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Ski/Snowboarding Thread
- Thread starter Jaxper
- Start date
thedude4bides
Go Kart Champion
- Location
- usa
Had some fun at breck. Pow on peak 6 is nice on a snow day. Runout is long and flat though. Gotta get up super early because that town is full of powder hounds. It's all gone and chopped up in like 2 hours. Line at the T-bar was off the chain at 9:30am. Imperial Express had 150 people in line before it even opened. It's such a bummer to wait in line behind so many powder fiends knowing that each one of them is going to take a line away from you. My strategy shifted to ski where people weren't and I ended up on peak 9 skiing trees off E-Chair and then to peak 10 skiing the burn, corsair, and spitfire. I skied the bowls later in the day and the snow was still good but there is nothing like finding that fresh line leaving your mark on the mountain like I could on 9 and 10. Didn't take the camera out much in the snow but when my friend got stuck in the deep I had to snap a pic before I helped him up.
barnes93cb
Go Kart Champion
- Location
- South Carolina
I have got to make my way out to Colorado. The mountains in the Maryland area are nothing in comparison.
For powder Vail and Copper are the way to go IMO. The bowls at Vail are just so unbelievably massive it's easy to find fresh lines and Copper is kinda the hidden gem along the I70 corridor. It doesn't get all the hype and the tourists, it's not really a destination and there's not much of "ski town" feel to the area but the skiing, the resort, the mountain are all amazing.
fr4c
Ready to race!
- Location
- Hamster wheel
What are everyone's recommendation for a set of boots/skis for a intermediate/advanced skier? Been renting for the past few seasons and would like to invest in my own equipment.
Right now I have it narrowed down to:
Boot: Salomon Quest Access 80
Skis: Rossignol Experience 88
Right now I have it narrowed down to:
Boot: Salomon Quest Access 80
Skis: Rossignol Experience 88
thedude4bides
Go Kart Champion
- Location
- usa
Rossi 88's are a good all around ski. They like to carve when on edge but can ski trees or bumps just fine. You'll have s hard time not liking them. Other all mountain type ski that I recommend would be the Volkl kendo. For boots... Find a good boot fitter as that's very important. If the "80" in the salamons represents the stiffness and you like high speeds, I'd recommend at least a 90 if not 100.
Eldora on a weekend? Avoid it at all costs!
If you like untracked/freshie/backcountry, you should check out Berthoud Pass, on Hwy 40 next to Winter Park/Mary Jane.
http://boc123.com/berthoudpass/berthoudpass.cfm
In past winters they would snow-cat you up. I don't know about this winter.
If you like untracked/freshie/backcountry, you should check out Berthoud Pass, on Hwy 40 next to Winter Park/Mary Jane.
http://boc123.com/berthoudpass/berthoudpass.cfm
In past winters they would snow-cat you up. I don't know about this winter.
You obviously have some product knowledge and insight... I do not. I've always just used what I have and never thought twice about it. I'm looking for some input on finally getting some new skis. I'm currently using a pair of K2 Apache Radius X skis (they are like 6 years old, relabeled skis for Sports Authority and other big box places to sell). I live in the Front Range and I typically get 15-20 or so days per season of skiing in. I'm 6'2" and about 200 lbs. My typical day of skiing is get there early to beat the crowds, do a groomed run as a warm up then spend the rest of the day in the bowls and in the trees with the occasional high speed groomer.
The other weekend we were supposed to get some new snow so I decided it was a good time to demo some skis. There was some powder, some skied out powder turned crud, some groomed, and there was even some icy areas. I took a set of 180cm Atomic Automatic 102 freeride/powder skis to use for the weekend.
Compared to my old skis these felt awesome. They felt more on the snow than in the snow, they went right through the crud and powder no problem. They seemed to have a lot less edge grip then my old ones, they weren't nearly as stable at high speed but in the dense steep tree bumps the the less edge grip felt great. The tips and tails had a lot more ability to slide rather than carve. I felt like I could ski that stuff at higher speeds yet more controlled. It's like the skis went where I wanted them to go instead of wanting to grab and always go forward to where the tips are aimed. On the icy stuff they felt like they had no grip but that's not necessarily a bad thing because they didn't chatter trying to get an edge which normally really hurts my bony ass ankle bones. The lack of edge also made stopping distance longer, not dangerously long or anything, just not the stop on a dime while throwing snow 30-40 feet like I'm used to. Overall I really liked them a lot, the maneuverability in the trees and the ability to plow through crud are really what appealed to me, real powder days are rare for me.
