Fess up...me first

[Svend]

As far as the bright yellow....for sure there are certain frozen things that WILL NOT show up on the tops skins.... whew!

Ahhh....nothing like the peace of mind that comes from taking a "nature break" piste-side, and not having anyone notice if your aim is off or mischievous breeze drifts in.  Just zip up and ski on......   

A most practical ski colour choice, Gary   

[Gary]

Ah indeed my good friend. I wouldn't have it any other way....I hate stopping and having to go in for a wee break....another nice thing about rockers is "you can see the shovels" which tend to stay above the snow when stopping to well...stare off into the trees while you pretend to be taking pictures! 

Now if only the mellow yellows would arrive I could inspect, measure, caress and make the appropropriate personal adjustments as need be.

G

[jim-ratliff]

As far as the bright yellow....for sure there are certain frozen things that WILL NOT show up on the tops skins.... whew!

Ahhh....nothing like the peace of mind that comes from taking a "nature break" piste-side, and not having anyone notice if your aim is off or mischievous breeze drifts in.  Just zip up and ski on......   

A most practical ski colour choice, Gary 

Unfortunately, Gary's reputation is that such "events" happen when he has on OTHER's skis.

Evidently he is much more careful with his own.

[Svend]

Ah-Ha! So that's how it is, eh? Charlatan! Thank goodness my BSL is too long for him to click into my skis (don't tell him I have rail bindings on two of my pairs....ssshhhh... .). 

[Gary]

Come to think of it....I really like trying other peoples skis!

Svend...I've skied everything you own.....they've been particularly well taken care of by me! 

Ok...so has either of you two "wet" your appetite over any new gear for this season?

Svend bought his Calgary groomer skis but have either of you given any thought to demoing some rockers this season?

G

[Svend]

Come to think of it....I really like trying other peoples skis!

Svend...I've skied everything you own.....they've been particularly well taken care of by me! 

You haven't tried my P-9s yet, and good luck getting your hands on 'em now, baby! 

Ok...so has either of you two "wet" your appetite over any new gear for this season?

Svend bought his Calgary groomer skis but have either of you given any thought to demoing some rockers this season?

Nope, nothing planned, but you never know what might fall into my lap one day    I won't seek them out because I don't want to be tempted.  I did demo the Sultan 85 and Sultan 94 at Louise with this April (and thanks again to you for getting me onto those!).  Those have a bit of rocker.  I really liked them both.  The 85's were a 178 length, and felt short, but very light, agile, snappy underfoot.  A ton of fun, very playful, great carving for a mid-80's ski.  The 94's were a 184 length, and felt so much like my Mythics that I took to them right away.  Loved them -- very stable, solid underfoot, fluid, damp, smooth, great edge hold on hardpack....very nice ski.  If I ever get the urge to replace my Mythics, I will look at those first.

Any ski purchases in our household this season will be for the girls -- new skis for A, and maybe new boots too; new boots for M.  That should keep me busy this fall.  Terryl and I don't need either skis or boots -- we both got new boots last season, and both have 3 pairs of skis which we are totally happy with.

Nice try, though.....

[jim-ratliff]

Come to think of it....I really like trying other peoples skis!

Svend...I've skied everything you own.....they've been particularly well taken care of by me! 

Ok...so has either of you two "wet" your appetite over any new gear for this season?

Svend bought his Calgary groomer skis but have either of you given any thought to demoing some rockers this season?

G

Nope.  I'm standing pat.  My Ullr's Chariots were a big improvement last year, there's still plenty of room for me to grow and catch up to them.  And planning on bringing my older pair of Watea 84's as my Colorado "narrow" ski.
SuperShape magnum for east coast (and HH camps/lessons).


And Lynn has the new pair of P8's.

[Gary]

Hey Jim...with the improvements you've made I'd love to see you on a 14 to 16m turning radius ski for inbounds carving. I'm curious to know what your impressions would be.

Has Lynn skied the P8 yet and if so...I'd love to hear her thoughts.
G

[jim-ratliff]

Hey Jim...with the improvements you've made I'd love to see you on a 14 to 16m turning radius ski for inbounds carving. I'm curious to know what your impressions would be.

Has Lynn skied the P8 yet and if so...I'd love to hear her thoughts.
G

My SuperShape Magnum IS a 13.5m turning radius, the Ullr's Chariot at 101 underfoot is still a 15m turning radius - and that's what I love most about the ski.  It's not a powder ski, but it does float me in powder very well and still turns quickly on soft groomed. 


With either one, I can sometimes make pretty good carved turns -- other times my hands drop down or my right hand drops back or I get lazy and don't transition enough weight and tip enough (and then my coach yells at me).  Other times, I'm amazed at how easily and quickly the skis went from one direction to the other.  At lazy, long carved turns I am really good (narrow railroad tracks, decent body angles, and all that stuff).
One of the things I want to improve this winter is short turns, really getting committed forwardiagonally down the hill so I can get earlier edge engagement.  Probably will take a lesson to work on that. 


