I agree with Max on many of my issues being me rather than the skis!!
Just a couple of follow on points. First I still own a pair of the IC 160's and Harald did actually ski them for a seaosn and loved those skis. As Head produced some great skis that were stiffer and had more high end performance, Harald gravitated to them, starting with the the ISL, ISL Chip and then the Head SS when it first came out.
On the SS versus the Icon TT 80 there are a few reasons why Harald was higher on the TT 80 versus the old supershape. I own all three skis, the TT80, the old SS and the new SS with Kers. The big issue that I had with the old SS is that the tails did not like to release and this cut down on their quickness in fast slalom turns. It was also a bit of an issue in bumps. The TT 80 has less sidecut in the tails and it releases much better and vs the old SS it is a beter ski in bumps and it is faster in full on slalom turns (even with a wider TR). The new SS with Kers seems to have eliminated the hookyness of the tails and the ski releses much faster. For pure high speed slalom carving it is vastly superior to the old one and to the TT 80. Having said that, the TT 80 may be the best bump ski around. It is quick as can be, no hookiness to the tails and it doesn't have the tail pop that the SS with Kers has (wich is great on groomed but a handful in bumps).
Sure HH wants to sell his skis in inventory each year, but this has become more and more a service he is providing to his customers. The business has gotten so competitive that he is only buying a small number of skis each year and it is hardly a profit center for them. Having been with Harald when he is demoing skis, I can tell you that he will not ski on or sell a ski that he doesn't think is excellent or at least very good.
I hope to demo the movement Jams whenn I am out skiing iwth Harald in early December. From what I can tell talking to HH and Diana it sure seems like a great ski.
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