I'm wanting some input based on my situation regarding Atomic Automatic 102 vs Atomic Vantage Alibi. Unfortunately there isn't a pair of Alibi skis around for me to demo but the rocker/camber/rocker profiles are similar, the tip and tail widths are similar, it seems like main differences are a narrower waist and the titanium backbone in the Alibi? It seems like with Alibi I'd give up some powder ability in exchange for some high speed stability. Would I loose any of the maneuverability, capability in the crud, or the ability for the tips and tails to slide a bit without always catching and trying to push me forward?
It's between those 2 skis. I plan on using these all the time in all conditions. I'll still use my old K2s for early and late season when there isn't much base so i can fuck those up instead of tearing up the bases on the skis.
I'm probably going to demo those Automatics for another weekend.
thedude4bides
Go Kart Champion
- Location
- usa
Usually if you demo you can swap out skis during the day as many times as you can. I recommend trying at least one or two more pairs before making a decision, especially if you plan on skiing them for more than one season. There will always be some compromise between on/off piste between certain skis. I will say that almost any ski will feel awesome compared to those old k2's. I'd focus more on a ski geared towards off piste for you since you really spend most of your time there. Any ski with rocker will be more forgiving and release the tip/tail easier for rotary movements in skidded/slipping type turns. If you can, try to find volkl mantras or shiros... Very stable at high speeds and bust through crud like nobody's business but might be a tad less forgiving in flat ski rotary situations than the atomics you tried. Edge grip for days.
As far as in/on snow... I'm old school. If you want to ski "on" snow, just come to the east coast
. I love the feeling of dipping in and out of deep snow in deep pow turns. Hell people were skiing pow in the 80's on 65mm waist skis. Shit, now for some reason people say that nothing less than double that sucks in pow... No, you just can't ski pow without help apparently:laugh:
/rant
Anyway, the ankle thing you mentioned in the boots shouldn't happen. Find a boot fitter than can maybe raise your heel or put some shims in your boots to keep your ankles stable. If your liner is packed out you might want to grab an aftermarket Intuition Liner, or just opt for a new pair of boots.
As far as in/on snow... I'm old school. If you want to ski "on" snow, just come to the east coast
. I love the feeling of dipping in and out of deep snow in deep pow turns. Hell people were skiing pow in the 80's on 65mm waist skis. Shit, now for some reason people say that nothing less than double that sucks in pow... No, you just can't ski pow without help apparently:laugh:/rant
Anyway, the ankle thing you mentioned in the boots shouldn't happen. Find a boot fitter than can maybe raise your heel or put some shims in your boots to keep your ankles stable. If your liner is packed out you might want to grab an aftermarket Intuition Liner, or just opt for a new pair of boots.
thedude4bides
Go Kart Champion
- Location
- usa
Also, check out blizzard bonifide.
I tried a bunch of stuff during a free on mountain demo day. The Automatics were the ones I liked the best of what I tried so I found a demo set to use for the weekend. The only other ones I demo'd for at least half a day were some comparable Rossignols and Liberty Variant 113s.
As for the boots, I've tried a ton of boots and gone to fitters. My issue is have long feet with very narrow lower calves and really boney ankles. I've had ankle bone areas punched out a but they didn't want to go any further and risk loosing the ability to grab my calf. I've had that same issue with ski boots my entire life, I'm more concerned with skis that don't grab and chatter, when they don't do that I have no issues.
As for the boots, I've tried a ton of boots and gone to fitters. My issue is have long feet with very narrow lower calves and really boney ankles. I've had ankle bone areas punched out a but they didn't want to go any further and risk loosing the ability to grab my calf. I've had that same issue with ski boots my entire life, I'm more concerned with skis that don't grab and chatter, when they don't do that I have no issues.
thedude4bides
Go Kart Champion
- Location
- usa
I feel you on the boot issues. My current boots probably have about 16 hours worth of fitting work on them. I finally found the east coast yoda of boots hidden in the depths of VT and that helped tremendously. Prior to that I thought there was no hope in pain free feet. Had a three month wait just to get an apt with him. On the skis, if you know you like them then go for it. You were spot on with the pro/con in terms of differences in edging/rotary movements going to that ski.
fr4c
Ready to race!
- Location
- Hamster wheel
Thanks! Definitely some things to take into consideration.
Looking at Kendo's and I've found a 2014 leftover for $350 + bindings. Seems like a great deal considering Rossi 88's are $650 + bindings.
I've tried some Dalbello Aspect 100 for boots but they were not as comfortable as the Salomon's. Perhaps I'll try for a pair of Salomon 90 and see how comfortable they are.