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Anatomy of a Ski Test

Philpug

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From an ongoing series of articles from our main page:

Part 1: Pretest Briefing

After Pugski’s inaugural visit to the SIA trade show, we set off to Copper Mountain to start testing skis. Testing skis isn’t just a matter of going from tent to tent deciding what we want to try that's fresh and cool. Instead, as we receive information on each manufacturer and what they will be offering, I start to build a list of skis that are new, structurally improved, or carried over from the previous year. The night before the test, we go over which skis to try. I have a spreadsheet of the newest skis in categories from sub-80mm frontside chargers to 110mm+ powder skis and the most contested categories in between.

siaonsnow.jpg


Tricia and I have compiled a list of skiers we know and whose opinions we trust: women @SBrown and @SkiNurse, who both ski close to 100 days here in Colorado, and men such as @FairToMiddlin whose Layman’s Guides to skis have been very popular, @Drahtguy, our 11/10ths skier who loves to charge, plus annual stalwarts @Ron (aka Finndog) and@UGASkiDawg. To round out the opinions, we recruited @epic and @Brian Finch for their reviews from the eastern show at Stratton.

The night before the testing, we executed a game plan over sushi supplied by @coskigirl and a decent bit of libation along with the obligatory ShotzSki. My initial plan was to work left to right on our spreadsheet, hard snow skis to big powder skis, but looking out the window at Copper, it was snowing about an inch an hour and the forecast looked like it would do that all night. Ok … let's look at the list again and work right to left and start with the powder skis. But then we wake up to see that we only got 4 to 6 in., so we work from the middle out, 85mm up to 100mm skis. First-world ski testing problems, for sure.

From there we set up our “BSL buddies," two testers who have a similar boot sole lengths that can swap skis on the hill without having to return to the tent city between runs; this makes the process work more efficiently. We talked about how to take notes, where a audio recorder on a phone is a great tool for recording basic thoughts on a ski, and we discussed who a ski is for, who it is not for, and a tester's tip, something that sets that ski apart. This is all information that our readers have come to expect from us.

During the pre-test briefing, the question came up, What if a ski is just not good? We discussed, Well, why is it not good? Could it be the tune? If we get on a ski and it just feels “wonky” (an insider's technical term) and you think it might be the tune, get your BSL buddy to try it. Is it the tester or the ski? If your co-tester feels the same way, bring it back to the tent, explain what you felt, and swap with with another pair. I haven't been to a ski test where there wasn't at least one ski with a bad tune. It is not uncommon for these skis to get to Copper only hours before the show after being overnighted from a factory in Europe. Not a big deal, but it happens. Now, if the other tester doesn’t think it's the tune, this is when our job gets more involved…time to figure out who that ski is for. Ski the ski a little forward or neutral, find the sweet spot, something that should be done with every ski but even more so here.

Expect our Thumbnails, Layman’s Reviews, and such to start coming up over the next few days and weeks. This information will be compiled into more extensive long-term tests and combined with results from other demos such as the ones at Mt. Rose and Mammoth in California. We will also see reviews and quotes from other respected members on the site such as @dawgcatching, @WadeHoliday, and @SkiEssentials. All this will be brought to you this spring and into the fall when other buyer's guides appear so we can all compare notes. We will be able to see where we hit the nail on the head with a ski or we can talk about a ski that we missed.

Stay tuned for Part 2.
 

kickerfrank

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Very interesting. You really like to give each ski a solid chance. At an event with hundreds of models to try you would think if you get a bad tune you would say "there are too many skis to try to waste another run on that model".
 

cantunamunch

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Question: will all the reviews (including cross reviews) be grouped by model?

Very interesting. You really like to give each ski a solid chance. At an event with hundreds of models to try you would think if you get a bad tune you would say "there are too many skis to try to waste another run on that model".

Yeh, I seriously respect that. It helps both the builder and the buyer.
 

tball

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Thanks for all the effort that goes into the reviews. Sounds a bit too much like work to me. :) We owe you all a beer, thanks!
 

Muleski

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Thanks. You're no doubt putting a lot of thought and effort into the process, and the results will reflect it. Nice work!
 
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Philpug

Philpug

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We appreciate that everyone ants to hear what floated our boats and what, well were just OK. I know, more the former than the latter. Well it will take some time everyone is excited to pass along the info but we all headed to Aspen to attend the Gathering. Please be patient, this IS next years gear, we will have plenty of time over the next few months to talk and compare and contrast. Part 2 of the series will be up shortly. So in the meantime, put your inner Varucca Salt on hold (I want it now...) and we will reporting soon enough, but you can also grill @Brian Finch about what he felt from Stratton, 2017 gear teams from Stratton.
 

Gerry Rhoades

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It'll be great when it's out, but you won't have any "geezer" input.:D
 

NESkiBum

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Thanks for all your effort. Looking forward to getting out on a few of these skis with some rep friends over the next few months and interested to see your take on things as well.
 

AmyPJ

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I've skied the Kenja enough now that I feel I could almost write a decent review, but what I'm really hoping is that some of the ladies skied it at the test to write a review that I can tag along on :rolleyes: OR, the Kendo if any of the guys skied it.
 

SBrown

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Part 2: Getting on the Snow

After all your preparation, you finally get to the testing grounds. It can be overwhelming, with close to 100 tents in front of you, like a foreign market where all the vendors are hawking their wares. It is tough to stick to your game plan; bright and shiny things with bindings are distracting.

siatentcity.JPG


First things first, try to start with a ski you are familiar with; in fact, this goes for anyone demoing skis. Starting with a ski you know sets the tone for the day. Also, remember you are demoing the snow as much as the skis. If you are using a BSL buddy, as mentioned in Part 1, you can take two demos that complement each other from the same category or maybe two from different categories.

Another point from Part 1, What if a ski has a bad tune? This did happen again, unfortunately; one of the skis we wanted to focus on was railed in the forebody. I am not sure if the rep knew it before we took the ski out, but a few of us were on some bad skis. We were able to discern why the ski wasn't skiing well, but how many didn’tknow and just thought the skis weren't very good? We did go back to this manufacturer on Day 2, and the skis lived up to (and even surpassed) our expectations.

Comparing notes on the lift is essential; as I have said, there are no unbiased reviews, anyway. Talking about a ski saves a lot of time. It gives other testers a heads up as far as what to expect, but it doesn't limit aspects they might look for. In addition, the newer demo bindings from every manufacturer are so much easier to adjust with their tool-less design, it makes our jobs easier and quicker … hypothetically, of course, since all bindings should be adjusted by a certified technician.

There are boots at these demos, too. It is pretty cool to see testers out there skiing in two different boots from two different manufacturers. Boots need as much attention as skis, but Pugski.com is still a relatively young site and we just don’t have the staffing, so at this point we are leaving the boot testing to sites like America’s Best Bootfitters.

bootroom.JPG


One thing: Copper Mountain might think a little harder about preparing for this event, one that showcases the mountain to ski shops and industry press. There are weekend-type skier numbers but it feels like things are staffed for a regular midweek day. Business as usual is not quite good enough.
 

Tricia

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I see images.
 

SBrown

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Hmmm. I see images. Does anyone else see images?
 

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