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Buying first skis, too many options Last year was my first season skiing, and I picked it up pretty quickly and am comfortable on blues. Last year I used a combination of rentals and hand me down 12 year old Atomic Snoop Daddys. I ski mostly groomers here in Colorado but plan on doing a mix of groomed and powder. I want a one-ski quiver for the time being. I plan on getting out 10-12 times per season. I tend to ski pretty aggressively. My technique needs work but I have no problem focusing on that. I anticipate progressing pretty steadily and would prefer to err on the side of a ski that might be above my lowish intermediate level now if it means I won't outgrow it in a year or two. Male, 45, 5'6", 160 lbs. Budget not including bindings is $600ish. I go back and forth between Volkl M5 Mantra 96, Line Sick Day 94, K2 Mindbender 99, Nordica Navigator 90, Head Kore, and others. Suggestions appreciated!
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Dec 26, 2019 07:07
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So when I do buy my first set of skis, do they need a wax / tune before using them?
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Dec 27, 2019 15:55
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movax posted:How do I suck less at turning / make the transition from greens to blues / get comfortable going faster and not dropping back to plow turns? Last year was my first season of skiing and some tips that helped me progress to blues: - your weight should always be centered or even a little forward. Nothing fucks your day up faster than pulling back. But the hell of it is, that's the instinctual thing to do especially if you get out of your comfort zone via your speed or seeing an intimidating looking stretch in front of you. It's something I still always need to be conscious of. Shins pressing the front of your boots is a good guideline. - my personal experience was that greens were generally too slow for me to work on the transition from snowplow / pizza skiing to parallel skiing. Just gotta take your knocks on easier blues. - watch videos on YouTube. They'll help a very little bit, like as much as watching a video about how to ride a bike would help you do it. Ultimately it's about muscle memory and learning the feeling. Imagine teaching someone how to ride a bike; to you it's so easy and natural it's hard to even explain. So you say "balance! Keep pedaling!" But really the learner just has to find the balance themself. Keep working on getting on your edges in turns, do it over and over and fall down a lot and your body will learn it on its own eventually.
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Dec 28, 2019 04:12
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How to make time stop: On a related note, Telemark Pyrenees is an amazing site. I ordered these skis like 4 days ago, with bindings, which they mounted and sized for my boots and had it dispatched within hours. $43 shipping to Colorado. Ridiculous.
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Dec 30, 2019 23:52
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New ski day! https://i.imgur.com/rXAfeui.jpg Excited to take these guys out tomorrow! My first set of skis after a year+ of rentals. Huge props to Telemark Pyrenees. France-based but somehow cheaper than anywhere in the US even including shipping and it was under 5 days from order to delivery, overseas shipping and all. They even mounted and adjusted the bindings for my specific boots. Instantly made me a customer for life.
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Dec 31, 2019 08:21
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First day out on my new Line Sick Day 94s. Previously this year and last (my first season skiing) I was on basic rentals and 12 year old hand me downs. I'd consider myself a fast learning low-intermediate -- I've skied a total of 6 times before today and am comfortable on blues. Someone on another forum said that people from 10-20 years ago would regard modern skis as black magic and I get what they mean now. I was worried I wouldn't be able to tell much of a difference from what I had been using but it was night and day. I could carve turns! The control I had was astonishing compared to the rentals and those 2007 skis, which in comparison feel like planks I could kind of guide towards my general ideas but not in a really accurate or responsive way. Not sure how much to credit the skis themselves and how much is fresh wax and nice, new edges but it was easily my best and most enjoyable day skiing I've had. Really excited to go again Thursday and just generally see how much progress I can make this season. Gonna go for another couple lessons at some point and see if I can progress to blacks by late Feb. Skiing is fun af! E: also these bindings are about a million billion times better than anything else I'd used. Look Pivot 14s. Way easier to engage and undo and just great overall connection to the ski, really good feedback. regulargonzalez fucked around with this message at 00:53 on Jan 7, 2020 |
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Jan 7, 2020 00:50
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Oh hey, 3rd time out this season and broken fibula. Good times.
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Jan 9, 2020 20:39
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Yuns posted:drat! Sorry to hear that and hope you heal up soon. How did you do that? Person I was with really wanted to do this icy-rear end black. I'm low-mid intermediate and should have known better but that peer pressure.
