ellae
Certified Ski Diva
Hi All,
I demoed a few different skis today (Saturday, November 28, 2015 with spring-like conditions), and wanted to offer my 2¢. I know a lot of you ladies rip - I do not. I'm going into my third season, and am an intermediate skier. I chose to demo today to find the right skis to bring me to the next level, and ultimately placed an order for one of the pairs below before I even left the mountain.
I'm still pretty new to skiing, so I'm not well-versed in ski review lingo, but I'm going to do my best with these, anyway.
About me:
Height: 5' 3"
Age: 26
Weight: 140 lbs
Ability: Intermediate
Equipment: 2012 Völkl PRL (Twin Tips)
Salomon Z12 Bindings
111-84-111, 155
Skis tested (All with Marker Squire bindings):
2016 Völkl Kenja
127-87-106, 163
I demoed these skis first thing in the morning. I had the sense to start on a beginner trail, since I don't have much experience with skis other than my twin tips. Well, I sure learned quickly that my "aggressive ski stance" was NOT that aggressive, and needed to be adjusted immediately, or else would say a quick hello to the trees. After I gathered my bearings, I took a more advance trail and got used to them, though I slid the tails around a lot.
Impressions:
• They were very, very stiff. I found them hard to turn, not very forgiving, even with the rockered tips.
• They're skis for expert/advanced skiers. Unless you're powerful and aggressive, they'll ski you.
• They just felt "big." I found them to be heavy, wide (could be an optical illusion that got into my head, since the waist is wider on the skis I did choose), and bulky.
• They're a great ski for someone making the transition from race skis to all-mountain skis. They're preferred by my friends who used to race, and I sure see why.
Conclusion:
After a few runs on these, I decided that there wasn't anything I liked about them. It's nothing against them, so much as it is that my severe lack of experience was preventing me from unleashing their full potential. However, in a few years I could see myself re-visiting these as an expert ski.
2016 Völkl Yumi
125-83-103, 154
These felt more relaxed to me after skiing the Kenja. I didn't have to work as hard to get them to do what I wanted to do, though, that said, they didn't feel as stable as the Kenja.
• Bouncy, yet pretty solid. I enjoyed that it turned quickly, much like my twin tips
• Great intermediate-advanced ski. It felt dependable and stable, but it didn't have quite enough "oomph." I wanted something that was going to put me on the borderline of being uncomfortable, and these didn't do it.
• Personally, I didn't like the lengths offered. 154 felt like it would feel too short pretty quickly, and 161 seemed a little long for a ski with so much edge contact.
Conclusion:
I had a lot of fun on this ski, it just didn't differentiate itself enough from what I'm already skiing on. Back to the tent we went.
2016 Blizzard Black Pearl
123-88-103, 166 and 159
I felt like Goldilocks a little bit, trying skis out today, and it was hard to set aside my Völkl preference and even try the Blizzards. While the Kenja was "too stiff/tough to ski" and the Yumi was "too soft/didn't present enough of a foreseeable challenge," the Black Pearl was "juuuuuust right!"
Someone had the pair of 159s, so the tech handed me the 166s and said, "You'll be fine on the groomed trail with this length, but I probably not in the trees." Since, you know, it's November, I didn't plan to take them into the trees. I popped these bad girls on, and went to start my "usual route," wanting to get to know them a little bit before doing anything crazy. Applied my stance knowledge from the previous eye-opening experience the Kenja provided, I felt pretty good, until my first real turn. I was entirely unprepared for the way the Black Pearl was ready to hook. It was like someone pulled a rug out from underneath me - they just want to ski!! I ended up on my back, stunned, and of course I was laying under the lift. Thankfully it's pre-season, and no one really has their ski legs yet.
I stood up, brushed the slush off, and the rest of the runs went really well. They were definitely too long, and the 159s felt much better underfoot.
Impressions:
• I felt like it was a really versatile ski, good for intermediates looking to get better and experts looking to shred.
• They turn like a DREAM, just set-it-and-forget-it around the corners, with just the right amount of flex. Very stable through crud and bumpy snow.
• While the waist was the widest, these felt the sturdiest and most nimble to me. They're also pretty light, so they're easy to control. However, since they grip and rip, I need to get out of that twin tip habit of sliding my tails. It's basically time to learn to ski again.
Conclusion:
I said yes to the dress! Er, I mean, I said... "wheee!" to the ...ski?
