Ski Recommendation: 50% Bumps, 30% Natural Snow Trails, 20% Groomers

[riverc0il]

This is accurate. The AC3 is great on the terrain I truly prefer - i.e.natural snow trails with crud, powder, soft moguls, etc. In icey firm bumps - not so good. Still manageable, just wish I had something lighter and a tad softer. As a SNE skier, hard icey bumps are the most commonly found surface off the groomers.

ah, i think i have identified your problem. hard icy bumps suck no matter what ski you slide on ;-) i know, i know... not much to choose from in SNE. but that may be more of an issue than your skis is what i am getting at. i used to ski hard icy bumps at cannon all the time. i have no tolerance for that crap any more, i would rather ski groomers than bash scraped down crappy bumps.

 

[Dirk109]

What about an Atomic Nomad?

 

[JimG.]

ah, i think i have identified your problem. hard icy bumps suck no matter what ski you slide on ;-) i know, i know... not much to choose from in SNE. but that may be more of an issue than your skis is what i am getting at. i used to ski hard icy bumps at cannon all the time. i have no tolerance for that crap any more, i would rather ski groomers than bash scraped down crappy bumps.

Well I agree with the hard icy bumps sucking part; but assume we're going to ski them anyway.

I'm older now and just can't zipperline hard icy bumps anymore...it's too hard on my body. I need some turn shape and a little carve when conditions are like that. That's exactly why I went back to a race bred ski with more sidecut. At 170cm I can turn those suckers so fast it doesn't really look like I'm carving much, but I do just enough to keep speed under control and not pound myself to death.

I could not do that with my old Dynastar twin tips...it was ski the zipper or don't ski bumps. Those skis were not great at carving even a little bit, just enough to get by. And that isn't enough for me anymore. I'm much happier with my new skis, and I still have my older ones for soft snow/spring bump days. And my old ski will be just perfect for when those days arrive.

My point is that the choice of ski does make a big difference even if conditions are uniformly crappy.

 

[jack97]

Well I agree with the hard icy bumps sucking part; but assume we're going to ski them anyway.

I'm older now and just can't zipperline hard icy bumps anymore...it's too hard on my body. I need some turn shape and a little carve when conditions are like that. That's exactly why I went back to a race bred ski with more sidecut. At 170cm I can turn those suckers so fast it doesn't really look like I'm carving much, but I do just enough to keep speed under control and not pound myself to death.

I could not do that with my old Dynastar twin tips...it was ski the zipper or don't ski bumps. Those skis were not great at carving even a little bit, just enough to get by. And that isn't enough for me anymore. I'm much happier with my new skis, and I still have my older ones for soft snow/spring bump days. And my old ski will be just perfect for when those days arrive.

My point is that the choice of ski does make a big difference even if conditions are uniformly crappy.

Makes perfect sense on why you choose the rx8, get the most out the ski based on conditions and how you want to ski them.

 

[JimG.]

Makes perfect sense on why you choose the rx8, get the most out the ski based on conditions and how you want to ski them.

I really believe your choice of ski is most important when conditions are firm. Because that is when all of your technical flaws and limitations are amplified.

 

[jack97]

Yet another soft all mountain ski

Greg,

Totally forgot about this other ski; K2 apache x. It's still new that you might be able to demo it to see if you like. IIRC it does come in flat (no integrated bindings). Supposely the k2's axis series has a wooden constuction core (tri axial) that allows a softer flex but still mantains torsional stiffness. Don't know if the new series follows the same construction just a thought if you're gun shy about buying a rossi b1 without demoing it.

FWIW, when I take my volkl g3 out in the firm bumps, my ankles will feel pain by the middle of the day. With the softer k2, I feel no pain, well at least in the ankles.

 

[Greg]

ah, i think i have identified your problem. hard icy bumps suck no matter what ski you slide on ;-) i know, i know... not much to choose from in SNE. but that may be more of an issue than your skis is what i am getting at. i used to ski hard icy bumps at cannon all the time. i have no tolerance for that crap any more, i would rather ski groomers than bash scraped down crappy bumps.

Well I agree with the hard icy bumps sucking part; but assume we're going to ski them anyway.

Some nice manmade coated the bumps last night which allowed me to let loose a little bit. I think the sliggishness I've been feeling up to this point may have been more of a result of me sheepishly navigating the icey bumps we've been on up to this point. The better surface allowed me to let them run faster which resulted in a bit more dramatic A&E. I guess practicing on icey moguls does pay off when you get on some that are a bit more forgiving.

 

[ALLSKIING]

I think you are asking to much from one ski. For how much you love the bumps and how often you ski them I think you should have a "bump" ski. Just take both skies when you head up...For bump lovers a bump ski is mandatory IMO.

 

[Greg]

I think you are asking to much from one ski. For how much you love the bumps and how often you ski them I think you should have a "bump" ski. Just take both skies when you head up...For bump lovers a bump ski is mandatory IMO.

My issue with that is flailing around getting to/from the bump fields. For night skiing at Sundown where I hit the moguls exclusively, yeah a bump ski would be great. But at other places it would still be nice to have a ski that's manageable outside the bumps. In reality, I really don't need something else; I just like to try new equipment, I guess. And as we all know it's really the operator, not the equipment.

 

[snoseek]

It seems like a lot of skis have x-tra weight added on with built in binding systems and whatever there new technology is. I ski a 177 4 frnt stl, and they are so light and nimble. 82 in the middle make them the perfect e.c. one ski quiver. They do great on hardpack, and while i have older g.s. skis, i never use them. These skis are constructed similar to how skis were made 20 years ago (flat tops, sidewalls, wood core) but with a sidecut. sometimes less is more.

 

[hrstrat57]

karma?

Greg,

I love the RX 8's have both 170 and 175.....

but I'm wondering for what you want to do perhaps try Volkl Karma's? I'm not a bumper, those days are gone, but I tried em last year in 177 and loved em on groomers and a bit of boot top deep.....

My thoughts were I would have liked em better in 184.....I am 6' 185lbs

I've heard some good things about Rossi scratch too, but haven't been on em