Lynn's Progressor 8's were an early summer special in time for her birthday, she hasn't even taken the plastic off yet, but she had clearly outgrown the Head Every Thangs and the P8's were positively recommended from lots of places (an especially helpful assessment came from Svend's wife, Terryl).  It's getting hard to find a versatile (like the old Head iC160) ski with a low 70's waist for a light skier that will also handle east coast trees and hard groomed slopes. Complicated, in her case, by the fact that even with her skills she prefers to ski a bit slower and that makes bending many hard snow skis more difficult.

[Svend]

No, Lynn's Progressor 8's were after season special, she hasn't even taken the plastic off, but she had clearly outgrown the Head Every Thangs and the P8's were positively recommended from lots of places (especially Terryl's).  It's getting hard to find a versatile (like the old Head iC160) ski with a low 70's waist for a light skier that will also handle east coast trees and hard groomed slopes. Complicated, in her case, but the fact that even with her skills she prefers to ski a bit slower and that makes bending many hard snow skis more difficult.

Hey Jim -- I think the P-8s will suit just perfectly.  There is no metal in the layup, so they are not overly stiff laterally, but this also makes them light.  For such a light, agile ski, they have remarkable stability and fantastic edge grip.  Terryl found that with the railflex bindings at +1.5, they were rather unruly at speed.  But with the bindings back at center, the ski calmed right down and was super smooth and quiet.  If they are anything like my P-9s, they may have a rather lively feel and transmit a bit more vibration from the snow than Lynn may be used to, coming from a Head ski.....we will see.  Once I got used to that (all my other skis were more damp) and focused on the skis other positive attributes (there are a lot) then I didn't notice it after a while.  Lynn should ask Terryl or Gary about how the P-8s are in that regard.

Can't wait to hear her first report after a few days out on them.

Cheers,
Svend

PS -- make sure when she gets them tuned, that the shop keeps the edge bevels at 1 deg. base / 3 deg. side.  That is factory tune, and works brilliantly on this ski. 

[jim-ratliff]

Lynn also has a pair of Fischer Muangas (84 waist) that is just a lovely ski for her. I'm not sure exactly why, but she skis better and looks more comfortable on those everywhere than anything else I've seen her on in the past several years. These were the precursor to the Vision Zeal and then the KOA 84, and all of those were highly reviewed. They are light and soft, but still hold an edge very well.  I can only hope the P8's work as well east coast as the Muangas do out west.

[Gary]

Ok Svend...you're right ...I have not skied your NEW P9's but did the old....I stand corrected. I may sneak the new ones  out for a test run at HV this year  !

Jim...for sure turning those SS Mags with that radius should be a piece of cake for ya....the secret...shhh...don't tell anyone... turn the skis more up hill and shhhh....be patient...finish the turn...I like to use the airplane stalling analogy....the airplane reaches the peak of it's climb in a turn, almost stalling then just falls back towards the earth...that's it man.....just gotta be patient and finish the turn. The more pressure you create to the edges and counter you create, the shorter that turn becomes....Crap...I let the secret out of the bag. 

The P8s are one of those skis that does so much so well. I too think it's the perfect match for Lynn....give her lots of room to play and grow with..things I certainly look for in my ski purchases.

Svend's right on with the tunning advice...1 and 3 is perfect for that ski.
Lynn....they're still in the wrapper?

AND Missy Lynn.....where are you with boots for this season?

Best, G

[midwif]

Ok Svend's right on with the tunning advice...1 and 3 is perfect for that ski.
Lynn....they're still in the wrapper?

AND Missy Lynn.....where are you with boots for this season?

Best, G

Yup, still in the wrapper. Delayed gratification will make the first unveiling, oh so sweet!
And I have been on the 1/3 degree thingy for a while, but always nice to know advice on this issue is consistent across the board! A rare thing.

As for boots, well, I am VERY happy with lasts years Nordica Hot Rods. Fit my foot really nicely, but I am considering new liners for them. I switched my Nordica foam liners from the old Heads into the new Nordica shell.
But, it may be time to break in a new liner. Which won't be pretty. 
Once they have molded to ones foot, they are great. It's that initial ski days in them that are a bi**h.

Looking forward to hearing about everyone's ski adventures this winter. And perhaps we will be able to meet up here and there.

Lynn

[ToddW]

Lynn,

Nordica changed their foam last season.  It's a bit spongier than before, and probably easier to break in.  (Besides, there's no fit problem with the Nordica foam liners that can't be hacked away with a sharp knife.)

Use the lace up option rather than struggling to slide your foot into the liner ... except when you're starved for public attention 

[midwif]

Ooo, la la!
I like things that lace up!

(where's that ducking emoticon?)