Ski length for Asnes purchase??

[Cannatonic]

Yet another XCD question. Thinking of ordering Mountain Tour 51 - their E89/Glittertind type ski, double camber, 60-51-55. My instinct is to immediately go for 210's in this type of ski, which is what I've always used for XC skis. I'm 6-2, 180 pounds.

The height recommendations are giving me pause - according to the Asnes table I should take 200 or 205. Is there some reason I should do this? I've been skiing an old pair of Kazama XC skis with this exact profile and 205's feel too short every time out, they feel slow during kick & glide.

Is the camber in the 210's going to keep my feet from touching the ground or something? or should old-school people stick with old-school lengths.

[lowangle al]

I think the newer skis are meant to be skied shorter. I went from a 210 to a 200 on the same model xcd-gts and didn't notice any negative effect on touring. I just took out my wifes latter version of that ski at 188 and they still had enough camber to ski as designed for touring. I weigh 180 lbs.

My experience tells me to buy the shortest ski recommended for my weight. The time I went long thinking how fast they will tour was a mistake. Anyone want to buy a karhu xcd no wax ski in a 215?

[Cannatonic]

one difference is these skis are far ligther than older Kharus'. I had the 205cm current E99 and it felt too short. I wish I could have bought Gamme 54 in 205cm but they only come in 200/210. So I took 210.

I know LC skis everything in 210 and he's only 5 pounds heavier than me....maybe I'm just waiting for him to answer

[lilcliffy]

My Nordic skiing tendencies lean towards not compromising too much.

What I mean is if this ski is meant to be distance-oriented than I personally would focus on that.

Anrothar's review of his new Mountain Race suggests that the flex is more like a current E-99 than they are like an E-89- or an Amundsen. His report suggests that the word "Mountain" actually means something to Asnes and that the flex pattern of the "Mountain Race" series is indeed designed to perform on fresh snow. Therefore- I would expect the camber/flex to be quite manageable on fresh snow- meaning I would expect it to be significantly softer than a ski like the E-89.

If the Mountain Race is tuned for fresh snow- and you get em too short- you will not have an effective wax pocket.

At your weight I doubt very much that a 210cm Mountain Race is going to be too stiff- but a shorter one could well be too soft!

Wood-cored skis of course always have some variability in the flex pattern between each individual set of skis...Traditionally this is seen as an advantage making it possible to select a custom flex/length for an individual skier. BUT- when mail ordering you cannot test a number of skis...

I predict that the Mountain Race will be "soft" enough that you can probably err on the side of length. It would really suck to order them and find out they are too short...

It would be more of a risk with a much stiffer ski like the Amundsen.

As far as the "D" in "XCD"- if this ski is distance-oriented than focus on the "XC" performance. As I know you well know, there is a specific suite of techniques needed to ski down hills with XC-focused skis. The variables that influence this don't change between a 200cm and a 210cm ski.

The only people that are carving linked turns on a double-cambered XC ski, are skiing them so short they have NO effective wax pocket.

As a comparison I absolutely love my current 210cm E-99 as a BC-XC ski- they also are very manageable on moderate slopes- but they are soft enough that they would be MUCH slower at 200cm. I am 5'10" and weigh 185lbs. If the current E-99 was any softer flexing at my weight, the 210cm would be too short and then I might as well be on a softer 1.5-cambered ski like the E-109 or the Eon.

The Mountain Race series seems to have a similar flex pattern to the E-99/Gamme 54- just narrower and faster.

[Cannatonic]

>>>My Nordic skiing tendencies lean towards not compromising too much.

I think you've articulated my thoughts perfectly - thanks! I'm going to be making turns for only a tiny fraction of the time on these skis, I don't want to sacrifice any kick & glide performance - speed. I know from experience going from 205 to 210 in a skinny ski like this makes a big difference in flotation as well.

In the old days they used to say that ski length should be 15-20cm over body height for nordic skis. The thinking was that longer striding legs can take advantage of longer skis and longer wax pockets. 200cm feels right on something like an Sbound 78 or an Ingstad to me. 205 on XC skis feels too short. If the camber is too stiff I can always extend the wax pocket a bit.

[lilcliffy]

If the camber is too stiff I can always extend the wax pocket a bit.

Cool. I love grip wax!

Considering Anrothar's reviews- I was actually surprised by how close the flex pattern is between his Gamme 54 and Mountain Race. I really doubt it will be too stiff...