Ski size

[bmike-vt]

Bmike, did you ski them yet? Do you feel they are a good size? How tall are you?

Yes, love them so far. Took awhile to get used to all the new variables - skis, boots, bindings, but starting to feel comfortable.

I don't get the height equation when it comes to skis... I mean, maybe i can see some weird relationship of taller folks have a longer lever arm / lateral forces - but everyone has told me the snow doesn't care how tall I am...

I wanted to go shorter so I can have an easier time in the trees... something I need to learn this year.
But so far so good. 3 lift served days, no complaints.

They are longer and wider than the 'Femme Fatales' that I skied last season (in addition to the Epochs) with T4s.

5'8", 195 pounds, 185 in fighting form. Any lower and the wife gets worried I'm sick!

The length recommendation came from a friend who is 6' but weighs the same as me, and we've skied together (I borrowed some sweet Karhus from him, but my T4s couldn't push them around well enough with my skill level 3 years ago...)


Anyway, cheap, used, is good to figure out what you like!

[bmike-vt]

I don't remember what they were called but they make Hoks look long.

I think the word you're looking for is "snowlerblades."

OH yeah, we banned those things last year...

http://skivermont.com/skivt-blog/2015/0 ... ki-blades/



They look fun...
I watched a guy do a face plant in them though, he hit some 2" - 3" of fresh powder and just lost it...


I nearly bought a set of 130cm skis with 3 pin bindings already mounted last week on the consignment rack for $40 so I could have some 'fast shoes'...

[teleclub]

Skiing ordinary alpine length in my resort and downhill oriented tele skis. I haven't had any alpine-mounted skis since the early 80s so I'm only guessing what length I'd choose if I did ski alpine bindings. My last alpine-mounted skis were 200cm Dynastars. 5'11" 180 lbs. A majority of my tele skis since the early 90s have been alpine skis mounted with cable bindings. I learned resort downhill Tele on 215cm Karhus, pins, and Snowfields, and various other skinny metal edge nordic skis. Since the early 90s I followed the tele tradition of choosing my ski length by whatever I can find in the swap, thrift store, or dumpster, and have usually been able to find new remaindered / new condition alpine skis or the tele version of a company's alpine ski, in lengths from 200cm to 170cm. Lots of the Atomic Beta series, and my current favorite hard snow ski is an old Beta Ride 8.20 in 180cm. My current new wide ski is 188cm Lo5, 125-95-115 so not that wide by today's standards. The Lo5's early rise makes the 188cm ski shorter than my 180 Atomics with 40mm sidecut. I'm glad I didn't go shorter on the Lo5s. All the Lo5 reviews I saw had people my size on 178s and many reviewers wished they had the 188 instead.

[MikeK]

I don't get the height equation when it comes to skis... I mean, maybe i can see some weird relationship of taller folks have a longer lever arm / lateral forces - but everyone has told me the snow doesn't care how tall I am...

I think most of it came from a standard height to weight assumption. And then this came from skiing in fresh snow as opposed to hardpack. All the awesome skiers back in the day, no matter much they weighed, skied 225s. This was for powder float and speed on hardpack I assume.

I think for XC the size relationship makes a lot more sense to body mechanics. There is also some height to weight assumptions for camber compression and glide, but at 200 lbs, I always exceed those

Anyway, back to the body mechanics - being 5'-10" with a 30"± inseam, I have a hell of a time making a herringbone or a stem with skis much more than 200. I can do it, but it becomes very, very cumbersome. My span and stride just don't work out that way. I've skied up to a 215 - I can do it, but it's hard for me to get a really good wedge should I need to and I sometimes step on my tails for a herringbone.

Granted I don't use a full herringbone or wedge so much for XCD, or prefer not to, but when I have to, I want it to be easy and comfortable because it's getting me out of a jam.

[mugglesport]

I don't remember what they were called but they make Hoks look long.

I think the word you're looking for is "snowlerblades."

OH yeah, we banned those things last year...

http://skivermont.com/skivt-blog/2015/0 ... ki-blades/



They look fun...
I watched a guy do a face plant in them though, he hit some 2" - 3" of fresh powder and just lost it...