I demoed a few different skis today (Saturday, November 28, 2015 with spring-like conditions), and wanted to offer my 2¢. I know a lot of you ladies rip - I do not. I'm going into my third season, and am an intermediate skier. I chose to demo today to find the right skis to bring me to the next level, and ultimately placed an order for one of the pairs below before I even left the mountain.
I'm still pretty new to skiing, so I'm not well-versed in ski review lingo, but I'm going to do my best with these, anyway.
About me:
Height: 5' 3"
Age: 26
Weight: 140 lbs
Ability: Intermediate
Equipment: 2012 Völkl PRL (Twin Tips)
Salomon Z12 Bindings
111-84-111, 155
Skis tested (All with Marker Squire bindings):
2016 Völkl Kenja
127-87-106, 163
I demoed these skis first thing in the morning. I had the sense to start on a beginner trail, since I don't have much experience with skis other than my twin tips. Well, I sure learned quickly that my "aggressive ski stance" was NOT that aggressive, and needed to be adjusted immediately, or else would say a quick hello to the trees. After I gathered my bearings, I took a more advance trail and got used to them, though I slid the tails around a lot.
Impressions:
• They were very, very stiff. I found them hard to turn, not very forgiving, even with the rockered tips.
• They're skis for expert/advanced skiers. Unless you're powerful and aggressive, they'll ski you.
• They just felt "big." I found them to be heavy, wide (could be an optical illusion that got into my head, since the waist is wider on the skis I did choose), and bulky.
• They're a great ski for someone making the transition from race skis to all-mountain skis. They're preferred by my friends who used to race, and I sure see why.
Conclusion:
After a few runs on these, I decided that there wasn't anything I liked about them. It's nothing against them, so much as it is that my severe lack of experience was preventing me from unleashing their full potential. However, in a few years I could see myself re-visiting these as an expert ski.
2016 Völkl Yumi
125-83-103, 154
These felt more relaxed to me after skiing the Kenja. I didn't have to work as hard to get them to do what I wanted to do, though, that said, they didn't feel as stable as the Kenja.
• Bouncy, yet pretty solid. I enjoyed that it turned quickly, much like my twin tips
• Great intermediate-advanced ski. It felt dependable and stable, but it didn't have quite enough "oomph." I wanted something that was going to put me on the borderline of being uncomfortable, and these didn't do it.
• Personally, I didn't like the lengths offered. 154 felt like it would feel too short pretty quickly, and 161 seemed a little long for a ski with so much edge contact.
Conclusion:
I had a lot of fun on this ski, it just didn't differentiate itself enough from what I'm already skiing on. Back to the tent we went.
2016 Blizzard Black Pearl
123-88-103, 166 and 159
I felt like Goldilocks a little bit, trying skis out today, and it was hard to set aside my Völkl preference and even try the Blizzards. While the Kenja was "too stiff/tough to ski" and the Yumi was "too soft/didn't present enough of a foreseeable challenge," the Black Pearl was "juuuuuust right!"
Someone had the pair of 159s, so the tech handed me the 166s and said, "You'll be fine on the groomed trail with this length, but I probably not in the trees." Since, you know, it's November, I didn't plan to take them into the trees. I popped these bad girls on, and went to start my "usual route," wanting to get to know them a little bit before doing anything crazy. Applied my stance knowledge from the previous eye-opening experience the Kenja provided, I felt pretty good, until my first real turn. I was entirely unprepared for the way the Black Pearl was ready to hook. It was like someone pulled a rug out from underneath me - they just want to ski!! I ended up on my back, stunned, and of course I was laying under the lift. Thankfully it's pre-season, and no one really has their ski legs yet.
I stood up, brushed the slush off, and the rest of the runs went really well. They were definitely too long, and the 159s felt much better underfoot.
Impressions:
• I felt like it was a really versatile ski, good for intermediates looking to get better and experts looking to shred.
• They turn like a DREAM, just set-it-and-forget-it around the corners, with just the right amount of flex. Very stable through crud and bumpy snow.
• While the waist was the widest, these felt the sturdiest and most nimble to me. They're also pretty light, so they're easy to control. However, since they grip and rip, I need to get out of that twin tip habit of sliding my tails. It's basically time to learn to ski again.
Conclusion:
I said yes to the dress! Er, I mean, I said... "wheee!" to the ...ski?