Wates 78 for Intermediate/Advanced skier?

billski · Dec 30, 2010

riverc0il said:
If you are currently strictly groomers, you should get a performance carving ski,

This is what I have for groomers and ice/hardpack. I'm pleased as punch with them. 70 under foot. They let me do speed and stay in control., going into pow beyond 6" where I want/need to float, they suck. I'm lucky enough to have a quiver after all these years. No more "all season tires" for me. It's really true, not marketing hype that there are different tools for different jobs.
For east coast pow, I'm 96 under foot, which is good enough for me. For the few times I ski out west, I'll rent some fatties.

wa-loaf · Dec 30, 2010

If I didn't do the night league racing. I think my narrowest ski would be in the 80's. I've demoed enough skis the last few years in that size that are really nice carvers.

WWF-VT · Jan 3, 2011

adamh - the Watea 78 is my daily ski in a variety of conditions and would work well for you. I have the Fischer RX8 as my "performance carving ski" and have only used them once this season. There are very few days when you need to have a groomer oriented vs all mountain ski if you plan to advance and ski a variety of terrain.

Warp Daddy · Jan 3, 2011

So Adam good luck , you've gotten a myriad of opinions here from some excellent skiers and that can sometimes be more confusing than amusing.

So back on target---------- the absolute BEST way to discover is to listen to it all BUT BE ABSOLUTELY HONEST with YOURSELF regarding ability and then GO AND FIND A PLACE TO DEMO , Don't rush to judgement based solely on reading stuff . Much of the printed stuff is hype and opinions are fine BUT often biased, hell we ALL got them

Demo , demo demo is the best way

good luck , have fun and let us know how u make out -- but remember _ It's ALL good

RootDKJ · Jan 3, 2011

I mostly ski on piste groomed hard pack on an all-mountain mid-fat (Nordica Hot Rod Jet Fuel) and at 84mm width, I'm more confident on that ski then my 67mm width K2 Crossfires.

billski · Jan 3, 2011

Warp Daddy said:
So Adam good luck , you've gotten a myriad of opinions here from some excellent skiers and that can sometimes be more confusing than amusing.

So back on target---------- the absolute BEST way to discover is to listen to it all BUT BE ABSOLUTELY HONEST with YOURSELF regarding ability and then GO AND FIND A PLACE TO DEMO , Don't rush to judgement based solely on reading stuff . Much of the printed stuff is hype and opinions are fine BUT often biased, hell we ALL got them

Demo , demo demo is the best way

good luck , have fun and let us know how u make out -- but remember _ It's ALL good

Couldn't agree more. The last GS skis I bought, I demo'd for an entire season. In the end, I didn't care for any ski that was recommended either here(sorry guys), the press or in the shops. I fell in love with something that wasn't on anyone's radar...

Warp Daddy · Jan 3, 2011

Bill is right on target , my last 3 prs were NOT on my radar screen either until i was encouraged to Demo them in a trials with several other prs on more than one occasion

Beetlenut · Jan 3, 2011

Another thing about Demoing skis, is that if you are planning on buying, you can usually deduct the price of the demos from the price of the ski, if you stay with the same shop that you Demo from. I know Ski House in Somerset, Mass did this, and I think Anderson's in E. Greenwich does too. Some places will also let you exchange a pair of skis you purchased from them, for a different model or brand, if you don't like how they ski and you don't trash them on your first day out.

tjf67 · Jan 3, 2011

An all mountain ski is going to be your best bet. AC30 would be a great ski. You r not going to want a super stiff ski . A little softer ski is going to let you skid more. It will be easier and more fun to handle.

adamh · Jan 7, 2011

New 2010 Watea 84 in 167 on sale at a local shop for $465 with bindings. Good deal?

JimG. · Jan 10, 2011

adamh said:
New 2010 Watea 84 in 167 on sale at a local shop for $465 with bindings. Good deal?

Good deal. I just bought a pair of Watea 78's with bindings on proform for $490.

Been on the 78's for 3 days now, loving this ski. Great on hardpack snow, they also ski bumps very well. And not a disaster in powder either, especially compared to my old RX8's. For me, the 78's are a great overall eastern ski.

Nice to get back to a light woodcore ski with a simple 2 piece binding. I guess it's true for any new ski, but after skiing on 5 year old torsional noodles I feel like a new skier on the 78's.

One thing to go back to the original topic, these skis prefer to be skiied very aggressively. Hard chargers for sure. Not a racing ski, but they love to go fast.

jimmywilson69 · Jan 10, 2011

I came here today to post a thread about these skis and BAM here one is.

