New Voile XCD skis

[acrowe]

I picked up some Voile Charger BCs at 191 cm on clearance in may and still havent mounted them. I am going to mount G3 Targas and plan to ski them in Scarpa T4s. I was thinking I might need more boot but I guess I will find out. I will try them at our little local hill in Manitoba (which normally has nice snow if not very challenging terrain) but I had skiing around Canmore and vancouver island back country in mind when I bought them. I wasnt looking at such fat skis but the price was right (I guess thats not much consolation if they are unsuitable for me ) I currently ski Fischer E89s with HD Mountaineers, Volkl Qaniks with Voile 3 pin cables, and BD Kilowatts with G3 targas (all with T4s, ) so it will be a noticeable difference for me. I havent skied on really fat skis before but I will be interested in how they work in a variety of back country conditions and also how well I will handle them. I am pretty big and heavy (6'4"/ 265) so I may have a different experience than someone lighter.

[MikeK]

I used to frequent another local board and there were a couple guys on there who were nuts over the chargers.

They were both skiing, IIRC, with low-cuff plastic boots. Guess it depends on the terrain/snow but for the part of Canada they were skiing, which is similar to where I am but with more snow, they were pleased.

Neither were big guys though - both rather short and light, which means they were surfing those monster planks over everything - trees, stumps, moose caracasses. I can see the appeal of that here in the east. If you are out on wind-blow, exposed slopes with ice and crusts, well... then maybe those boots might not be enough.

You might not get the float that a lighter guy or gal will get unless you hit mach speeds, but surely they'll be better than the Kilowatts for similar weight.

[dnt_upton]

I've skied the Chargers and agree that they are fantastic skis. You'll be fine in T4s, but I think you'd enjoy them more in T2 Ecos. I jumped on a pair of BCs too because of the sale (and because they're now out of production).

The Voile Objective skis also look sweet, but I don't know why the longest is 178 cm.

[Stover]

I didn't notice anyone mention that G3 now has 3 XCD skis in their offerings, in waist widths of 78, 86, and 94. They are light weight (~4.5 to 7 lbs depending on width underfoot) and come in sizes from 167 to 182. Serious competition for Voile for sure.

Stingr 78 -- http://us-store.genuineguidegear.com/pr ... ngr-78-xcd
Findr 86 -- http://us-store.genuineguidegear.com/pr ... 7246582279
Findr 94 -- http://us-store.genuineguidegear.com/pr ... 7246564103

[Johnny]

I remember discussing the older red Stinger model here...

But the new models look even more exciting...! Glad to see they decided to make some larger ones... Pretty much the same thing as the Objectives... Now only if they could make skinnier ones...!

Thanks for sharing!

[MikeK]

How could you forget the Stinger?

This quote is from that thread: "Friends? Skins? Sounds like AT to me..." -MikeK

That was probably Ttalks best year...

[dorthman]

the new stinger looks very cool. it makes me laugh they're marketing it as "affordable" though.

I'd love to see a re-worked epoch or annum with a more "modern" camber/rose profile.

I too wish there was more interest in some, like ~70mm waist "waxless" base skis.

[Johnny]

Nothing is affordable anymore... Real ski bums have to wait, be patient... Like hunters... And when a deal comes out, jump on it!

I bought Epochs, Annums and S98s brand new for 199$... You just have to wait for the right time... But if I had a real job, I wouldn't mind at all paying full retail price on great skis. It's like encouraging what you like and further development of the sport. I hate cheapskates...!

Madshus XCD skis retail prices are up 13% from last year... Quite significant for the same mold used for more than 15 years... Nothing new, no R&D, just twice the price every 5 years... Inflation rate in the US is around 0.8%...

Voile retail prices are up 11% from last season... Quite interesting... Obviously a sign that the tele scene is dying and the competition from new ski companies everywhere is getting important... I think it's now the best time to support the manufacturers we like. XCD is dying, and we are the only ones who can save it. So BUY SOME NEW SKIS THIS SEASON!