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Jan 9, 2020 21:32
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Bilirubin posted:Sorry to hear it. Get well soon! Right at the top of the fibula actually, like an inch below the knee. My binding did release but I think a little too late and I definitely felt my knee twist in a bad way on impact.
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Jan 10, 2020 13:25
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Re: my broken leg Orthopedist said that it's a clean fracture of my fibula and I should be walking normally in 2 weeks or so and there's a chance I can ski again this season so that's my good news for today http://imgur.com/a/26BguvX
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Jan 14, 2020 08:09
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Mostly healed up from my broken fibula back in January. Looking to get back on my skis in another 10 days or so. Hopefully we'll have some snow at Purgatory by then...
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Feb 7, 2020 20:09
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Skiing tomorrow for the first time since I broke my fibula in early January. Wish me luck! Gonna do my best to break zero bones if possible.
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Mar 2, 2020 01:18
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First day skiing since I broke my fibula a year ago. Decided to sign up for a group lesson to get better and hopefully not break fibulas any more. I ended up being the only person in the low-intermediate class so I basically got a 2.5 hour private lesson for $99. Learned a lot! Didn't break any bones! Also my left leg and knee suck and I need to get this knee surgery I've been putting off, and bunion surgery. Purgatory Resort has to be one of the best kept secrets. It was as busy as I've ever seen it today and that means it's all of a 5 minute wait for the main lift that goes to the top of the mountain. Backside lifts were maybe 30 second lines. How's y'all's Monday? http://chattypics.com/files/shackbrowseUpload_49hmqz3x7x.jpg
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Jan 25, 2021 22:01
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Haven't posted in this thread in years, because four years into my ski journey after starting in my 40s, I hated it and never really had fun. This year I decided to really take it seriously and took more lessons, which was good, and bought a second hand pair of mid-80s skis to try instead of my mid-90s skis. That was a total game changer. I really, really don't think the trend of a mid-90+ "all-mountain, one ski quiver" is good for beginners. One, as a beginner or even low intermediate you're not going off-piste. You're working on your technique on green and blue groomers. My main skis are now 86mm wide Elan Wingman CTIs and if I could do it over again I'd probably go 82 instead. Too narrow is so much better than too wide at a low/intermediate level. First time I got on the Elans it was night and day compared to my 94 mm Sick Days. Got new boots this year too which helped just as much (after getting the fit dialed in after several visits). Skiing is fun as gently caress! This is the first year I've felt like I've really been in control of my skis and enjoyed the experience. At the start of the year, a steeper section of a moderate blue had me stopping to collect myself and pray. Now I'm crushing every blue and it's only lack of confidence that's keeping me off the mid-blacks Tldr: if you're a new skier and aren't enjoying it, do the following three things: - new boots with visits to the bootfitter until they fit perfectly - take lessons and practice your technique. Keep chanting "weight forward, weight forward, weight forward, weight on downhill leg on turns, weight on downhill leg on turns" as you're skiing until it finally becomes natural - don't go for that 98mm amazing all-mountain ski. Mid-80s max to start!
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Mar 20, 2023 01:26
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The Glumslinger posted:Even as a permanent advanced intermediate skier, I also prefer a narrower ski. I'm rarely ever able to time my trips for big powder days, so I'd rather optimize for carving on packed powder Yep. It's not too long ago that 86 mm was considered a good all-mountain width and my Wingmans are fine up to 3-4". If there's more then that, I can rent or get to the mountain an hour late and there will be plenty of packed powder to ski on every trail. And I'm kind of an Elan fan for life now. The left /right ski thing is absolutely legit as far as I'm concerned. These skis are magic.
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Mar 20, 2023 01:55
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We're supposed to get up to 3 more feet of snow this week at Purgatory. What a year. Current calendar shows Purg as only open on weekends after the first week of April but they've gotta extend at this point, yeah? E: Wolf Creek is supposed to get 30-50" this week but access from the west will surely be closed. Enjoy, South Fork bros. regulargonzalez fucked around with this message at 15:36 on Mar 20, 2023 |
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Mar 20, 2023 15:26
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Worst part of this time of year: ski season almost over, at least at Purgatory. After next week, just weekends through April and then kaput. Best part of this time of year: cheap skis. Between Canadian and European sites, there's a smorgasbord of stuff. Finally settled on a pair of Line Sakanas and Attack2 11 bindings (all I really need) for something like $530 USD shipped from Corbett's. Was a tough call between those and some Ripstick 106s for basically the same price from OutdoorXL. Other worst part: waiting until December to get on the new skis.
