To Riser or Not

[GLB]

In my return to Nordic and Telemark skiing with about a 10 year lay off I have bought new skis and gear thanks to the advice of a lot of you here. I have been skiing a local XC track that have hills that I can make some turns on. I recently picked up a pair of Epochs and mounted Rotefella Chili bindings to it. I had them mounted without the 10mm riser so they are flat to the ski which is what I am use to. Anyway with my med weight leathers I was able to make nice turns despite the layoff when we had 5" of powder. I went back out another day and the slope was very hard pack and I struggled with control on turns. I switched out my boots to my Alico double heavy leather boots and I had the control back. My question is should I mount the risers and would that help me with control on the hard pack with my lighter weight boots under the same conditions? Or would the boot still be the weak link?
Thanks
Greg

[MikeK]

It's something to try... the riser will give you a bit more leverage.

I've never tried so I won't say yay or nay, but my hunch is stiffer boots will be the better bet on hardpack. I think it's more an issue of force (power) transmission to your edges via stiffness rather than leverage.

Also not questioning your ability, but I try to ski totally different on hard stuff vs fresh or soft snow. I stand up, stay parallel or use some stem and skid the skis more. Then really weight the bejezus out of the dh ski and try to get those edges to grip. It's definitely easier with my stiffer boots.

I'll be quite honest I've never found it easy to handle the Epoch in hard conditions though.

[GLB]

Copy on the different technique. I had to Stem/Step into a tele turn to get the down hill ski to bite with the lighter boots. I have used this often in the past but was surprised that I needed that on such a moderate slope. Maybe my legs don't have the strength yet. At 54 and such a long lay off that is part of the problem I'm sure. I was thinking riser so that I could wear my lighter boots for touring but capable of handling a hard wind blown slope if needed. However I am not sure I would like the feel of having my feet off the ski.

[MikeK]

Could be strength but IMHO it's all finesse and no real strength with soft boots and these type of ski. Definitely use your weight, but that's not really strength per se.

My issue in hard conditions has always been this: skis go very fast, then skis are resistant to turn, then when they do, they are resistant to hold the edge. It seems to be a compounding problem. If you can do short, quick turns and set those edges quick so as not to build up to much speed, you should be able to make it happen. You have to think of these skis like an old beginner Alpine ski. They will skid around and grab at low speeds on hard snow, but they don't want to be pushed.

Even though this's Alpine and steep focused, I find what he is saying VERY useful for working these type of skis on slippery conditions. The main thing I forget, and he points out so obviously is to rotate the skis (and lower body) when the skis are FLAT, then edge them. This allows you to make very short turns (when you are on smooth hardpack) and just feather on the edges. Add speed until you lose your edge hold... which won't be much... but the technique still works.



Also watch when he does the drills and just rotates and edges on the dh ski and lifts the inside ski.

[GLB]

Thanks for that MikeK. It's true if you flatten the skis and unweight the tips will naturally find the fall line. Looking back with the lighter boots I think I was leaning up slope too much and not driving my up hill shoulder down slope (hands to the front).

[MikeK]

Yeah - that's another thing he mentions in the video... like I say, despite in being Alpine focused, the guy is very good at breaking things up and explaining the fundamentals... which you absolutely HAVE TO nail to ski leathers. There is very little cheating you can do.

I screw this stuff up all the time and have to remind myself when "the skis aren't working". Hint: It's usually not the skis

[lowangle al]

GLB, I don't think the risers will help the soft boot on hard snow situation much, but if you have the risers and are hell bent to ski the lighter boots more often give it a try. If it were me and I liked the way the skis worked as is I would leave them alone.

[GLB]

I agree on all that's been said. It's really to early in my come back to put a finger on it. I know equipment can fix some fundamental flaws but I want to fix my fundamentals with the equipment that I have. I've been there before and I need time to get things tuned up. I have a lot of drills that I use to do to help and will start those up again to get back in the groove.

[Rodbelan]

I really think you shouldn't do this... It is like asking for problems with your ankles...