So who has new gear for 16/17?

[va_deb]

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to all! 2016 Volkl Charismas + bindings in 156.

Btw @volklgirl, no more Chiaras in my size, but I think I'll be happy with these -- especially with a combo of better boots, more ski days and lessons.

 

[SkiBilly]

I'm going to buy new skis this season and had my heart set on Black Pearls (which I will demo first, of course), but after reading the thread about the divas who didn't feel the love on them, I will have a more open mind on what to pick.

I ski on K2 hot luvs, which I've had now for 7? years (I've been meaning to buy new skis for the last two seasons, haha), but I really love them. In 2012 we skied in Zermatt and I hired skis for that rather than dragging gear through Europe. I hired 2012 Dynastar Exclusive and I didn't really warm to them at all...I persisted thinking they would get better...and they mostly did, but in hindsight, I should have changed them.

 

[veronicarella]

Every year I say to myself that I've got everything I ever need and don't need to buy anything new, except...

Day 1 of ski trip - lost my balaclava
Day 2 - lost one of the gloves
Day 3 - lost one of the socks (still scratching my head how this is possible?!)

 

[bounceswoosh]

As probably the entire universe knows by now, I've had a hell of a time getting AT boots that don't make my feet numb, which is kind of the opposite of how AT boots are supposed to fit.

The heat moldable Fischer RC Pros that my fitter put me in are a dream - no pressure at all on my "sixth toe," which has been a problem in all my boots (although least in my old Dalbellos).

So I started wondering if Fischer makes heat moldable AT boots. And, in fact, they do, with the same last width listed. I consulted with my fitter, who's a Fischer dealer, but who doesn't carry their AT gear anymore (racing shops don't do a brisk business in AT). He's been on the phone, trying to find out if he could order the boot and be able to return it if it didn't fit. Obviously I'd have to pay shipping.

I, not knowing if the manufacturer would be willing to do this favor, looked online. So far, I'd only found the wrong sizes, but that's because I was only looking at women's. It turns out the only difference is color (really??) Now that I'd broadened my search - bingo - one pair from a previous season in exactly my size - 90 day return policy - at half price. Or better, if you're looking at MSRP.

I do *not* like to price compare online after getting help locally. If it hadn't been for these circumstances, I wouldn't have gone looking, even though the price might have kept me from buying the boot at all. Anyway, I called my fitter, and he at least claimed he was okay with it - gave me the prices for heat molding and fitting, etc. Still far from the full price of this season's boot.

So I pulled the trigger. Fingers crossed. My fitter says there's an 80-85% chance that they'll work for me, and we'll be able to tell before heat molding. The RC Pros felt very comfortable (you know, for a pre-molding liner) even before the heat molding.

 

[SkiGAP]

...skied no poles all day felt SOOOO good.. probably going to be ditching them more often...

So Sis in Law and I were with the niece (6) and nephew (3) today. SiL is also a telemarker. As the kids have no poles, we left ours behind as well. I think it was my first time being on telemarks all day with no poles and it was great. I think I may ditch my poles for the week. Something tells me it will be helpful in my skill development - that is, if I don't develop any really bad habits as a result...

 

[SkiGAP]

@Jenny - just used the lenses for the first time yesterday. Partly cloudy, they had fine contrast and were okay in bright sun. But when we hit our infamous "blue twilight" (sunset at 1:30 p.m. behind the mountain), they weren't as wonderful. DH at that point went in to change out his lenses to Smith Blue Sensor. I didn't have any others with me : ( The better lenses for "blue twilight" conditions (and likely, night skiing as well, though I do little of that) are Oakley HI Yellow (night/dark) or HI Persimmon (which is what I wish I had yesterday aft). I have heard good things about the Pink Prizm - but think I will wait on those until I hear more. Rose Prizm, in the meantime, covers a lot of bases. But I personally would not use that dark a lens for night skiing. YMMV.

My Prism Rose lenses...are...AMAZING. Tried them for the first time today and I kept just gazing at the skyline (blue sky meets mountain ridge). And yes, the detail in the snow was fantastic. It was like I had switched to HD all of a sudden. Love them. Am interested to know which might be the good lens #2 (more for sun or more for shade/night).

Thanks for the recommendation, Divas!

 

[SallyCat]

Sprung for some Hestra gloves after enduring cold fingers last week. Expensive, but they should last for years and they look and feel great.

 

[bounceswoosh]

Sprung for some Hestra gloves after enduring cold fingers last week. Expensive, but they should last for years and they look and feel great.

