Help Needed: Time to upgrade beginner ski?

[Jilly]

The K2 are a park ski, so the binding are mounted in the centre of the ski. The Bob's are traditional, so mounted back of centre. Also with the rocker on the BP you will need longer.

I found wider skis made me keep my legs apart, which resulted in better skiing on my narrower ones.

 

[Cascadia]

Heading to the Sisters in Action Sports ladies day event this weekend that will have demos! Looks like Head is a sponsor so maybe I can try the Joy line, very intrigued after the guy at the ski shop said it was a “love it or hate it 50/50” ski in their shop. Icelantic is also a sponsor. There’s a few other snowboard brands that are sponsors as well. Super excited!

 

[Cascadia]

Demoed SO MANY skis today. Ok maybe like 5 with 1-2 runs each until my knees protested and I couldn’t stand that same run anymore. Here’s the low-down:

Head Wild Joy 90ish - fun and suuuuuper light weight. First time I could really feel the pivot slip exercise making turns in Alpine Bowl (my steep nemesis). On the flats felt like I needed to scrub speed instead of let them run. Demo staff said they had a “speed limit” and were eager to put me on the Dynastar next.

Dynastar Legend? 88- eek. Didn’t even do a second run on these. Stable running on flat (looks like it was my fastest speed of the day on the flats), didn’t hold edge well. Felt really unstable underfoot like it was starting to slip out from under me on the steeper pitches. Demo staff said they’d check the tune. Before I went out they said it didn’t look like anyone had even used them. Liked the Look demo binding. Easy to click in.

Rossignol Temptation 88 166(?)- omg holy $@#% so much fun!! Easy edging easy swing weight to pivot into turns. Really felt like I was “ripping” down the bottom half of Alpine Bowl. I doubt I was for real ripping the runs but I was really getting some nice carving going and was able to really get bigger turns to turn less and get down faster. Really really liked this ski and oddly it was the ski my instructor was demoing during our last class a few weeks ago. Of course it’s probably the most expensive of this bunch. I asked a ton of questions if 88 would still be sufficient for soft snow days since I struggle with my 85’s but they assured me the shovel shape on this one would be fine for dipping off the groomers into soft stuff, but not so much for trees (not in my near future).

K2 Fulluvit 95 170 - Coworker keeps recommending this because he and his wife ski this. If I recall I ski very similar to his wife so I gave it a try. It was really light weight and fun! I think I understand the playful term no. Easy to turn on Alpine Bowl. Chattery tips letting them run but didn’t feel like I needed to scrub speed. 170 was a little long for me but there was lots of rocker so that made them effectively shorter, so I’ve been told.

Solomon Lumen 99 167 - omg no. Too hard to turn. Tails caught a ton. Hated them within 3 turns and they killed my knees for the rest of the day so I couldn’t go out for a run on my own skis for comparison’s sake.

So far my strong contenders are the Black Pearl 98, Temptation 88, and Fulluvit 95.

There’s a 2019 demo day at Crystal Mountain later in the month, which I’ll be spending the weekend up there anyway so I’ll check these 3 out and compare with my regulars. Unless I stumble on a super deal on any of these skis before then!

 

[Cascadia]

So I’m thinking my short list is:
Blizzard BP 98
Rossi Temptation 88
K2 Fulluvit 95
And maaaaybe the Head Wild Joy, I’d like to try it for additional runs.

Right now the progressive sale at my favorite shop has started, when it hits 40% next week is when stuff flys out the door they said. 50% the week after is a gamble. BUT the week after that is 2019 demo day.

Does anyone that has demoed 2019 gear so far know if there’s any changes worth waiting for on this short list? Or if I see a good deal at this point should I just snag it? We’ve probably got a good 2 months to go up here for the season, both mountains I frequent are sitting at 100” right now and NOAA is saying colder/wetter than average for the next few weeks still.

 

[Analisa]

@Cascadia - Alpental's demo weekend is this weekend if you want to try out a few more options or get some extra time on the ones you've ridden so far. It's a little pricier than the Crystal event, especially if you already have a Crystal pass, but for a great cause. I wish I hadn't scheduled my BC trip over it.

As for when to buy, I'd also consider the store's return policy. I had the same issue last year where I was pretttty sure the Pandora 95 was a good fit, but couldn't find a shop to demo through for the life of me. I bought them in early March when they went on sale and didn't mount them until I had the chance to test them at the Crystal demo day. Btw - where's this shop with such a killer sale?! (Promise I won't swipe up the ones on your list!)

