volklgirl
Ski Diva Extraordinaire
The tester: 48 year old heavyweight, league and NASTAR racer, and lapsed PSIA L2 instructor not currently teaching with a love of high speeds, fat skis, and challenging 3D snow conditions. Daily drivers - Fischer Hybrid 8.0 168 cm, Volkl Aura and Kiku (both pre-rocker) 177 and 176, and Volkl Shiro 173.
The conditions: Fresh, firm granular groomers with occasional groomer death cookies, 2 days post thaw-refreeze cycle, changing to loose and chunky sugar over an ice base as the day went on. 11-20 degrees, calm to increasing winds and bright sun changing to hazy sun and occasional snow flurries.
The test runs: An exploratory cruising run on the NASTAR hill, followed by short turns on a scraped-off steep, then high-speed medium turns on the groomed/turning to sugary steep, and finally super high-speed GS turns on the same steep (and extra fun runs on the ones I liked the most, of course).
The Skis: Kastle BMX98, MX88, FX84, and FX94 (a mix of 2014 and 2015 models).
BMX98, 168 cm: 126-98-116 (21 m radius at 168 cm), no metal, early rise tip, low camber, mounted on the line.
Light and lively, super easy to ski, and soooo stable at speed. They easily popped off short turns at slow to medium speeds, yet were also completely at home ripping giant arcs at eye-watering, cheek-flapping speeds. I had no idea these were a 21 m radius ski until I looked at the dimensions and TR printed on the tail. WOW!! Given the complete lack of metal and amazing icy groomer performance (which should be their weakest attribute), I can't imagine these wouldn't be a total blast in the softer snow and powder for which they're designed. One word of caution, though; their light weight, lively nature, and lack of metal makes length choice a bit more crucial - be very careful not to go too short with this one. While I didn't find a true speed limit on the 168, I did notice a bit of wiggle at silly-stupid speeds, making me wish I could try at least 1 size bigger (likely the 178 would be just about right for me, but I bet I'd have no issues whatsoever with the 188 in this one, either).
MX88, 168 cm: 128-88-113 (17.5 m radius at 168 cm), 2 sheets of rubber for damping, 2 sheets of Titanal, full camber, mounted on the line.
I know these are a big hit with most testers, but they just didn't do it for me at all. I felt out of balance and even struggled a bit for the first few runs until I realized that even with a 17.5 turn radius, they really just wanted to go fast. Once I opened them up, I finally found the sweet spot and got balanced, but there was still no grin factor. I'm not entirely sure why we didn't get along as there wasn't anything particular I could pinpoint as an issue. Hmmmmm.
The weirdest thing is I loved it's little brother the MX83 (173 cm) when I demoed it last year.
FX84, 168 cm: 122-84-110 (18 m radius at 168 cm), 1 sheet of rubber for damping, 2 sheets of Titanal, early rise tip, standard camber, mounted on the line.
Calm and versatile are the key words here. These skis encouraged an open stance, high edge angles, and crazy speeds, but they didn't balk or complain when moving more slowly or cranking short turns, either. They easily cruised through the developing chunky sugar snow and groomer death cookies and kept a death grip on the groomed ice beneath. This would be a superb east coast or midwest daily driver - awesome groomer performance and enough width and grit for variable conditions and the occasional moderate powder day.
FX94, 176 cm: 127-94-117 (20 m radius at 176 cm), 1 sheet of rubber for damping, 2 sheets of Titanal, early rise tip, standard camber, mounted on the line.
HOLY COW!! My inner speed-demon/racer-girl came alive with this ski!!! Hop on this thoroughbred race horse and hang on for the ride!! Yeee Haaawww!!!! There is no version of slow with this beast. Go fast or go home! Once up to speed, though, it was nimble enough on the groomers - but I'd hesitate to take it into anything resembling tight bumps or close trees, for sure. The marketing words that Kastle uses for this ski are "Precision. Integrity. Force" and I'd say they are right on the mark. Anyone with guts, mass, and a need for speed should look to this ski for huge grins on high-speed groomer-zoomer days. I'd also imagine their strength and width would rock open bowls on crud, moderate powder, and chowder days.
Overall Impression: Given the firm groomer conditions and solid reputation of Kastle skis, I was surprised to find there was a clear standout in this bunch. I adored the FX94 for it's love of speed and rock-solid stability, but I wouldn't recommend it as a daily driver for any but the strongest women. The FX84 is a fantastic and versatile front-side and crud ski but not necessarily a best-in-class. I have no idea what the deal is with the MX88 and me, but I'd not hesitate to recommend it's little bro, the MX83 for anyone who wants a primarily front side ski with an easy attitude and great crud-busting ability.
Finally, the ski that had me laughing and grinning and whoo-hooing was the BMX98 with it's super light weight, lively and easy personality, rock solid stability at speed, superb hold on ice, and a perfect mid-fat/fat waist width for go-anywhere, do-anything versatility. Absolutely would recommend this ski (in the right length!) for any advancing high intermediate to expert skier regardless of weight, usual speed, or preferred snow conditions (except total ice, of course, it IS a soft ski with a 98 waist, after all).
Huge Thank Yous going out to Andrew at Northern Edge Snowsports in Muskegon, MI for bringing his 2014 and 2015 fleet out and asking for a woman's opinion!