I nearly bought a set of 130cm skis with 3 pin bindings already mounted last week on the consignment rack for $40 so I could have some 'fast shoes'...

I spent a day on snowblades (which is a trademarked term of Salomon, I believe) about 15 years ago or so when they were really popular (relatively speaking). They were so incredibly terrifying at any amount of speed. Pretty fun for dipping around between trees, but just nowhere near enough edge for me to make a turn. I would liken them to driving a Mazda Miata with summer tires down a steep snowy road. I didn't have any problem catching my tips, though.

[Woodserson]

I spent a day on snowblades (which is a trademarked term of Salomon, I believe)

Technically ski-blades on a generic level.... there was Kneissl Big Foot (http://slovenskainzercia.sk/x-sk/inz/88 ... issl-2.jpg) too, huge in Europe back in the 90s...Everyone had a pair I felt like. Funny that Line got their start with ski blades and then broke into skiing with the Line Kris Ostness Dragon (I still have two pairs of the original ski, great fun ski) and the centerline-mounted all white 1260... BOY THOSE WERE THE DAYS! Anyone else remember 2001? Jeez, maybe Connryo can help. The original Motherships came out later, a prototype on the Powder Mag cover one month... Karhu and Line started making skis... Man... Reminiscing pretty hard over here, boys.

[MikeK]

Those bigfoots were the ones I remember seeing everywhere. This was mid to late 90s?

[dnt_upton]

Are most people using the same size telemark ski for resort(lift) skiing as they would for Alpine skiing?

I use short skis (160s) for alpine skiing because I picked them up cheap. I am 5'9" and use my 185 annums without a problem at resorts also. I am thinking of getting a heavier setup for resorts.

Could I purchase a heavy duty telemark ski at 185? Would it be too long for me? Is there an ideal size to get better on before going to a longer faster set?

So many questions....... Thanks in advance

Yes, same size for alpine or telemark. Generally speaking of course.

What do you weigh and how well do you ski?

185 is by no means too long, but if you're light and a beginner or intermediate, you'll have an easier time on 175-180 skis. If you're 180 lb or more and an intermediate to expert, 180-188 is reasonable. But then again, some may prefer to ski shorter skis.

[Ant01ne]

Are most people using the same size telemark ski for resort(lift) skiing as they would for Alpine skiing?

I use short skis (160s) for alpine skiing because I picked them up cheap. I am 5'9" and use my 185 annums without a problem at resorts also. I am thinking of getting a heavier setup for resorts.

Could I purchase a heavy duty telemark ski at 185? Would it be too long for me? Is there an ideal size to get better on before going to a longer faster set?

So many questions....... Thanks in advance

I go longer with tele skis. for the groomers, I'd say the effective edge is a key point. In my case, lets say around 145cm makes it comfortable for stability. I'm 5'10 and 175 pounds. When going fat (for pow), the total length is to be considered (more than 182cm plz). There's so much rocker on modern planks that it sometimes gets impossible to make turns on hard pack.

One fun thing, is that I got skiing rental Head Rev prior to purchasing them and putting tele bindings on.
at 170, they were super stable on alpine even at mach speed. Tele version, they feel less stable and I would appreciate 10cm extra..

Stiff planks? Correct me if I'm wrong, but I'd say it's more forgiving for the beginner cauz u don't need as much focus on the balance. On the other hand, stiff in moguls sux.

Sidecut: less than 18m. Carving is fun. Waist is something too. the wider they get, the tougher it gets on your knees at the resort..

"All mountain" is a scam :-p ..Poor on hardpack, poor flotation. Like thinking your SUV is gonna be good for lapping at the track and good for off road expeditions.

Get some beaten up fatsos for 100$ on kijiji and Rev / Experience for the resort

[tnevins530]

I ended up picking up these K2 Shuksans at 167 cm. They were on Ebay and came with Black Diamond 03 bindings. I also have a pair of Crispi xp 4 buckle boots coming.

I am hoping these allow me to go much faster than my annums but still be light enough to skin up if I chose to.

By the way Dnt_Upton I am 5'9" and weigh 170 lbs and I am a strong Alpine skier. Hopefully an intermediate Telemark skier on a heavier setup than my annums. They just don't feel good at the higher speeds.