View attachment 6324

Their customer service is also outstanding.

 

[lisamamot]

For Christmas, my family knows me well - I scored two new nordic Skida hats (unlined, great for wearing under helmet and in the lodge as well as for snowshoeing and x-country skiing), a Skida tour neck warmer, and a Columbia Omni Therm jacket to wear under my shell

 

[santacruz skier]

For Christmas, my family knows me well - I scored two new nordic Skida hats (unlined, great for wearing under helmet and in the lodge as well as for snowshoeing and x-country skiing), a Skida tour neck warmer, and a Columbia Omni Therm jacket to wear under my shell

Your family has excellent taste!

 

[lisamamot]

Your family has excellent taste!

They do well, but someone might have chirped in their ear, lol.

 

[CarverJill]

I have two new pairs of pants for this season, the denim print north face, grey 686's (for $17, new!!) and a teal print Billabong coat. I also scored a clearance grey Giro helmet in Vail in September. I got new skis and bindings the year before and boots a few years before that. Oh I also got anew boot bag/backpack. Now that I have all that ,there is nothing on my list left to buy

 

[elemmac]

Now that I have all that ,there is nothing on my list left to buy

Sounds like it's time to start a new list

 

[elemmac]

Whelp...that just posted three times. @skidiva - how can I delete posts? Or can you delete the duplicates? Please and thank you.

 

[bounceswoosh]

Whelp...that just posted three times. @skidiva - how can I delete posts? Or can you delete the duplicates? Please and thank you.

Done!

 

[bounceswoosh]

Now that I have all that ,there is nothing on my list left to buy

Failure of imagination ...

 

[Lmk92]

Not gear, but I got a poster of all the ski areas in the united States. We'll hang it in the basement (we're currently finishing), and put pins in the places we've skied. There are a lot more ski areas than I thought!

 

[Albertan ski girl]

Smith Chromapop I/os goggles

They came with 2 lenses - stormy and sunny. I haven't used the sunny ones yet ( haven't had a sunny day yet!) but the stormy is great. They are very similar to my old smith blue sensor mirror goggles, but definitely more contrast. I used them both here in ab and in whistler, and they were great. Didn't find them particularly inspiring in flat light - still couldn't see anything, but great in most other whiteout conditions. If you already have the blue sensor mirror, I wouldn't necessarily upgrade to chromapop-they will serve you just fine. For me the bigger difference was between the I/os goggles and my old anthems: they had a way bigger field of vision, they fit my face much better and I have not had any fogging up at all since using them. I think the goggles are really fantastic, but the chromapop lenses, I would only give a slight advantage to the blue sensor mirror.

 

[SallyCat]

Salomon X-Max 110. Yes, I bought new boots. Again.

I was skiing one night at Blue Mtn. and was just bummed and frustrated by my blue Lange's. They are SO cold, and when they get cold they stiffen like icy bricks. I'm a lower-intermediate very much working on my stance, and when stiff, the boots kept bouncing me into the back seat. I don't yet have the skill to handle them and could't stay centered over my feet. I'm a 27.5 on the Brannock, but my instep is 26, so the Langes are 26.5s that have been punched, softened, punched again, softened some more. I was told by several bootfitters that this was my best option.

On a whim on my way to the car, I went into Blue's shop and tried on the Salomon X-Max 90, which I'd read were good for narrow feet and OH MY GOD, they fit perfectly, in 26.5, out of the box. No punching. No cutting. They were snug all around, and the length was perfect. The 90s were squishy, though, so I sold some gear on Ebay to raise the cash, and then ordered the X-Max in 110 (the shop didn't carry the 110s or I would have gone back and bought them there.)

The flex of the 110 seems good; I reckon it's more like most brands' 90-100 flex. Not squishy, but flexy enough for me.

The stock liner felt good, but I have ZipFits, so I tried them out and HOLY COW, the fit was even better. Rock solid heel hold, firm ankle support, good toe space.

I'm going to try them out tomorrow and will maybe write a review (I don't know if I'm really qualified to judge gear yet, but Dog knows I have a lot of experience with the bootfitting process).

If these work out, I'm going to send a karmic F-word to all the bootfitters who told me that race boots were my only option.

 

[SkiMauw]

I got my first ever skis with help from all the fine ladies here. Dynastar Glory 79. And I just ordered myself a pair of Oakley Flight Deck XM with the Prizm Sapphire Iridium lenses; and the strap coordinates with my helmet. LOL