The conditions: Fresh, firm granular groomers with occasional groomer death cookies, 2 days post thaw-refreeze cycle, changing to loose and chunky sugar over an ice base as the day went on. 11-20 degrees, calm to increasing winds and bright sun changing to hazy sun and occasional snow flurries.
The test runs: An exploratory cruising run on the NASTAR hill, followed by short turns on a scraped-off steep, then high-speed medium turns on the groomed/turning to sugary steep, and finally super high-speed GS turns on the same steep (and extra fun runs on the ones I liked the most, of course).
The Skis: Kastle BMX98, MX88, FX84, and FX94 (a mix of 2014 and 2015 models).
BMX98, 168 cm: 126-98-116 (21 m radius at 168 cm), no metal, early rise tip, low camber, mounted on the line.
Light and lively, super easy to ski, and soooo stable at speed. They easily popped off short turns at slow to medium speeds, yet were also completely at home ripping giant arcs at eye-watering, cheek-flapping speeds. I had no idea these were a 21 m radius ski until I looked at the dimensions and TR printed on the tail. WOW!! Given the complete lack of metal and amazing icy groomer performance (which should be their weakest attribute), I can't imagine these wouldn't be a total blast in the softer snow and powder for which they're designed. One word of caution, though; their light weight, lively nature, and lack of metal makes length choice a bit more crucial - be very careful not to go too short with this one. While I didn't find a true speed limit on the 168, I did notice a bit of wiggle at silly-stupid speeds, making me wish I could try at least 1 size bigger (likely the 178 would be just about right for me, but I bet I'd have no issues whatsoever with the 188 in this one, either).
MX88, 168 cm: 128-88-113 (17.5 m radius at 168 cm), 2 sheets of rubber for damping, 2 sheets of Titanal, full camber, mounted on the line.
I know these are a big hit with most testers, but they just didn't do it for me at all. I felt out of balance and even struggled a bit for the first few runs until I realized that even with a 17.5 turn radius, they really just wanted to go fast. Once I opened them up, I finally found the sweet spot and got balanced, but there was still no grin factor. I'm not entirely sure why we didn't get along as there wasn't anything particular I could pinpoint as an issue. Hmmmmm.
The weirdest thing is I loved it's little brother the MX83 (173 cm) when I demoed it last year.FX84, 168 cm: 122-84-110 (18 m radius at 168 cm), 1 sheet of rubber for damping, 2 sheets of Titanal, early rise tip, standard camber, mounted on the line.
Calm and versatile are the key words here. These skis encouraged an open stance, high edge angles, and crazy speeds, but they didn't balk or complain when moving more slowly or cranking short turns, either. They easily cruised through the developing chunky sugar snow and groomer death cookies and kept a death grip on the groomed ice beneath. This would be a superb east coast or midwest daily driver - awesome groomer performance and enough width and grit for variable conditions and the occasional moderate powder day.
FX94, 176 cm: 127-94-117 (20 m radius at 176 cm), 1 sheet of rubber for damping, 2 sheets of Titanal, early rise tip, standard camber, mounted on the line.
HOLY COW!! My inner speed-demon/racer-girl came alive with this ski!!! Hop on this thoroughbred race horse and hang on for the ride!! Yeee Haaawww!!!! There is no version of slow with this beast. Go fast or go home! Once up to speed, though, it was nimble enough on the groomers - but I'd hesitate to take it into anything resembling tight bumps or close trees, for sure. The marketing words that Kastle uses for this ski are "Precision. Integrity. Force" and I'd say they are right on the mark. Anyone with guts, mass, and a need for speed should look to this ski for huge grins on high-speed groomer-zoomer days. I'd also imagine their strength and width would rock open bowls on crud, moderate powder, and chowder days.
Overall Impression: Given the firm groomer conditions and solid reputation of Kastle skis, I was surprised to find there was a clear standout in this bunch. I adored the FX94 for it's love of speed and rock-solid stability, but I wouldn't recommend it as a daily driver for any but the strongest women. The FX84 is a fantastic and versatile front-side and crud ski but not necessarily a best-in-class. I have no idea what the deal is with the MX88 and me, but I'd not hesitate to recommend it's little bro, the MX83 for anyone who wants a primarily front side ski with an easy attitude and great crud-busting ability.
Finally, the ski that had me laughing and grinning and whoo-hooing was the BMX98 with it's super light weight, lively and easy personality, rock solid stability at speed, superb hold on ice, and a perfect mid-fat/fat waist width for go-anywhere, do-anything versatility. Absolutely would recommend this ski (in the right length!) for any advancing high intermediate to expert skier regardless of weight, usual speed, or preferred snow conditions (except total ice, of course, it IS a soft ski with a 98 waist, after all).
Huge Thank Yous going out to Andrew at Northern Edge Snowsports in Muskegon, MI for bringing his 2014 and 2015 fleet out and asking for a woman's opinion!
I wouldn't call them exactly light at 1900g per ski without bindings, one of the heaviest ski that I've tried in this category, but the ski definitely felt much lighter than that when skied and not carried. They would make a good one-ski quiver, as long as groomers are not preferred terrain. At their current price point they would have to totally rule the breakable crust for me to consider getting them as a replacement for Bushwackers, but there wasn't any crust to ski, so I am in no rush yet.
