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Women hiring "men's" skis

 Poster: A snowHead
Poster: A snowHead
Anyone tried, on purpose?

A friend did so last year accidentally, when she misread the online booking form. The bloke in the shop saw she was clearly not a man, muttered at her in Italian and stomped into the back to dig out something more appropriate!

I think I got lucky - they gave me some Salomon Enduros which were superb! I'm not sure if they were handing them out genuinely to whoever as a unisex ski, or if they saw my name (it doesn't compute internationally) and decided to hedge their bets?!

Anyway, I'd quite like another pair, or something pretty similar, but in all the hire shops I've looked at they're only listed as a "men's" ski. Surely as long as they're the right length it shouldn't matter? Or am I missing something?
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 Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
It doesn't matter in the slightest. If your happy it's fine.
Womens skis tend to be lighter and more flexible.
Sometimes womens skis are mounted slightly forward to account for the differing centre of gravity to a mans. (hips and butt)
Lindsey Vonn uses mens skis, if they are good enough for her........
Very tall/heavy women may struggle to find a womans ski proportionate to their height/weight.
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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?
Womens skis invented by the industry to sell more.
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Scarlet, you could "get lucky" every time and buy my enduros wink
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 Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Do all Wimins and kids skis come with "auto carrier"? The only way I can get Mrs H +1 to come skiing is if I carry the kit... Even that hasnt worked this year Sad
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gatecrasher, Toofy Grin
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 Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...
Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...
gatecrasher, Nice try! I don't get out skiing enough to justify my own kit, unfortunately.

lilywhite, I don't fit the tall/heavy category, and I doubt I've skied enough to dispute the binding mount position. I'm considering just booking the men's option, but don't really want to have to deal with the aforementioned huffing when I arrive to collect!

Also, we're going pretty high season this year, so I'd rather get it sorted in advance than risk the turn-up-and-see option.
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 After all it is free Go on u know u want to!
After all it is free Go on u know u want to!
I don't hire skis, but only one of the eight pairs I own are women's skis. And my male friend has the same skis as his only pair Very Happy
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Scarlet, I doubt you will get the huffing everytime, until I bought my own skis last year I'd only been offered woman specific skis once out of nine times. Your the customer, if you go in talking knowledgebly about what you want I doubt the renter will raise an eyebrow. You can always book specific skis via the net before you go and just pick them up when you arrive if your worried about it.
Have fun x
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lilywhite, I've heard about the off centre binding mounting before. Reading it again (and I know its true), made me think about all the various skis that are sold with intergral rail mounted adjustable bindings - many of which align over the centre mark. It can't be easy to set those off of centre can it? So I guess anything rail mounted must be intended as a unisex ski.
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lilywhite, Interesting... most of my experiences have been the opposite, apart from the Enduros and I think some Fischer Progressors (?) I had just for a day in Switzerland. They were also lacking in butterflies and swirly flowers, so I'm guessing they weren't entirely aimed at women rolling eyes
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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.
Megamum wrote:
lilywhite, I've heard about the off centre binding mounting before. Reading it again (and I know its true), made me think about all the various skis that are sold with intergral rail mounted adjustable bindings - many of which align over the centre mark. It can't be easy to set those off of centre can it? So I guess anything rail mounted must be intended as a unisex ski.


Nope they just move the centre mark wink Toofy Grin - marks the centre of the binding, not the centre of the ski Madeye-Smiley
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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
I've only ever had women's skis once, in Courchevel. (They were off-white Rossis with butterflies on....) The rest of the time I think I've just been on a standard unisex Atomic pair. Suits me fine.

(As an aside, at the dry ski slope as a size 8 I usually end up with guys' boots, but I had women's ones yesterday and they fit so well!)
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 You know it makes sense.
You know it makes sense.
There are no women's skis there are no men's skis, there are just different graphics, if a manufacturer is trying to be raly clever there might be a slightly different boot center line on the ski.
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 Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Womens' skis are a relatively new concept. However, in contrast to what Idris, says, recently there have been more differences than just graphics. There are also differences in flex, length, weight etc. Men and women are physiologically different, and designers are now taking that into account.
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 Poster: A snowHead
Poster: A snowHead
My wife a qualified instructor, who was 5ft 4inch and 54kg tried several women's skis during a week's testing in Davos a few years ago. She came away saying that they are girlie skis for girlies who carry a backpack to keep makeup in. Her backpack had a shovel and probe in it.
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 Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
beanie1,
Quote:

Womens' skis are a relatively new concept


Surely that depends on your definition? I'm pretty sure they were being marketed in, say, 1988...
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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?
Dypcdiver wrote:
... for girlies who carry a backpack to keep makeup in. Her backpack had a shovel and probe in it.


