The Official Skiing / Snowboarding / Playing in the Snow Thread

[Numbernine]

I'm on a strict no-purchase policy until I demo skis. I love my Mantras, even though they are old, and feel like it's too risky to buy skis unless I've really tested them.

Had a number of days on Spatulas and they are an absolute blast in the right conditions. Also super weird to find yourself inexorably moving down the fall line even if you are trying to do something else. Definitely great for hero snow. They were way too heavy though.

Yeah it's been amazing how much skis evolved from those first shaped models.

 

[otc]

I'm on a strict no-purchase policy until I demo skis. I love my Mantras, even though they are old, and feel like it's too risky to buy skis unless I've really tested them.

Had a number of days on Spatulas and they are an absolute blast in the right conditions. Also super weird to find yourself inexorably moving down the fall line even if you are trying to do something else. Definitely great for hero snow. They were way too heavy though.

Sometimes you just gotta take a risk! You can always resell so it isn’t a 100% loss if you hate them.

They are made in north Tahoe somewhere though, so they might have some you could try.

 

[Numbernine]

Sometimes you just gotta take a risk! You can always resell so it isn’t a 100% loss if you hate them.

They are made in north Tahoe somewhere though, so they might have some you could try.

The owner and the guys who worked with him were regulars at Alpine Meadows I think they're first shop was in a storage unit in Truckee

 

[Fueco]

 

[imatlas]

picked up some new old stock Zero G 85s

I’ve got a pair of these. They rock in hard snow, but they’re stiff as **** and really need some effort to bend them into a turn, and if you don’t bend them they don’t want to turn.

Speaking of which I’m going to pick up a pair of fat BC skis for those 12” of Sierra Cement days, my old pair weren’t great and are long past their prime. Possibly something from DPS, I’ll have to catch a demo day or something

 

[Numbernine]

I’ve got a pair of these. They rock in hard snow, but they’re stiff as **** and really need some effort to bend them into a turn, and if you don’t bend them they don’t want to turn.

Speaking of which I’m going to pick up a pair of fat BC skis for those 12” of Sierra Cement days, my old pair weren’t great and are long past their prime. Possibly something from DPS, I’ll have to catch a demo day or something

I just gave away a pair with perfect bases last week. I offered them up here awhile back. 🤷‍♂️

 

[otc]

I’ve got a pair of these. They rock in hard snow, but they’re stiff as **** and really need some effort to bend them into a turn, and if you don’t bend them they don’t want to turn.

Yeah, my first pair of touring skis were zero g 95s and I liked how they skied in the resort a lot.

But that's not really ideal for a "one ski" touring setup as they were not very floaty and hard to control in tighter trees. And they were mounted with pretty heavy bindings which was a very odd combo. Probably helped them so ski well on hard snow, but weird to take a 1250g ski and bolt a 600g binding to it.

New setup will probably shave almost a pound off per foot including skins for a proper lightweight setup.

Wonder if it will drive me to get rid of the Ravens though. I already wanted to step them up a length (184 to 190) but having a light and skinny setup might tempt me to step up to a bigger ski and burlier binding as my second...

Speaking of which I’m going to pick up a pair of fat BC skis for those 12” of Sierra Cement days, my old pair weren’t great and are long past their prime. Possibly something from DPS, I’ll have to catch a demo day or something

Have you checked out Heritage Lab skis?
BC110 is on my radar: https://the-high-route.com/review-heritage-labs-bc110/

Or even bigger with the BC120

I like what they are putting out and there are a few of their skis I would love to try. I was close to ordering their RC85 or RC95 earlier this year (before they sold out) as ski for firmer snow days. The 95 should slot in like a Mantra or Bonafide, but I was leaning 85 with a little more on-piste focus as a replacement for my Kastle MX-84 carvers.

 

[imatlas]

Yeah, my first pair of touring skis were zero g 95s and I liked how they skied in the resort a lot.

But that's not really ideal for a "one ski" touring setup as they were not very floaty and hard to control in tighter trees. And they were mounted with pretty heavy bindings which was a very odd combo. Probably helped them so ski well on hard snow, but weird to take a 1250g ski and bolt a 600g binding to it.

New setup will probably shave almost a pound off per foot including skins for a proper lightweight setup.

Wonder if it will drive me to get rid of the Ravens though. I already wanted to step them up a length (184 to 190) but having a light and skinny setup might tempt me to step up to a bigger ski and burlier binding as my second...



Have you checked out Heritage Lab skis?
BC110 is on my radar: https://the-high-route.com/review-heritage-labs-bc110/

Or even bigger with the BC120

I like what they are putting out and there are a few of their skis I would love to try. I was close to ordering their RC85 or RC95 earlier this year (before they sold out) as ski for firmer snow days. The 95 should slot in like a Mantra or Bonafide, but I was leaning 85 with a little more on-piste focus as a replacement for my Kastle MX-84 carvers.

Interesting. Made me think of my old PM Gear Bro Models, and apparently I’m not alone:

Heritage Labs r99 Comp aka the modern PM Gear Bro Model….. While a small run was made by Blossom back in the day, most Bro Models were produced in other factories.

 

[otc]

Interesting. Made me think of my old PM Gear Bro Models, and apparently I’m not alone:

That's actually how Heritage got their start, hence the name--basically reproducing or modernizing favorite skis of the past. Then they started to go more into the "what if I always wanted a ski like ski X but with a little more Y" direction.