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Mar 27, 2023 05:40
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Picked up some Line Sakanas from Canada for cheap cheap. Skied them for the first time on Sunday. Funnest skis of all time. Sunday was gonna be my last day of the season but I had so much fun with the Sakanas I think I have to go up next weekend, 70 degree temps and soupy slush be damned.
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Apr 11, 2023 04:20
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Fly into Durango, the Million Dollar Highway is the most drop-dead gorgeous drive in the country. Especially if you can do it in the next week or two and see the colors.
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Oct 4, 2023 04:23
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Goddamn I love living in this part of the country. Middle of nowhere, it's the middle of loving everywhere. Weekend trips to slot canyons in Kaneb, Grand Canyon, Sedona, Moab / Canyonlands, Santa Fe, El Malpais, Flagstaff. Day trips to Bisti Badlands, Mesa Verde, Canyon of the Ancients, Chaco. Purgatory is fun, cheap, zero lines. Wolf Creek is fun, cheap, no lines, lots of snow. Silverton is Silverton. Telluride is Telluride (definitely not cheap tho).
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Oct 4, 2023 04:31
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Moot .1415926535 posted:Okay I’ll ask but are you in Colorado? I really don’t wanna mail skis around if I don’t have to. Someone tell me that Volkl Deacon 72s are trash skis, and be quick about it.
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Oct 21, 2023 02:54
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Anyone know what makes the Helly Hansen Steilhang $200+ better than the Alpha? I have an Alpha 3.0 that had a zipper break and I'm getting store credit at Backcountry, debating paying a bit extra to upgrade it it's worth it. Surprisingly hard to find any definitive answer though. They both have the same exterior materials and insulation type and amount. Main difference I can see is where the vents are at, pit vs chest.
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Nov 10, 2023 07:54
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Tip for any US people looking to buy some gear -- check Canada. I wanted to upgrade from my cheap Amazon goggles to the Smith 4d Mags but the cheapest I could find was $238. Corbett's had a pair of last year's model (literally the same in every way afaik) for $203 CAD which is $150 USD, plus no taxes and no shipping costs if you're ok with slowish + no signature required. https://skiisandbiikes.com/ is another good one to check. Can also find deals from Euro sites like snowcountry.eu and outdoor.xl
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Nov 17, 2023 00:40
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I feel like I must be missing something -- the 4 day Epic Pass is just flat out better and cheaper than the 4 day Ikon Pass, right? https://www.epicpass.com/pass-results/passes.aspx https://www.ikonpass.com/en/shop-passes/ikon-session-pass I'm in the 4 corners region, so Utah and CO Rockies are what I'd be eyeing. Epic: Vail, Breckenridge, T'ride, Park City $400 Ikon: Steamboat, Winter Park, Copper. $539
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Nov 17, 2023 18:45
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Time posted:I’m ready, for snowsports Me too but not quite needy enough for this, yet. 
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Nov 18, 2023 19:25
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huhu posted:I'm looking to bounce around between a few different resorts this year and spend a month at each. Curious what resorts yall would recommend for reasonably priced season tickets with small crowds in smaller towns/cities. I'm looking for anything west of Kansas. Would be up for going to Canada as well. I'd be hard pressed to call it a resort but Purgatory fits the rest of your description. Durango is the feeder town about 30 minutes away, the longest lift line I've ever seen is maybe 5 minutes but 1 minute or less is the norm. 1600 acres and I think 2000 vert. And Wolf Creek is drivable if you want some variety, and Silverton if you want high level backcountry E: time it for Snowdown, Durango's weeks-long winter festival in January. Tons of activities and super fun https://snowdown.org/ regulargonzalez fucked around with this message at 00:25 on Nov 20, 2023 |
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Nov 20, 2023 00:21
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I was promised 8-10 inches at Purgatory but it's all going to Wolf Creek. 90 minute drive but snow or 15 minute drive and rocks. Sigh.