What, for her make-up? wink
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I think it is fair to say that women are physiologically different to men - as a woman, this is clear to me, but it has taken manufacturers of equipment (not necessarily skis, but clothing, bikes etc) a long time to realise.

As quite a short person who doesn't resemble a man in size or shape, I generally do hunt out women-specific items as the proportions are better than shrunk-down men's stuff (and XS or even XXS isn't a size you often see), even though I abhorr the oft presented "powder blue" colours Going green. But I'm just not convinced with skis.

Is it assumed that all women like to pootle around the mountain, checking their hair at every opportunity? (No disrespect meant for those who do pootle, but that's not for me. Checking your hair though... rolling eyes )

Dypcdiver, Makeup when you ski? Wouldn't the application of sun cream smear it all over your face? Wouldn't it slide off when you face plant? Toofy Grin One of the funniest things I've seen was a girl who went swimming in the hotel pool in full makeup. She looked like an extra from The Rocky Horror Show when she surfaced!
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 Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Gosh what broad generalisations are being made here!! I usually wear make up when I ski, but I also have a shovel and probe in my back pack. The two are not mutually exclusive! You can be into sports and outdoor stuff, but still care about looking feminine.

And if you wear decent make up it will not run trust me - I can run in the rain in mine and it won't smear. Not that I put it on to run, but if I've had it on all day I won't take it off to run.
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Quote:

Is it assumed that all women like to pootle around the mountain, checking their hair at every opportunity?

There are plenty of women-specific skis for expert-level skiers. But if you want Model XYZ when you ski, just book it. No need to pay any attention to the muttering.
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 Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...
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pam w wrote:
Quote:

Is it assumed that all women like to pootle around the mountain, checking their hair at every opportunity?

There are plenty of women-specific skis for expert-level skiers. But if you want Model XYZ when you ski, just book it. No need to pay any attention to the muttering.
On the other side of the coin, I've regularly been seen skiing on womens skis, no big deal! Toofy Grin
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 After all it is free Go on u know u want to!
After all it is free Go on u know u want to!
This whole thing makes me laugh. A lot of the manufacturers are now putting out 'unisex' skis because even those blag merchants realise that their buying public are getting wise to the fact that it's simply a graphics change at the high intermediate/pro level of skis. Of course women are 'physiologically different' but all we are talking about here is transference of weight. I know tests have been done to see what the differences are between the way men and women ski but at the end of the day you still end up with an average which the manufacturers work off/ to. There will be some men who ski like ‘women’ and some women who ski like ‘men’ (c.f. Ms. Vonn, allegedly). I think the argument works better for boots as apparently there are consistent physiologically differences between men and women in the foot department but as well all know that whole area is a nest of rattlesnakes in terms of fit/feel/comfort even when dealing with a single sex which I think undermines the whole difference argument anyway.

You strap the planks on, you ski, they work for you and you can stand to look at the graphic then you keep with them regardless of for which sex they were allegedly manufactured. (N.B. I’ve seen a woman turn down La Croix and Volkl skis because ‘they did not match her outfit’ and choose some intermediate Elans instead – she wasn’t even paying! I wept).

Richard_Sideways, hehe!
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I agree with beanie1, that the shrink it and pink it view of women's skis is a bit out of date, I would recommend trying some Volkl skis such as the Aura, Kiku or Fuego and some of this years Blizzard skis look nice, samba was the one I think I liked the look of. However I also think that a lot of men would like to ski these skis, I have always skied unisex skis before I bought my Auras, and think it might be more useful for manufacturers to make a hard and soft version of some skis, I think PM Gear used to do this, hard and soft Bros?
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Quote:

think it might be more useful for manufacturers to make a hard and soft version of some skis

agree. I have often lent a pair of "women's skis" to visiting male friends who have been happy enough to ski on them rather than pay rental costs. wink
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pam w wrote:
Quote:

think it might be more useful for manufacturers to make a hard and soft version of some skis

agree. I have often lent a pair of "women's skis" to visiting male friends who have been happy enough to ski on them rather than pay rental costs. wink

This^^ +1
My mates teenage son has womens skis as he is just too damn skinny to pressure a mens advanced ski but doesn't want a noodle either, he has Blizzard? Black pearls (covered in stickers)
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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.
yes and not all women like the +1 mounting point, personally I hate it and often mount my skis -1, my Auras are -2 from the recommended point and I ski my S3s -1 as well, on the other hand some men would probably get on better with a forward mount point and labelling it as female specific doesn't seem to help anyone.
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