 Poster: A snowHead
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After arriving in Chamonix Saturday evening and visiting the zoo first thing Sunday morning for new boots a certain SZK sorted out some test skis for me to try over the next three days. Read on for my impressions of both the skis and the service.
Black Crow Navis – 175.7cm, 20m radius, sidecut 133-103-124
This ski simply blew me away. For a fairly fat ski it handled moguls well and didn’t seem to require any extra effort to get it over onto the edge. Actually, it could turn on a sixpence and rapid changes of direction off piste were a doddle. At speed on the groomed piste it held it’s line well, yet it cut though frozen crud and boiler plate as if it wasn’t there. The ski does require commitment and you need to keep the aggression levels up a touch to get the best from it. The only downside to me was it’s weight (just over 5kg a pair). This meant that by the end of the day when I was feeling tired I had to concentrate on my lines quite a bit… this ski likes some forceful input. A more accomplished skier than myself who likes gnarly couloirs would find this ski perfect.
Nordica Enforcer - 177cm, 19m radius, sidecut 135-98-125
What can I say? To sum it up… delightful!!! I hadn’t put this one down on my list to try but this was the one ski which seemed to cope with every condition and then leave you with a wide ear to ear grin at the bottom of a run. I managed to get in a whole series of moguls in a nice straight line, then carve at speed down hard groomers, then take on bumpy tight steeps through trees and with every turn the ski seemed to be lending a helping hand. The twin tip tail brought the ski around a turn with minimal effort and absorbed jump landings perfectly. It was a little more forgiving than the Navis which meant that when you were tired you could relax a touch and it wouldn’t catch you out. I actually managed to make several consecutive turns skiing backwards on this model… it also flicks round with minimal effort when you want to change back.
Volkl Mantra - 177cm, 20.3m radius, sidecut 133-96-116
I can’t really say anything bad about this ski but I just didn’t enjoy skiing it at all. OK… fast carved turns were fantastic but the stiffer flex didn’t work for me in tight spaces, and on the moguls and steeps the semi straight tail seemed to catch and hold the turn for too long thus preventing me from making sudden direction changes. Not having a proper twin tipped configuration also caused a slight problem in a steep section of bumps and trees. I had attempted to reverse a bit to make room for a turn after taking a look at a possible line, and one tail jammed into a mound of soft snow and neatly tipped me over. Probably it needed a heavier or more aggressive skier than myself to get the most out of it... for me though it just didn’t work.
So what did I choose? The Enforcer twin. It just hits every nail I have right on the head. Some may prefer a longer radius for stability in powder, but in my opinion that would limit the ski for use in bumps and for messing about in the park. How a 98mm waisted ski can be so quick and playful on the groomed piste is simply beyond me. A true one quiver ski.
A very close second (such a difficult choice it was too) was the Navis. Maybe in a few years when I can get the most out of them I may get a pair. I’d be happy to ski on these any day though.
Two other skis I have enjoyed on previous demo's were the Head Mojo 90 and the Liberty Hazmat in 94mm waist.
And finally a big thank you to all the guys at Footworks. A very friendly set up with people who are prepared to go to some lengths to ensure that your equipment is suitable for what you intend to do with it.
Steve took a lot of time to go over my ski requirements whilst Seb selected and fitted my boots and John gave advice and sorted post fitting issues out to perfection. I only needed one minor adjustment to a slight pressure area on the heel. A small blister I suffered on the same point was due to me going out with brand new boots and a strange pair of skis and proceeding to spend half the morning skiing moguls faster than I had ever done before… not really the gentle break in period recommended.
In fact the difference that a well fitted pair of boots has made to my skiing is amazing. With my previous boots I could not get the right to flex properly as the buckles were cranked so tightly that the shell was locking, and movement of my feet in the boots meant that I often got out of balance as I couldn’t make adjustments to compensate. My new boots are 10mm shorter and of lower volume yet I could spend all day in them in comfort without having to constantly slacken off the buckles due to numbness. My usual shoe size is a UK 9 or 9.5, but my new Nordica Blowers are a size 7. A bit like precision climbing shoes… any dead space in the shoes leads to loss of performance. I found that I can now zip moguls for 6 to 12 bumps instead of my previous 3-5 before getting a bit wobbly and having to leave the fall line. When attempting the practice drill of traversing an easy green on one leg, switching to the other leg and making a one footed turn (carry on until you have to dab a foot down for balance) I again noticed a vast improvement.
And for anyone who has witnessed my overly enthusiastic style of ungraceful and frequent high speed crashes… in three days of ski testing on varied terrain (and not holding back on speed either) I did not have one single crash apart from a few little sit-downs in steep moguls. I did spend quite a bit of time coughing my lungs up at the side of the runs though as I had gone down with a terrible cold and slight chest infection on the day I left the UK but that sure as hell couldn’t curb my enthusiasm for the fluffy white stuff.
All in all… a great trip and I can’t wait to get out on the next one. And with the taller, fatter skis my boarder mates won’t float away over the powder as I sink 
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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Agree that TT's can be good fun in moguls and the trade-off in deeper snow. I also think a TT cuts down the stability of a ski when tanking it on-piste...it is difficult to know what you would do with an extra 5cms..??
I like the sound of all 3 of those 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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Oh... with my old noodles I used to get away with a relatively low DIN setting of 6 on my bindings. I had the Navis's set at 7 and had a couple of pre-releases (one on moguls and the other when I attempted to jump a soft snow bank and shot out of my skis like Superman) so had to go up to 8. I'm going to try the Enforcers on 7 and see if they are ok but I suspect that I'll have to crank them up a touch.
