rosa. Otherwise try; Rossi B3, Nordica Hot Rod Afterburner, Volkl AC4, Salomon XW Fury. Ski long mabybe head height or 5cm shorter, if you're light for your height, try 8-10cm shorter. We have all the above skis to test, get over here to Cham'. 
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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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IncogSkiSno, I have no idea about you either!
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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IncogSkiSno, So you know your way around...............................................;;the SUPERMARKET, is that what you're trying to say? 
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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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SMALLZOOKEEPER, BTW have you read WTFH's assumptions thread? 
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IncogSkiSno, YEEEEES, why? Have you read my, "I can't handle the truth" thread?
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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ski, tried the Recon at MK, nice, responsive but I wanted wider underfoot
SMALLZOOKEEPER,
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What's your gender, I think you're a chick,... |
I'll go to Sham on condition that you don't make a pass at me. 
IncogSkiSno,
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I'm a girlie, albeit a rather old one.
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Well, you still look mighty fine to me! (for a rather old one )
easiski, now you mention it, you're right, I ought to try it, I'd kinda forgotten about it for some odd reason, was it at MK? I wanted to try it last season and it doesn't seem as talked about this season (there's a fine criterion on which to base ski purchase, eh?  )
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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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slikedges, My 'PASSING' days are over although most of us Bootfitters can't resist a flirt! 
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So Legend (8800?), Rossi B3, Volkl AC4, Salomon XW Fury. Heads? iM82 or 88?
Anyone own any of these? Anyone else tried them?
To be honest, I'd like to whittle the list down a bit. From their mountain testing (I think at the SIGB) the EB boys seemed to think the Nordica Afterburners, K2 Outlaw and Scott Mission/Rosa are tops in this category, but I'm not sure which of the others they're selling!
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You know it makes sense.
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slikedges, Marc Gledhill has the 8800, I believe.
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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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Poster: A snowHead
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Afterburners or iM88 would be top of my list.
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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The Recon is a smooth ski which will get up and go...so the reasoning is that the Outlaw should have the same sort of character but be wider.
I'll be looking out for it over 180... And whatever this years Santiago Mission is called. Add the B3 and the 8800 and you have some skis to test....IMV
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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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| Wear The Fox Hat wrote: |
| slikedges, Marc Gledhill has the 8800, I believe. |
slikedges it's a great ski on soft snow or in deeper snow, and is superb once the new snow gets a little cut up. A snowHead of much more note than I described it to me as the best back country ski he'd tested the previous year.
But if the going gets hard and icy they are a bit of a booger to carve. I'd guess all skis around 90mm are like this though.
So why not get a pair of fatter skis, but keep the B2's. Or treat yourself to some carving machines too. You know it makes sense.
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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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slikedges, actually, if you have the RX8's and are planning to keep them then I'd have thought 90mm+ would be fine and dandy.
As you rightly say demo a few, but I'd be thinking a wee bit fatter than you were; as you'll have a choice of skis and can judge it dependant on snow conditions.
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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marc gledhill, That's just what I was thinking
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like marc gledhill stated, if you're keeping the rx8 go fatter. Try Volkl mantras, Gotamas and k2 seth. I really like the seth as even at 95ish in the waist it still only has a 21m radius. I hear the Mantras totally rip anywhere on the mountain too.
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Seths? 
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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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Ok, just for a moment, let's say I was considering going over 90mm, which of the above has the rep to be easiest to ski on piste? Remember, I'm going to need something that's going to be happy to potter about on reds and blues suitable for 6yr olds all in the same day!
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slikedges, there's a video of me skiing on piste on Seth Pistols, wich proves it can be done. A certain Mr Bell described it as "someone trying to steer canoes".
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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Wear The Fox Hat, and you want me to get them? Well, at least canoes are smaller than oil tankers!
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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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Edmundh009, like my Motherships which, while now aging, I still think are great. 97 underfoot and radius of 21. Mine are too long for me really but they go just as well on piste as lots of other skis I've tried - I've even hit the bumps on them although I'd have to admit that it lacked a certain degree of style.
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| slikedges wrote: |
| Ok, just for a moment, let's say I was considering going over 90mm, which of the above has the rep to be easiest to ski on piste? Remember, I'm going to need something that's going to be happy to potter about on reds and blues suitable for 6yr olds all in the same day! |
Well my six year old just does the racing snowplough with a turn once every twenty five minutes. For that, any would do the job. 
I'd take the RX8's with you, together with a list of skis to try. If the snows good - try them and see which ones you like best.
There don't seem to be bad skis around, but some match your technique better than others.
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You know it makes sense.
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slikedges, as a dedicated fat ski fan I can say that it might be a little more work but it's so much more fun! You've got the RX8 then you sure need something a fair bit fatter to really make the most of it.
"Some people" don't get the fat thing, well my fat thing anyway . My largest skis are a whopping 130mm underfoot but they have a turn radius of 18m. That's less than most 90mm+ skis. They carve on piste like your average skier cross skis, it just takes a few turns to get used to them.