I would consider myself upper advanced skier. I can ski steeps, trees, etc. Bumps I am average at, and depending on how hard they are average may be a stretch.

I live and ski mostly in PA and ski hard pack, packed powder, you get the drift. I currently ski on a volkl super sport 4 star (which is beneath my ability now) and a K2 Appache Outlaw. The K2 ski's well as long as the snow is soft, even man made soft. If there is alot of hard pack or ice it wants to chatter, but I don't have issues keeping an edge if I drive it.

Is this Ski for someone of my ability? On Fisher's website it rates as a 5-8 skier. I thik I am a solid 8-9 skier.

thanks for the suggestions. And I will be demoing before I buy because my local shop has them to Demo.

JimG. · Jan 11, 2011

jimmywilson69 said:
I came here today to post a thread about these skis and BAM here one is.

I would consider myself upper advanced skier. I can ski steeps, trees, etc. Bumps I am average at, and depending on how hard they are average may be a stretch.

I live and ski mostly in PA and ski hard pack, packed powder, you get the drift. I currently ski on a volkl super sport 4 star (which is beneath my ability now) and a K2 Appache Outlaw. The K2 ski's well as long as the snow is soft, even man made soft. If there is alot of hard pack or ice it wants to chatter, but I don't have issues keeping an edge if I drive it.

Is this Ski for someone of my ability? On Fisher's website it rates as a 5-8 skier. I thik I am a solid 8-9 skier.

thanks for the suggestions. And I will be demoing before I buy because my local shop has them to Demo.

Demo them, you will like them.

I tend to ignore ratings in magazines and on websites in favor of personal experience.

One important issue...my old RX8's were 170 cm and I bought the Watea 78's in the 181 cm length. Although the tips and tails are about as wide as the RX8's, the waist is much wider and thus the sidecut much smaller. Go longer or I believe you will not be happy with the performance.

jimmywilson69 · Jan 11, 2011

Thanks Jim!

181 seems a bit long for me. I haven't skied a ski that long since the straight ski days. Even then, I had downsized to a 178 on my last pair of atomic's that were straight.

Like I said, I have the option of skiing them before I buy.

JimG. · Jan 13, 2011

jimmywilson69 said:
Like I said, I have the option of skiing them before I buy.

Don't pass up the opportunity.

eastcoastpowderhound · Jan 16, 2011

Get them while they're still around...the 78 isn't in the 2011/2012 line up. It's a great eastern ski for a solid intermediate through expert looking for one ski to do it all...but it's falling victim to the push towards wider waists. $465 with bindings is a great deal...normal price is $549 for the ski alone.

mondeo · Jan 20, 2011

jimmywilson69 said:
I came here today to post a thread about these skis and BAM here one is.

I would consider myself upper advanced skier. I can ski steeps, trees, etc. Bumps I am average at, and depending on how hard they are average may be a stretch.

I live and ski mostly in PA and ski hard pack, packed powder, you get the drift. I currently ski on a volkl super sport 4 star (which is beneath my ability now) and a K2 Appache Outlaw. The K2 ski's well as long as the snow is soft, even man made soft. If there is alot of hard pack or ice it wants to chatter, but I don't have issues keeping an edge if I drive it.

Is this Ski for someone of my ability? On Fisher's website it rates as a 5-8 skier. I thik I am a solid 8-9 skier.

thanks for the suggestions. And I will be demoing before I buy because my local shop has them to Demo.

I own the 94 and have demoed the 84. If I had a one ski quiver, the 84 would be near the top of the list. I don't, so it isn't. I wouldn't worry too much about the ability level on the website, they usually don't list anything other than race skis (or maybe their top powder and park skis) as a highest level ski.

WJenness · Jan 20, 2011

mondeo said:
I own the 94 and have demoed the 84. If I had a one ski quiver, the 84 would be near the top of the list. I don't, so it isn't. I wouldn't worry too much about the ability level on the website, they usually don't list anything other than race skis (or maybe their top powder and park skis) as a highest level ski.

I <3 the 84... It's my go to almost every day ski...

Trying to expand the quiver, so it's quickly going to lose most of it's usefulness, but it's still an awesome everyday ski.

-w

hammer · Jan 20, 2011

I demo'ed the Watea and Motive last March. I liked the Motive better but I'm pretty much a groomer skier. I'd consider the Motives as a lighter alternative to the Elan Magfires I ski on now but I'd rather work on adding a race-oriented ski first.

Wates 78 for Intermediate/Advanced skier?

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