deannatoby
Ski Diva Extraordinaire
First year skiing I chaperoned 5 kids' lessons in early 2009. Got our first season passes for the next season, 2009-10. Developed awful, and I mean awful, habits in just one year. Put the kids on race team so they would become good skiers in 2010-11 and I started parents' lessons the team offered--my first lessons ever. Realized HOW MUCH I SUCKED!! Made a lot of progress (mostly in realizing how much I sucked) and now this year things are falling into place. I demoed last year but then I thought I probably wasn't even skiing well enough to understand the demo and interpet the skis correctly. Was excited to demo again this year.
I currently ski on 2009 Head Cool Ones, 156. When I bought them I didn't get to demo because one person had them out ALL DAY (and I'm pretty sure it was a personal friend of the demo worker), but I bought them anyway because I was a total eager beaver and I had "done my research." Skipress said they were awesome, so surely I would think so, too, right? My boots do need some adjusting, but even considering that these past two years of lessons have made me feel more and more like they aren't the ski for me. One of my teachers said a few weeks ago (and he is a FANTASTIC teacher) that he didn't think the front of my skis engaged for me well.
I'm 5'5", 110-115 lbs, a real lightweight. I used to get a good amount of exercise (running 30 mi/week, biking 40 mi/week), but not anymore. I figured my legs were so atrophied now that leg strength was nil, but I have started some exercises and turns out they are stronger than I thought...but not super strong like they used to be, of course. I assumed I would probably require a softer ski, maybe even a shorter one even, or a junior race ski.
Now it's demo day. All these skis were a 156. First ski was Volkl Fuego. Surely all Volkls are too stiff for me, but the other skis I wanted were already out. They were great! My main objective was to find one that allowed me to make tighter turns. Not only were my turns, even on my bad side, tighter, but I had better balance and felt very stable. I actually felt very much in control, and I was skiing them instead of vice versa. I figured Volkl was making beginner-ish ski and the Fuego must be it. Then I did Rossi Temptation with wide underfoot--awful, felt unstable with bad control, more anti-balance than balance. Then Viva ?7.4?--awful (and this one might have been shorter than 156). The demo guy said the Vivas were way too soft for me, and the Fuego was stiff for "experts". What? A soft ski doesn't work for me? Big surprise. Then I tried a Viva 8.1, and it was better, but not as good as the Volkl. Next was Nordica Cinnamon Girl, close to the Fuego but not quite as good, barely. I then took the Volkls out for another run to see if the difference was morning vs. afternoon snow, but the Volkls were still superior.
What in the world does that mean? What is the Fuego like, and what does this say about my skiing? I really don't understand how I can flex a stiff ski enough to make small turns, but my Fuego turns were great.
And, my own skis are tuned well enough for that not to be the issue. They're not razors, but they're filed and sharp.
Anyway, this whole experience was the opposite of what I expected. Since the Volkl Fuego is buggly--butt butt ugly--maybe that's why they like me. No chance of a cool ski for me. Volkl found a way to take my favorite color, red, and make it look like a business stationery heading. Why the sedate graphics, is there NO effort put into appearances with them?! Time to raid the kids' sticker stash for some dinosaur, princess, and Lightning McQueen accents. (If I can buy the skis, that is.)
P.S. When I know I won't be the blind leading the blind I'll post in the Gear Review section. For now I think we're all better off if I keep my demo thoughts out of any "review."
I currently ski on 2009 Head Cool Ones, 156. When I bought them I didn't get to demo because one person had them out ALL DAY (and I'm pretty sure it was a personal friend of the demo worker), but I bought them anyway because I was a total eager beaver and I had "done my research." Skipress said they were awesome, so surely I would think so, too, right? My boots do need some adjusting, but even considering that these past two years of lessons have made me feel more and more like they aren't the ski for me. One of my teachers said a few weeks ago (and he is a FANTASTIC teacher) that he didn't think the front of my skis engaged for me well.
I'm 5'5", 110-115 lbs, a real lightweight. I used to get a good amount of exercise (running 30 mi/week, biking 40 mi/week), but not anymore. I figured my legs were so atrophied now that leg strength was nil, but I have started some exercises and turns out they are stronger than I thought...but not super strong like they used to be, of course. I assumed I would probably require a softer ski, maybe even a shorter one even, or a junior race ski.
Now it's demo day. All these skis were a 156. First ski was Volkl Fuego. Surely all Volkls are too stiff for me, but the other skis I wanted were already out. They were great! My main objective was to find one that allowed me to make tighter turns. Not only were my turns, even on my bad side, tighter, but I had better balance and felt very stable. I actually felt very much in control, and I was skiing them instead of vice versa. I figured Volkl was making beginner-ish ski and the Fuego must be it. Then I did Rossi Temptation with wide underfoot--awful, felt unstable with bad control, more anti-balance than balance. Then Viva ?7.4?--awful (and this one might have been shorter than 156). The demo guy said the Vivas were way too soft for me, and the Fuego was stiff for "experts". What? A soft ski doesn't work for me? Big surprise. Then I tried a Viva 8.1, and it was better, but not as good as the Volkl. Next was Nordica Cinnamon Girl, close to the Fuego but not quite as good, barely. I then took the Volkls out for another run to see if the difference was morning vs. afternoon snow, but the Volkls were still superior.
What in the world does that mean? What is the Fuego like, and what does this say about my skiing? I really don't understand how I can flex a stiff ski enough to make small turns, but my Fuego turns were great.
And, my own skis are tuned well enough for that not to be the issue. They're not razors, but they're filed and sharp.
Anyway, this whole experience was the opposite of what I expected. Since the Volkl Fuego is buggly--butt butt ugly--maybe that's why they like me. No chance of a cool ski for me. Volkl found a way to take my favorite color, red, and make it look like a business stationery heading. Why the sedate graphics, is there NO effort put into appearances with them?! Time to raid the kids' sticker stash for some dinosaur, princess, and Lightning McQueen accents. (If I can buy the skis, that is.)
P.S. When I know I won't be the blind leading the blind I'll post in the Gear Review section. For now I think we're all better off if I keep my demo thoughts out of any "review."
