How do you pick a ski size?

[skijay]

I need skis. I have been blading for about 5 yrs and have each season have bought new Salomon SnowBlades, but this season I want to try skiing again.

I was an advanced skier, last skiing on 203CM straight skis. I have been out of the ski shopping scene for about 5yrs. I want to get a pair of shaped.

I will either buy a pair of demos or used. Leasing is out. All that I have found is entry level equipment. I have found some skis that I am interested in, but am not sure what size to go with.

How do you pick a ski size??? I ski on 100cm Salomon blades and I was told at the ski shop that for a pair of Salomon 1080 skis (this is what I am looking to buy) I could go with a 160cm.

I am 5'10 and weigh about 160lbs. 160cm sounds skind of short.

Thanks,

Tim

[Starter Jackets Rule!]

hummm. i am 6'1" @ 210 lbs and one of my skis mesure 160. cm.
Sj. What type of skiing do you mostly do?
I know that we all cant afford more than one pair of skis.
The skis i use go like this.
For all around Skiing i ski the Head 1100SW @177cm 16.6m TR.
For High speed A salomon "New raceing" team GS ski @187cm. 21m TR.
For powder days and skiing trees and bumps A Line FX7.3 Ti. @ 175 cm. Tr.?
for teaching and short raidous turns an Atomic SL-9 @ 160cm. TR.11m
The best way to figure out what to get is DEMO-DEMO-DEMO!
Find a shop that will let you put the cost of a demo toward the purchace of a new ski.
or check you local Mtn. and see when they are having an on snow demo.
One thing don't get a ski just because a "Friend" says it is the best.
That is just plain foolish. Get ouy and find out for your self.
and have fun demoing.
Paul.

[riverc0il]

you probably should demo a few different sizes, but i think you'll probably be looking around 170 +/-10 depending upon the ski and your preferences. i would recommend not buying used/demo skis but rather wait for season ending sales in late spring and summer in which you can score 50% or more off brand new top line skis. you can spend the summer demoing various models and sizes that way instead of antieing up for beat up gear that may not meet your needs without having tried it out first.

[ChileMass]

Tim - go for some demos, like rivercoil said. I am going out on 175cm skis this year for the first time since I was about 12. Gonna be interesting to see how shaped skis work - I've only tried them a couple times and hated them both times.

My suggestion is try a bunch and see how the new technology works with your technique. I also had a very detailed conversation with one of the senior instructors at Wawa a few weeks ago, and he had some definite ideas about the difference between skiing on old-fashioned straight skis and newfangled shaped ones. Maybe even invest in a lesson or two - ??

[skijay]

rivercOil....Great Advice, and that was my plan to purchase last Summer, but never did! I only want used or demo because I want to try skiing again. Part of me was wanting to attempt snowboarding also. I really do not want to spend $600+ on skis, only to have them sit in my basement while I find out I like blading and boarding better. I like Snowblades because you can pick them up year end for $200 to $250. I end up selling the previous season's ones for about $100 at the end of the season. I would rather have some skis with cosmetic damage for $300 that I can use for a season or two.

[Bandit2941]

You can get brand new ski's for 300 at end of the season sales! Or on Ebay all the time. My friends Atomic C8's were had on ebay for 250. This year I could have gotten a brand new C9 at local swap for $299(both of these WITH bindings).

I just bought a brand new atomic R11 locally for $252 then got a binding from ebay for $135 - and that's a pretty high end ski.

I would recommend demoing and waiting around for the right deal. Don't spend $300 on used junk when you can have new for the same price.

[hammer]

Originally Posted by Bandit2941

My friends Atomic C8's were had on ebay for 250. This year I could have gotten a brand new C9 at local swap for $299(both of these WITH bindings).

How does your friend like the C8's? I bought a pair late last season from a local ski shop (unfortunately, not for $250) and I've only gone out 3 times since I bought them so I'm still not sure if I ended up with the right skis...

[riverc0il]

some dude is selling volkl p50 GS skis for under $100 on ebay to think i thought i got a super deal with 50% on my p50s when they were only one season old!!!

seriously, check out 2-3 year old skis on ebay. there really isn't much difference in the last 3 years except with binding integration and systems.

[First Tracks]

Originally Posted by riverc0il

there really isn't much difference in the last 3 years except with binding integration and systems.

Which I hate, personally. The "Shimanoization" of skiing is a disturbing trend, IMO. For example, last season I really, really wanted a pair of Salomon Scream 10 Hots, but that darned Pilot system ensures that I mount Salomon bindings on them. They would've made a marvelous AT ski, but I can't mount AT bindings on them.

To get back to the original poster, those Scream 10 Hots are 175 cm, as are a pair of Völkl Explosiv CMH Editions. Those two pair comprise my bread-and-butter quiver -- the Salomons for general use, and the Explosivs for pow. And I'm 145 lbs, 5'8", skiing aggressively.

[riverc0il]

agreed that binding system integration is a disturbing trend. i think each ski manufacturer could really go for one or two pairs of flagship skis with the binding integration and that's cool. but they keep rolling more and more integration out and reduces consumer choice (as marc experienced). also, it would be nice for the same skis to be available sans binding. then again, from an experience point of view, i love my volkl p50 motions... but i have nothing to compare them to so i don't know how much the binding system actually does or does not improve my ride.