Our skiing ranges from skiing with proper punter skiers to skinning in the back country, even in one day we might go carving on some gentle blues to straight lining couloirs (OK Mrs P doesn't quite straightline them  ) I tend to do it 130s and Mrs P always skis her Phat Luvs (94mm at 167cm), she prefers the stability of the Phat Luvs on piste, in moguls and just having a laugh - even though she owns other skis including a very nice pair of K2 slalom skis.
Try some proper fat for a few days, you'll not go back, ask Rocky Robin. The main problem will be length I suspect, but on your list include the following and ski what you can get your mits on: Salomon 1080 Guns / Pocket Rockets (foam core but IMO one of the best lady powder skis ever made - sorry boys)
Atomic Sugar Daddy (another foam ski but nice and forgiving)
K2 Nancy (girls version of The Seth)
K2 Phat Luvs
Volkl Aura (ladies version of the Mantra)
Volkl Gotamas
Fat skis aren't harder to ski, it's just a little different. Get on it.
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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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slikedges, from what I've seen, you're a similar build and ability to ski (although from what you say he's probably a bit more experienced off-piste), so I'd think his experiences may well be quite appropriate. I think the I-Bigs are the precursor to the 8800s. I agree pretty much word for word with marc gledhill on the 8800s - I tried them at the EoSB, along with AC4s and iM82s, and posted a review on the FallLiner test thread (quick summary: 8800s - fab; AC4s - great stability but ho so heavy; iM82 - didn't get on with at all). I also thought the 8800s the best off-piste ski I've tried (although that's not many), but you should bear in mind that the 8800s do have a very large turn radius though (29m), so are not going to give you much when skiing in modern carving style. As an all-rounder I probably prefer my 8000s (79mm waist, 21m radius), although they take a bit more concentration off-piste. Probably a bit too similar in size to the RX8 (although I have no idea how they ski relative to each other) though, if you do intend to keep those. My two-ski quiver preference is for a high performance carver for piste-only/racing and then an all-rounder for off-piste/touring + on-piste cruising. I will try and give the Outlaws a shot sometime this year though, and probably some of those others too (although I don't like twin-tips).
How fat you want to go may well depend on how long you are comfortable skiing too. Shorter is of course more manoeuverable, but length does give better fore-aft stability if you're hitting variable/unpredicatable snow conditions. If you're happy with a longish ski, then fat is probably not particularly necessary for someone your weight (at my weight, I ski 184cm, and really could do with something fatter than the 8000s). Horses for courses!
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Poster: A snowHead
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I'm 170cm and 65kg and was thinking of getting a head height or just under in length. RX8 has a 66mm waist so that's why I'm still thinking 85-ish mm. Oh, and it's going to have to do moguls too.
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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slikedges, Do the only possible thing, buy a KA..................................169.
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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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| Kramer wrote: |
| GrahamN, how many times do I have to tell you... |
If what you said was a falsehood the first time you said it, it doesn't matter how many times you repeat it, it doesn't make it less untrue...
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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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This has been puzzling me for a while: apart from park aspirations, where are the Volkl Karma, K2 Public Enemy, Nordica Supercharger Ignition, Salomon 1080 Foil pitched compared to the Volkl AC4, K2 Apache Outlaw, Nordica Hot Rod Afterburner, Salomon XW Fury/Hurricane (what the hell's the difference between these two anyway?!). They're all about 85mm underfoot. And more to the point what are the real world differences on and off piste? I guess the twin tips are softer and more forgiving of hard landings and the freeriders more stable at high piste speed and better in off piste crud, but surely the softness of the park skis would offer an advantage over the freeriders in softer stuff? How's about bumps?
Edtited: to make more sense
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You'll need to Register first of course.
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OK my final list to try:
Scott Santiago Mission
Volkl Karma and AC4
Nordica Supercharger Ignition and Hot Rod Afterburner
K2 Apache Outlaw and Public Enemy
Salomon 1080 Foil and XW Hurricane ??Fury
Rossignol B3
...but Ellis Brigham tells me they've totally sold out of the Santiago Mission in all their stores and it's also already just about sold out all over Europe with no further prospect of new stock!!
Edits: list evolution!
Last edited by You'll need to Register first of course. on Sun 12-11-06 7:58; edited 4 times in total
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slikedges, I have both Mission and Rosa.
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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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slikedges, Sorry, they are a great ski, not unlike the Karma in many ways. The Karma has a bit more 'guts', requiring to be skied at speed to get the best from her. The Mission/Rosa are a little more forgiving/accesable and has a more generous sidecut making them easier to turn. No skies are flying out here yet, unlike the Uk, we need the 'Premier Neige' before people reach into their pockets. Everyone is splashing out onlift tickets at the momment.
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SMALLZOOKEEPER, thanks. Am I right in thinking the Mission the softest of the above list of freeriders, and the Karmas the stiffest of the above range of park skis?
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FAQ
