Mid 80s skis for Southwest PA

[MikeS_Likes2SKI]

Hi Ski Talk friends,

I am looking to upgrade my equipment for next season. I ski almost exclusively at Hidden Valley in SW PA with my wife and kids, so pretty small hills overall. I am comparing several SkiTalk-recommended skis and wondering if you all can help me narrow down my choices or point out something obvious I have missed. I am looking at refining my carving technique, but easily ski all the terrain in Hidden Valley and 7 Springs, and I am not so much into moguls, so pretty much always on-trail unless we get big fresh snow. I want something that turns easy when skiing with the kiddos (9 and 7), but has plenty of range for when I am out by myself going at a higher pace. I have avoided the bigger brothers of most of the skis below as I assume these will behave a bit better at slower speeds, but will have enough range for the smaller hills here in SW PA.

I am 6'3", 175 pounds. The boots are Nordica Pro Machine 110.

Head Shape E-V10 (177)
Nordica Steadfast 85 (179)
Salomon Stance 84 (177 or 185)
Kastle PX81 (179)
Rossignol Experience 86 Basalt (176)


Thanks in advance for the feedback.
Mike

 

[Cheizz]

Maybe look at actually narrower carvers. Why go all-mountain if you will stay on groomers? More fun, stability and performance to be had that way.

 

[MikeS_Likes2SKI]

Maybe look at actually narrower carvers. Why go all-mountain if you will stay on groomers? More fun, stability and performance to be had that way.

Thanks for the reply. I am curious if you have any suggestions. My research so far leads to me to see either skis that are very beginner-focused or expert-focused and not many options in the upper intermediate/advanced category.

Two that come to mind are;
Head Shape e-V8 and K2 Disruption 78C

I assume something like the Head SuperShape e-Rally might be a bit of a handful at slower speeds. Is that a bad assumption?

 

[Cheizz]

The e-Rally is not a handful at all. Put it on your list. Völkl Deacon 72 too, looks more demanding on paper than it actually is. Skis very easy and will propel you to great technique.

 

[Tony Storaro]

Thanks for the reply. I am curious if you have any suggestions. My research so far leads to me to see either skis that are very beginner-focused or expert-focused and not many options in the upper intermediate/advanced category.

Two that come to mind are;
Head Shape e-V8 and K2 Disruption 78C

I assume something like the Head SuperShape e-Rally might be a bit of a handful at slower speeds. Is that a bad assumption?

Listen to @Cheizz . Go skinny. 85 mm is a fat ski for groomers.

 

[cantunamunch]

Maybe look at actually narrower carvers. Why go all-mountain if you will stay on groomers? More fun, stability and performance to be had that way.

Because the 'groomers' in question aren't euro pistes; they're much less groomed and they have a disturbing tendency to be very soft.

Secondly there's simply no vertical to speak of.

Talking of soft HV has had exactly one full overnight freeze in the past week. One tomorrow and Friday and then it's 20C for three days. Any carver soft enough to noodle around with kids is going to be complete misery in 'snow' like that.

I think OPs original list is pretty appropriate for where and what he will ski.

 

[JWMN]

I have friends on the Rossi 86 Basalt and they love it. However, these are being replaced next year by a new model, the Arcade, and it is even cheaper and these guys love them! Check it out here.

Hi Ski Talk friends,

I am looking to upgrade my equipment for next season. I ski almost exclusively at Hidden Valley in SW PA with my wife and kids, so pretty small hills overall. I am comparing several SkiTalk-recommended skis and wondering if you all can help me narrow down my choices or point out something obvious I have missed. I am looking at refining my carving technique, but easily ski all the terrain in Hidden Valley and 7 Springs, and I am not so much into moguls, so pretty much always on-trail unless we get big fresh snow. I want something that turns easy when skiing with the kiddos (9 and 7), but has plenty of range for when I am out by myself going at a higher pace. I have avoided the bigger brothers of most of the skis below as I assume these will behave a bit better at slower speeds, but will have enough range for the smaller hills here in SW PA.

I am 6'3", 175 pounds. The boots are Nordica Pro Machine 110.

Head Shape E-V10 (177)
Nordica Steadfast 85 (179)
Salomon Stance 84 (177 or 185)
Kastle PX81 (179)
Rossignol Experience 86 Basalt (176)


Thanks in advance for the feedback.
Mike

 

[Dos-Equis]

I ski just south of you at whitetail/roundtop/etc and I tend to agree that low-mid 80s is the sweet spot for our area. Theres just too much thaw (and resulting mank) to justify a skinny carver IMO.

Now your question is whether you want a skinny all mountain ski that carves well for its category or a fat carving ski.

 

[gwasson]

I am 6'3", 175 pounds. The boots are Nordica Pro Machine 110.

Nordica Steadfast 85 (179)
Salomon Stance 84 (177 or 185)
Kastle PX81 (179)
Rossignol Experience 86 Basalt (176)


Thanks in advance for the feedback.
Mike

The Nordica Steadfast 85 is a really great ski. I am slightly shorter than you (5'10") but about 20 lbs heavier. I would buy it in the 174cm length.

I'm curious why you are looking at such long lengths of skis. The ski length is better based on weight rather than height, which is how I suspect you are sizing them.

