Best mid or 'fat' ski that can still hold an edge on hard snow in a pinch

The Rossi is great for out East, but out West it wears me out too quick in the 'off-piste' terrain (crud, powder, deeper snow). Hardpack, ice, moguls, typical eastern ski conditions... I love my Rossi. But I think that 8800 would be great out here too. I know it was awesome out west. I got to take it on some groomers and lay down some nice carves with it, both longer and shorter turns and it did well.

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...Don't know if you've made a final decision yet patentcad, but have read/heard great reviews about Nordica's TopFuel, a 05/06 ski that came out ~March.

$.01

ya i now this is an old thread and everything but here is my opinion about getting fat skis, skiing on groomed snow is easy, got good ski for groomed really easy, got fat skis just easy. Skiing carvin ski on crud/powder hard... skiing a fat ski in it easy.
I hope that made sense, im just trying to say that i think groomed skiing is easy and boring so i would rather get a ski that worked good on powder/ crud.

i wouldn't recommend any one ski much groomers on a pow or fat ski. mid-fats with decent side cut are decent, but if you're interested in groomers you gotta go GS style ski. so all groomers would be a GS styled ski, combo would be the mid-fat, and almost exlcusively natural and pow would be the fat. not a lot of days to bust out the fatty in the northeast though.

I second the Volkl 724 EXP. Just got a pair at the end of the season and love them. Mine are a bit on the short side (170), so I need to really let them run to pick up speed. They're great on edge, considering they are a mid-fat. On true hardpack/icy conditions, I'll probably break out the Platinum's, but if you don't know what to expect for conditions, the 724 can handle it.

On the bang-for-your-buck scale, what wins? 724's or 8000's? I've demoed the 724, and loved it (side by side with a B2, which I hated), but I'm partial to Dynastars, jsut because I am. I saw the Elans mentioned, too- worth checking out?

ctenidae, here's my personal take... your milage may vary. i thought the 724's were better for someone occasionally doing pow/crud/natural snow but prefers groomers. exactely the opposite for 8000s which were solid on the groomers but loved not groomed so so very much. also, the volkl is much much more "damp" and heavier compared to the 8000 even though both are wood core. 8000 is "softer" and easier to flex and i would prefer them in the bumps. take my comments coming from someone who is partial to the 8000 and bought two pair last season also related, i also hated the B2 in all regards which is consistant with your thoughts on the ski. elans are definitely worth checking out, i really liked the m666 but it wasn't my thing for O/B and off piste. somewhere between the 724 and the 8000 in my opinion. definitely preferred the m666 to the 724.

bang for the buck is a hard value to use as i think they are all at a similar price point. volkl has a new ski coming out for 05-06 that is suppose to be the latest and greatest all around mid-fat blah blah blah while the 8000 remains unchanged except for the book center mark which is 1.5 cm's difference from the previous year for what reason i don't know. i like the original boot center mark better and if i decide to re-mount i will have them adjust accordingly (okay, they would have to any ways to redrill ).

riverc0il said:

i also hated the B2 in all regards which is consistant with your thoughts on the ski.

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i wonder if they are going to change those, ever single person i talked to hated them

Demo the Head monster I-75 chip lot's of fun.
But without seeing you ski or having any info on How you ski it is almost imposable to help you out...now don't get wrong here any one can buy a high end ski but can they use it?
You asked about edege hold that tells me that you seem to have an idea on how to get a ski up on edege and carve.
Also Keep E'm Sharp!
Demo-Demo-demo!

I love my Rockets...and with a good tune, I'm able to edge quite well even on the steepest hard pack

The only downside is the zipper in the bumps...but then again I got'em at 185

patentcad said:

I'm an Eastern skier. My main skis are Volkl Five Stars. Love them, but I'm looking for something more suited to powder and junk, but that can also hold an edge on harder snow in a pinch. I'll mostly be bringing them out on soft snow days, so that's not a big priority. But ability to float in junk and powder is a MUST. I'd prefer a ski/binding combination that is available at a good discount at the moment. Any suggestions welcome. Thanks in advance.

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Nordica Hot Rod Hot Fuel new for this season. I got mine in March and love them.

http://www.nordica.com/ski/scheda.php?s=3&target=445&