Salomon retires its X-ADV line

[bgregoire]

Hi! For those who like rumors in XCD land. The local Salomon retailer told me yesterday that they will be closing their entire backcountry ski, boot and binding line at the end of the year. I bet for most this will not hurt at all but thought as Steve Barnett was known to enjoy the X-ADV system binding on the down, others may as well. Guess its time to stock up, or rejoice that boot manufacturers will no longer have to choose between two system bindings. I tried in vain to get my retailer to start stocking Alpina boots (i'll nag him again about Crispi, having given up on the prospect of Asnes/Alfa from the start, lol). Said he will be adding Sporten to the line up. Sporten? Didn't even known the was such a brand. Czech it seems, have 3 narrow nordic backcountry skis to choose from. Can't say I'm excited. Apparently they will have BC boots as well.

[CIMA]

Really???
Though all of my XCD gear are Salomon's X-ADVs, I was not shocked very much because I have expected that since I had bought my Salomon's ski set first. The time has just eventually come.

[bgregoire]

CIMA, have you noticed a significant difference in downhill control b/w the X-ADV system and NNN-BC?

[CIMA]

Sorry bgregoire, I have never skied on NNN system, but many of my friends who have NNN systems don't seem to be able to ski significantly better than SNS guys just because of the difference of the gear. The both fall often.

[bgregoire]

Sorry bgregoire, I have never skied on NNN system, but many of my friends who have NNN systems don't seem to be able to ski significantly better than SNS guys just because of the difference of the gear. The both fall often.

Yeah, ok, actually I would have figured SNS provided a little more control on the down given the full length ridge on the binding.

From what i read, Salomon are actually the ones to first come up with the system binding for the backcountry (thanks to work with Alfa boots I think i read on their site). Somehow, Rottefella's take took over with time. Not sure that is it because it is any better though. Anywho, at the time, I chose NNNBC simply because I wanted a better choice in boot brands and corresponding foot dimensions offerings. The soles of X-ADV boots look a lot better for ski camping and walking though. The Rottefella soles being quite slippery.

[CIMA]

The soles of X-ADV boots look a lot better for ski camping and walking though. The Rottefella soles being quite slippery.

Indeed.
I love the design of the soles of X-ADV boots. I wondered at first why the soles had such deeply grooved pattern, but I learned later that the pattern helped not only stable walking on snow on foot but also efficiently removing lumped snow which is stuck on the soles while walking. The design is ingenious.

[lilcliffy]

Hey Fellas,

I was initially drawn to the SNS-xadv binding...but I have never found a boot that fit me properly...so I went with NNNBC.

I, too, was drawn to the full-boot-length ridge plate on the SNS-xadv binding. I have tried it with both Salomon X-ADV6 and X-ADV8 boots. I have not skied on this enough to effectively report on them (CIMA is clearly our resident expert! ). I demoed the Salomon boots/bindings on Salomon skis (XADV Free Grip, XADV 69 Grip, XADV 89 Grip). Although impressed with the binding- I was not terribly impressed with any of these skis.

The SNS XA is clearly an excellent backcountry-xcountry/light telemark binding- as many people (including CIMA) have demonstrated.

The NNNBC binding is quite different in design. Despite the lack of full-length ridge plate; the NNNBC has a wider toe bar and base plate. Depending on technique, this design can offer advantages. For example; the xcountry/telemark technique I use relies fundamentally on the diagonal stride. I find the wide base plate/toe bar of NNNBC to deliver excellent stability. However- I cannot really say it is better than SNS XA, because I have not put the SNS XA to the test!

The boot/out sole of the Salomon X-ADV boots has always attracted me. The outsole of NNNBC boots is pretty darn wimpy. However, I do find that the NNNBC outsole sheds snow (especially sticky snow) very well.

Because of the wide range of NNNBC boot designs available- there is a wide range of boot flexes. For example, the Alaska NNNBC has a significantly stiffer sole flex than the X-ADV 8. The Alaska NNNBC is much torsionally stiffer from the ankle down. The X-ADV 8 is stiffer above the ankle than the Alaska.

I am very sorry to hear that Salomon may be dropping this line. Competition and the resultant equipment advancement is always a good thing!

[CIMA]

One of xcD experts of who I know seem to like NNN system more.

[lilcliffy]

CIMA- that is quite a spread of skis! From a rental shop?

[Rodbelan]

One of xcD experts of who I know seem to like NNN system more.

Who is it? Telehiro? HiyokoD?