My understanding is that they are all super well built skis (many being made in the Blossom race room), but they certainly don't build them for everyone. There are no beginner/intermediate friendly skis in the mix, no short skis. And it is a hobby project so everything is kind of limited run--people who want to try them out can get their jollies in, but then the creator is on to the next fun thing to try.

I think they are also making some of the best looking topsheets of anyone right now.

 

[imatlas]

I have a hunch the founder may have been involved with PM Gear - it grew out of the TGR Forums that he mentions in his bio. I was an early adopter and almost invested in the company.

 

[Newcomer]

Can’t wait for winter! Alas, with a new baby, don’t have MUCH in the way of plans.

Only thing on the list this year is another trip to Jackson. Going to spend a few days ski touring, specifically working on rope skills, and a couple days ice climbing. Looking late March or April. May knock out a bigger line - Mount Buck, South or Middle Teton, depending on the conditions - but really the focus is just to continue improving and learning. Trying to train up to skiing the Grand Teton, and definitely need to work on some technical skills before I get there.

 

[UnFacconable]

I'm heading up this weekend with one of my kids to do some prep work for the upcoming season.

Both of my kids were ready for race team but neither wants to race, which is just fine by me. The older one is joining the race team anyway because they aged out of the more general kids program and the reasonable choices were race, big mountain or nothing. Big mountain makes sense, but we were told by enough people that the skill benefits of a racing prep program are so strong that it convinced us to go with that. The younger kid is like IDGAF what they say, I'm staying in the younger all around program for another year even though they could have moved up to the jr race program.

Mrs. Unf and I are doing the ski club again this year which we are both looking forward to! She was really limited last year due to work but this season should be shaping up a lot better for her.

There is a pretty decent chance that this is the last year of ski team for both kids and after 4 years it's definitely up to them to decide. If they do drop from team, we will quit the ski club as well.

Long story short, the reason this matters is that for the first time the two kids are in different programs with different starting and ending times (15 min offset in the morning, 1 hour offset in the afternoon) which is annoying but means we will more skiing time with the younger kid and we'll probably stay on the mountain longer than in year's past.

I keep saying this every year, but I think this is the year when they will be able to keep up in most conditions and terrain (aged are 8 and 10). At the end of last season, they were making it down legit double-blacks safely and confidently but still had some difficulty in adverse snow conditions (powder, ice) and couldn't keep up with us when we were going all out. I still don't think they'll be beating us down the mountain, but they won't be holding us back much either!

 

[imatlas]

Mt. Rose open today! Bring on the WROD!

 

[Newcomer]

I'm heading up this weekend with one of my kids to do some prep work for the upcoming season.

Both of my kids were ready for race team but neither wants to race, which is just fine by me. The older one is joining the race team anyway because they aged out of the more general kids program and the reasonable choices were race, big mountain or nothing. Big mountain makes sense, but we were told by enough people that the skill benefits of a racing prep program are so strong that it convinced us to go with that. The younger kid is like IDGAF what they say, I'm staying in the younger all around program for another year even though they could have moved up to the jr race program.

Mrs. Unf and I are doing the ski club again this year which we are both looking forward to! She was really limited last year due to work but this season should be shaping up a lot better for her.

There is a pretty decent chance that this is the last year of ski team for both kids and after 4 years it's definitely up to them to decide. If they do drop from team, we will quit the ski club as well.

Long story short, the reason this matters is that for the first time the two kids are in different programs with different starting and ending times (15 min offset in the morning, 1 hour offset in the afternoon) which is annoying but means we will more skiing time with the younger kid and we'll probably stay on the mountain longer than in year's past.

I keep saying this every year, but I think this is the year when they will be able to keep up in most conditions and terrain (aged are 8 and 10). At the end of last season, they were making it down legit double-blacks safely and confidently but still had some difficulty in adverse snow conditions (powder, ice) and couldn't keep up with us when we were going all out. I still don't think they'll be beating us down the mountain, but they won't be holding us back much either!

I switched from a race team to a big mountain team at about that age, and what you heard is probably right. I feel like my skills are not as good as they should be given how long I skied. That said, I do feel like the big mountain team kept me in skiing (and would have kept me longer if I hadn’t moved) and I feel like, while my skills are not amazing, I have pretty strong instincts in steep and uncomfortable terrain. I do not know whether I would feel like that if I kept in racing. I guess it has served me well given where my interests have strayed.

 

[otc]

There's nothing better for your edging skills than bashing gates under the eyes of a coach and doing all of the associated drills.
Just gotta hope they manage the fun level. I was fortunate to spend my race time at an age and on a team where nobody was thinking they were bound for the US ski team.

With the kid, I'm sure I will ski less this year...although I'm taking the second half of my paternity leave in a way that will give me some more ski time.

I am hoping I can squeeze back into the Wednesday "locals" lesson program again. I hadn't signed up this year because of the baby, but my wife is signed up and we're thinking about trying to find a nanny to provide coverage like 3 days a week...Wednesday, one weekend day, and whichever day my wife wants to start easing back into work. Then I can still do the lessons...

Although I'm actually contemplating "downgrading" out of the most advanced group to the group with the much more traditional technique focused instructor I had 3 years ago. Maybe I've already said this in the thread, but the most advanced group was exploring more fun terrain, but it is terrain I am completely comfortable in. I'd rather spend 75% of the time on a blue run doing drills and getting immediate feedback. It is OK to have a skill gap in a group like that because while you might be at different levels of the drill, everyone could do it better.

Also assuming the groups stay about the same, there are a couple of guys in that group that I'd like to hang out with more.