 

[GB_Ski]

I'm 15# lighter than you, for pure groomer, I would not choose any of them. They are too longer and too wide.

Go with 170ish length and sub 75mm skis with <14m radius. Head Supershape e-Magnum, Rossignal V-xx series. They will serve you well.

 

[MikeS_Likes2SKI]

Thanks to everyone for the replies so far. Some of my rationale for the selected skis.
1. While I said groomers, maybe I should have said on-trail, as I would say our snow conditions are extremely variable from ice to mashed potatoes, sometimes in the same day. I currently spend most of my days on older Elan Amphibio Waveflex 12Ti (74mm waist, 176cm length, 15.7m radius) and one of the noticeable downsides of them is in a bit of new snow or beaten up snow late in the day they get bounced around alot and feel to get hung up in anything less than firm snow, so I was looking for a bit more variable snow performance with the additional width.
2. I have a set of K2 Apache Recons (78mm waist, 177cm length, 18m radius), that for the shortcomings of the Elan, they make up for. However, their ability to initiate a turn at slow speeds is pretty terrible compared to the Elan.

I am trying to find something that turns like the Elan, but has the smoothness and ability to handle junkier snow (which we have a lot of) like the K2. Not sure how or if this changes anyone's feedback.

I was hoping PhilPug or one of the testers of the skis listed would share some insight having skied them all.

 

[Cheizz]

I have skied them all, except the Kästle. In terms of snow conditions, we have the same here in Europe: rock hard stuff to slush and bumps. Basically spring conditions. I use narrow (< 80 mm) carving skis for that and I prefer them to wider 80-something skis. The control, edge grip, responsiveness, and precision of the narrow carving skis is something that I would rather have and lose out a little bit at the end of the day in the ability to glide over 3d mush than the other way around. For me, a narrow carving ski is the norm/default though, so I feel completely comfortable on them. Your situation might differ, of course.

 

[MikeS_Likes2SKI]

I have skied them all, except the Kästle. In terms of snow conditions, we have the same here in Europe: rock hard stuff to slush and bumps. Basically spring conditions. I use narrow (< 80 mm) carving skis for that and I prefer them to wider 80-something skis. The control, edge grip, responsiveness, and precision of the narrow carving skis is something that I would rather have and lose out a little bit at the end of the day in the ability to glide over 3d mush than the other way around. For me, a narrow carving ski is the norm/default though, so I feel completely comfortable on them. Your situation might differ, of course.

Cheizz,

Your snow conditions matches what I think we experience here. Given my size and perceived ability, upper intermediate-advanced but not quite expert, do you have some recommendations?

 

[Cheizz]

Cheizz,

Your snow conditions matches what I think we experience here. Given my size and perceived ability, upper intermediate-advanced but not quite expert, do you have some recommendations?

I already made some suggestions (post #4 in this thread). The e-Rally especially seems great for your use case and level.

 

[MikeS_Likes2SKI]

@Philpug and @Andy Mink - Any final input from you guys as I think you have skied all the things on my original list at the top of the post. Would love your input as ski testers who have tried all of these.

 

[Andy Mink]

@Philpug and @Andy Mink - Any final input from you guys as I think you have skied all the things on my original list at the top of the post. Would love your input as ski testers who have tried all of these.

Of that list, I would lean toward the Rossi Experience 86 but in the Ti version if you can still find them. They give a wide range of capability but aren't overly demanding. As noted above they are being replaced by the Arcade line and I haven't been on those yet.

If you want something easier the Nordica but you'll be giving up some power.

The V10 is great as a wide carver but personally I lean towards the more all mountain shapes. Not that it can't be used in bumps and chop.

For what you describe I'd go with a more all mountain narrow wide ski as opposed to a wider carvy ski.

 

[MikeS_Likes2SKI]

@Andy Mink - Do you think the Basalt version will be too soft? It seems pretty widely available at great deals. Would you do the 176 or 185 at my size?

A few other options I see a lot of at Hidden Valley are the Volkl Deacon 79 and 80. Any opinions on either of those?

 

[fundad77]

I use the Stance 80 as my teaching ski in Pennsylvania. It's a super easy ski to carve on with a very high performance ceiling considering the budget price. My daily is the Kendo 88 which is an amazing ski at any price.

 

[MikeS_Likes2SKI]

@fundad77 The Stance 84 is in my sights as well. I have not skied it by the 177 seemed short in length when I saw it in the story, almost felt like a 175. The 185 it about at eyebrows for me and I worry that longer radius won't be ideal. Thoughts on length? What length do you ski vs. your height?

 

[Andy Mink]

@Andy Mink - Do you think the Basalt version will be too soft? It seems pretty widely available at great deals. Would you do the 176 or 185 at my size?

A few other options I see a lot of at Hidden Valley are the Volkl Deacon 79 and 80. Any opinions on either of those?

It's hard to say as I'm 50# heavier than you. Not that skis have a cutoff point where they work for one weight and not for another. If you're looking for longer turns and more stability go longer. Shorter, more playful go with the 176. Again, If you like to drive a ski you'll be happier with the Ti. If you like to ride the ski and just cruise, the Basalt will be fine.

I haven't been on the Deacons.