patentcad
New member
If you read my review of the Volkl 5 Star above, you'll see how blown away I was by this new ski. I've skiied on about 5-6 different 'shaped' skis, but none that seemed to live up to the considerable hype surrounding this new technology. When you read about a new ski that's going to revolutionize skiing, that racers are taking advantage of with major technique changes, yada yada, you figure its going to be a real eye opener. Until this Volkl, I found the shaped skis I had tried rather disappointing - certainly nothing to live up to such intensive advance billing. But the Volkls were an absolute revelation to me - they really improved the skiiing experience considerably with their carving ability, turnability and stability at speed, all at a much more managable length than the 201 to 205's I have skiied for nearly 20 years- a whopping 30cm shorter, yet still longish by today's standards @ 175. I'm loving this. It's like I fell asleep, woke up and it's a whole new ballgame. The Salomon Ellipse boots also amazed me with their comfort/performance blend which seems to stem partly from a combination of snowboard and ski boot technologies.
Can somebody enlighten me on what I've been missing here? What's the difference between a 'cap' ski and a non-cap design? Are all the skis on the market today 'shaped'? Are they really inherently superior to the old laminated construction? Do they last longer? Do skis still lose their 'zing' after X days, and is 'X' now a bigger number? I've always enjoyed gear of all kinds and the technical side of it. Let's face it, when you get down to it if the gear sucks the experience won't be nearly as good as it is when you have the right equipment - which is why I'm so adamant that a 'great deal' on ski gear is extremely illusory if you don't get fitted properly or some shop sells you an inappropriate ski.
I'm also hearing that the 5* isn't ideal in powder. Will it be just as good as my old GS skis were or do I need another pair in the quiver for powder days? Can I still have fun on the Volkls in deep (18"+) powder? I'd classify my powder skiing as advanced, perhaps one notch below my hardpack skiing through sheer lack of days, but once I get a day under my belt I can link smooth turns top to bottom without expending too much energy - a technique breakthrough I had at Grand Targhee one day in 1995 that I'll never forget : ).
Can somebody enlighten me on what I've been missing here? What's the difference between a 'cap' ski and a non-cap design? Are all the skis on the market today 'shaped'? Are they really inherently superior to the old laminated construction? Do they last longer? Do skis still lose their 'zing' after X days, and is 'X' now a bigger number? I've always enjoyed gear of all kinds and the technical side of it. Let's face it, when you get down to it if the gear sucks the experience won't be nearly as good as it is when you have the right equipment - which is why I'm so adamant that a 'great deal' on ski gear is extremely illusory if you don't get fitted properly or some shop sells you an inappropriate ski.
I'm also hearing that the 5* isn't ideal in powder. Will it be just as good as my old GS skis were or do I need another pair in the quiver for powder days? Can I still have fun on the Volkls in deep (18"+) powder? I'd classify my powder skiing as advanced, perhaps one notch below my hardpack skiing through sheer lack of days, but once I get a day under my belt I can link smooth turns top to bottom without expending too much energy - a technique breakthrough I had at Grand Targhee one day in 1995 that I'll never forget : ).