In terms of changes for 2019, the BP98 looks the same (maybe a slight change in the topsheet, but generally same color/feather deal), the Luvs are just getting a new topsheet (I personally think the old one's cuter), but the Temptation's getting a pretty rad makeover. It'll be called the Experience W line for 2019. They're giving the tips a little bit more lightness/softness/rocker and some other slight shape changes to make it a little more versatile for off trail. Their recent lines have either been so soft-snow-oriented that they're noodley (7 series) or so chargey they sink in powder (Temptation/Experience). I've heard really great things about the revamped 7s from this year that are a little sturdier for hard snow and crud, so I think Rossi's starting to get the balance right between a ski that leans on piste or off but still has some versatility. (But this also means the current Temptation line will get cheap quick!)

 

[Cascadia]

@Cascadia - Alpental's demo weekend is this weekend if you want to try out a few more options or get some extra time on the ones you've ridden so far. It's a little pricier than the Crystal event, especially if you already have a Crystal pass, but for a great cause. I wish I hadn't scheduled my BC trip over it.

As for when to buy, I'd also consider the store's return policy. I had the same issue last year where I was pretttty sure the Pandora 95 was a good fit, but couldn't find a shop to demo through for the life of me. I bought them in early March when they went on sale and didn't mount them until I had the chance to test them at the Crystal demo day. Btw - where's this shop with such a killer sale?! (Promise I won't swipe up the ones on your list!)

I had heard of the Aplental demo day, but doesn’t work with my schedule. Also not sure how much terrain I can handle up there yet! Progressing on the Central blues nicely this year. Sturtevants is the one with the progressive sale. 40% starts next week, 50% the following week. Their employees at last week’s demo said they had all of the skis I tried in stock by things would start flying out at 40 and 50 is a gamble.

The Rossi updates sound really promising, the 88 gave me pause for those soft days when there’s either powder or slush where my 85s already struggle. Last weekend was definitely a blue bird cold groomer day. I might be willing to gamble to try those 2019’s first before jumping on the BP or K2.

 

[Cascadia]

What a demo day at Crystal!! 5” of fresh this morning on top of 13” from yesterday!!! Went to the Rossi booth with every intent of trying the 2019 Experience (temptation replacement) and pretty much tried the entire 7 series as the powder tracked and packed out for the day. Soul 7 for first tracks, sky 7 after I found out the soul did not respond well when I found myself on a groomed cat track, and the spicy 7 at the suggestion of the Rossi reps when they didn’t have the Women’s Experience and the Men’s in my length was checked out.

I loved the Spicy 7! Took it through the last of the powder just off piste I could find and it floated through ankle deep just fine and I was going so fast down the casual runs that I hopped back on the lift for a more challenging run that turned out to be scraped off grooming and it turned so easily and I wasn’t even scared on the steep bit that I was scared on last year! No fatigue what so ever.

Went back on the Black Pearl 98 and kind of struggled to turn it on a steeper (to me) run. Wasn’t as confident on it this time as I was when I had it for a full day demo. Not sure if I was fatigued by then or if maybe they were too much after the Rossi 7’s.

I tried the Solomon Lux and Myrad for my last two runs at the suggestion of the ski shop employee. The Lux I hesitated on, felt hard to initiate turns and tired out my knees. Myrad was nice, like if it was a good price I wouldn’t hesitate to pick them up. But I worry if 85 isn’t enough under foot, that’s what I have now. But their shape does lend to better powder/soft days.

So now I’m more torn than ever. Shop guys told me they should still have some Spicy 7s in stock and they’ll be 40% off until they switch over to summer sports.

I just did some reading and it sounds like the Spicy is more for AT? Does anyone use it for standard all mountain skiing? Should I look to the Sky 7 for more versatility or are they too light weight to advance in?

 

[Cascadia]

Oops double post.

 

[Cascadia]

Decided to pull the trigger on the 2018 Temptation 88’s tonight. They’re still 40% off! The ultimate thought process is that I really had the most fun on these skis looking back at my notes and while I also enjoyed the 7 series family and would enjoy the blend of the two in the 2019 Experience 88, ultimately if my skills continue to grow I’ll be mad paying full price for another 3 season pair. Plus technology is evolving so fast maybe in 3 years I’ll want to upgrade just because. The fatter tips on the Temptation should help me out on some of the softer days like when the groomers are chipped up or there’s 5” on top of the groomers. I’m not quite ready for long off piste runs or trees yet so really a good quality frontside all mountain should be my best bet. I also struggled with my turns as the skis got up in the high 90s, I found myself having to pickup the inside ski and place it parallel so that’s probably not the right choice for me just yet! I’m much more parallel if I’m on something in the 85-89 range.

Any tips on bindings? Currently have a Tyrolia Peak 11. They’re fine. Thought the demo skis with Looks were even easier to click into, but ooo they’re expensive!