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Dec 1, 2023 07:14
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Dec 14, 2023 12:28
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First time on the mountain this season, couldn't wait anymore even though we're at like 55% of our average base for the date. Very cold and crap snow but it's skiing! Took my second best pair of skis, because I don't have a pair of rock skis. The good news is that I now own a pair of rock skis.
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Jan 6, 2024 19:01
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knox_harrington posted:Super bad visibility today and I accidentally skied off a metre-ish ledge and landed on one of my poles end-on. Quite painful! I don't think Ive broken a rib but it hurts when I breathe Well that's a horrific mental image. Sorry dude, hope it's minor and heals quickly. spwrozek posted:We had a nice tour today besides my triple core shot... Pretty af. Wishing for that pow here.
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Jan 7, 2024 02:19
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Man, Lone Pine Gear Exchange is the best and also the worst. They're so often so cheap that new skis become an impulse buy. "No snow this year? Fine, fuckit, I'll pick up a narrow rear end set of skis that will cut through the ice. Hell, gimme a couple pairs"
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Jan 7, 2024 05:13
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Wind-chill for tomorrow is supposed to be -15 F. Gonna wear all the layers.
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Jan 12, 2024 06:47
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 Give me all the snow. Also: I preheat my boots and wear really good socks and after 4 or 5 runs my toes are ice. Didn't used to happen but guess I'm getting old. Tips and tricks? Or do I need to just buy a heated liner or heated socks or something
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Jan 13, 2024 20:25
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waffle enthusiast posted:Welp. Bought new skis. Took ‘em out today and I think my season may be done. Knee is about a useful as a rusty hinge. Aw man. Sorry 😔 I also took new (to me) skis out today, Elan Wingman 82s, and had a blast and a half. Just furthered my belief, as a newish + intermediate skier, that all the dunderheads on Reddit who recommend a mid-90 mm width ski as a one-ski-quiver for new skiers are either idiots or assholes.
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Jan 21, 2024 04:50
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Demo Day at my mountain. Tried the Stockli Montero AR, my first experience ever with Stockli, and holy gently caress. My wife and I are saving for a house but I think I found a more pressing expense. These skis are unbelievable. The feel, the sound, the absolutely stability and confidence at any speed. Kept them for 3 hours before exchanging for some QST 92s which was a hilarious difference. The QST is a fine ski, I described it to my mom (who I was skiing with) as the Toyota Camry of skis -- fine at everything, but impossible to get excited for or about. Mom is short at 5'1" and had limited options at the demo day but really liked the Ripstick 88, so I guess we're both spending money this week.
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Feb 5, 2024 01:38
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Aight, I'm gonna get those Stöcklis tomorrow. Strive 14s a good pairing? My reasoning is, aside from power transfer or whatever, they're the lightest bindings in their class and those skis are pretty dang heavy so why not try to save a couple hundred grams per ski.
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Feb 6, 2024 02:21
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I went ahead and bought them and taking them out tomorrow
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Feb 7, 2024 20:38
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Wistful of Dollars posted:still married? Why would she be upset over a $150 pair of used demo skis? Tbh she's just happy that skis are marginally more practical than watches. regulargonzalez fucked around with this message at 03:38 on Feb 8, 2024 |
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Feb 8, 2024 03:27
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On a similar note, my Solomon SPro 110s have a plate that if you flip it turns the boot into 120 flex. I did that the other day and was surprised how much stiffer they were. In a good way, mind. Just was interesting. My problem is that the sweet spot between "way too loose" and "some blood circulation would be nice" is vanishingly small. I'm constantly fiddling with my buckles to the extent of one latch rotation adjustment per run throughout the day. Probably my fault because I have an incredibly narrow heels and bunions on each foot so no boot is really designed for me. I should probably just get bunion surgery this spring and go for new boots after I'm healed up.
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Feb 9, 2024 20:39
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So, the thing about those Stöcklis is that they're fun as hell but also heavy and when your legs are too tired to drive them, they definitely drive you Also that makes them less then ideal for moguls. So, what's everyone's favorite mogul and bump ski?
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Feb 12, 2024 23:09
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