JT, As they are all skis designed for some serious terrain I found that they had enough stiffness to keep them cranked over at high speeds on piste and still keep stable. I didn't find their limits anyhow.
Last edited by Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see? on Mon 29-12-08 18:48; edited 1 time in total
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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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Scarpa, remind us, how much do you weigh?
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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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comprex, 73 kilos as I came into this world, prob closer to 80 with clothing, boots and backpack. I prefer the lightest setting I can get away with as I have a previous knee injury. On my old set up I have done some drops and jumps where I crashed and kept my skis on... I'm quite good at crashing without getting skis caught up in the snow. I suspect that the softness of my old skis helped to absorb impacts whilst actually skiing, plus they were light foam cored jobs. Fatter, heavier skis seem to require a little more on the dial for me.
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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Scarpa, fair 'nuff.
At 90+ kilos I find the Mantra a lot softer, you see.
How much softer is the Navis than the Volkl?
I would love to get a flex comparo of the Navis to, oh, say, Thugs and Sugar Daddies.
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comprex, The Navis is no soft ski; with my weight I found it a little harder work than the Enforcer (very slightly) ... but they sure are one hell of a ski. They just turn so smoothly and quickly for a 103mm. I'd defo' recommend them for a try. I was convinced after a day on them that I'd be going home with a pair... it's just so tough when two skis both float your boat. If I spent less time on piste and in parks then I'd have gone for them.
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Scarpa, progressive flex, or was there any part significantly softer than the rest of the ski?
I get the impression that the tail had a bit more rebound than that of the Enforcer?
-sorry, I know, a million Q.s but it is certainly a brand I won't get to demo-.
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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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comprex, It can be arranged. 
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comprex, Pretty progressive as far as I could tell. The Enforcer has a slightly softish tail but nothing that jumps out when flexing it. No worries on Q's.... can you tell I love talking about equipment? I'd say that they felt somewhere between the tail stiffness of the Enforcer and the Mantra, prob closer to the Mantra but the twin tip makes them feel more manageable in tight spaces. I think that was why I felt them to be slightly harder work at the end of the day when my legs felt too weak to power them. That's a problem with skiing on your own... you tend to do a little too much 
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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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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Scarpa, Screw that, you have feeling now dude, get a 1° max, get a good penerative wax and keep it topped up. Really pleased you have had a good experience with the whole team, these comments mean alot to us when we are grouped as a unit. If we have 5 or so like you this winter it will have been a success. Nice to meet you, happy skiing, let go of the stats and internet warble and enjoy the ride. 
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SMALLZOOKEEPER, Was tongue in cheek fella. I had to take my old noodles to a 3 degree angle as it was the only way to stop them from skidding out of every turn I made on icy slopes. I'm not one to mess with things if they are working. I'll let you know how the new skis love the Canadian powder 
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You know it makes sense.
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SMALLZOOKEEPER, Oh... never talked to Angus so as 1 in 4 people these days seems to be a psychopathic manic I am assuming that he is a cross between Jack the Ripper and Gary Glitter 
Actually he said "Hi" to me so he may be all right.
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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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SMALLZOOKEEPER, still sticking to the 110 mm barrier?
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Poster: A snowHead
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comprex, We gave into pressure this year, added the Sally Rocker, Kuro and Jah Love. That said i still believe this is just a fad and things will level out. We try and sell no more than 3mm eitherside of exterior boot width where possible.
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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Scarpa, That will be Alex, Angus left in the summer to chase scallywags, dubloons and fiesty young lasses on the open seas.
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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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Dang. Angus was funny. And had a decent taste for whisky.
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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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comprex, Angus never drank Whisky, just Rhum and then some more.
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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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| SMALLZOOKEEPER wrote: |
| comprex, We gave into pressure this year, added the Sally Rocker, Kuro and Jah Love. That said i still believe this is just a fad and things will level out. We try and sell no more than 3mm eitherside of exterior boot width where possible. |
Well with the new boots at 98mm and skis the same I guess they were made for each other. God... I need to ski them soon!!!
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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Anyone given feedback on the Kuro yet SZK?
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Scarpa, you're not drunk -yet-? Happy New Year anyway.
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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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Jo225, Thanks Jo. Will pamper my new boots. I hate that 'attempting to force your feet into a frozen right angle tube' early morning senario 
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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Scarpa, Thank you so much for posting this review. I nearly bought the Mantras, tried the Navis at the last minute after reading your comments, loved them from the first turn - agree with everything you wrote and with an extra 10kgs the Navis were perfect for me. Thanks again.
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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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ww166no, Glad to help... I've had so much useful advice from this forum so I guess I should put something back.
Aren't the Navis's fantastic? I'd defo buy them in the future as I'm skiing a bit more powerfully these days. Just terrified in case I break the Enforcers as I wouldn't be able to get them again
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Scarpa, Don't worry about breaking the Enforcers, the Navis will be there waiting!
I couldn't believe how good they are. Obviously fantastic in crud and pow, it was the things i didn't think they'd be any good at that really amazed me. They were so stable on-piste for a moment i nearly forgot to look over the side for something more interesting to do! Bumps too, amazing how nimble they are. With my (little!) bit of extra weight, what you liked about the Enforcers (more forgiving than the Navis) is how i found the Navis compared to the Mantras, better (for me) than the Mantras on every surface. Am v happy and looking fwd to getting back together in 10 days!
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FAQ
So do make sure to keep your new snug boots nice and warm!
