Demo recommendations needed

[KarenD]

I am so glad I found this board! I'm in the market for new all mountain skis to replace my aged but trusty and well-loved Olin Kinetics. I have some Chubbs in my quiver for true powder days, so I'm focusing on finding something that's well behaved on groomed and hardpack while still allowing me to venture into crud and do the occasional tree run (nothing too tight or steep) without having to fight too much. I'm 44 (will celebrate my 45th in Steamboat later this month), 5' 7", about 180 pounds, and consider myself an intermediate. I live in Michigan but ski mostly out west and usually stick to the blues with occasional forays onto blacks and generally avoid moguls unless they look small and friendly.

I did some demos earlier this season. My two favorites were the Volkl Attiva AC3 (156cm) and the Fischer Vision 73 (164cm). I found the Volkl AC3 (156cm) a bit stiff (though I loved them at speed on the groomed), the K2 Lotta Luv (160cm) a bit sloppy, and the Elan Wave Magic (160cm) not forgiving enough.

Question: What else should I try?

 

[volklgirl]

If you liked the AC3 but found it a bit stiff, try the Attiva AC2 instead. It was a joy to ski even in a too short length.

 

[RachelV]

Oh, man, I'm looking for the same kind of ski. Off the top of my head, I'd recommend:
- Volkl Attiva AC2 or AC3 - if you thought the regular AC3 was a little stiff, either of these might be better
- Head Monster iM72 or iM77
- Nordica Nitrous (or maybe the one below it)
- Elan Magfire 8 or 10 (I demo'ed the Mag 12 on Saturday and it was too stiff for me)

These should all be stiffer (less "sloppy") than the Lotta Luvs, too.

There are also a ton of reviews of skis in this general category on epic, try starting with this post.

PM me if you have any specific questions. I've spent so much time reading reviews of midfats over the past few weeks that I can ramble on for HOURS. ;)

 

[KarenD]

Thanks for the replies. I ended up buying a demo pair of Vision 73s (158cm) from the yurt at Steamboat last week. I didn't get a chance to try every ski I wanted to, but I couldn't resist these at the price.

 

[dloveski]

They are not on the market yet, but Atomic's Sugar Mama's rock!! I have been test driving the 166 cm in all mountain spring/yuck variable conditions (slush, bumps, traverses, frozen crud on the steeps) and I'm sold. Tomorrow I will try the Head Sweet Fat Thang, which is the female equivalent of the Head Mojo for men---and I've been told they handle all terrain also, but are better for those rare powder days than the Mama's. But I still had way too much fun on the Mama's to stay convinced. Stay tuned.

 

[ski diva]

Thanks for the replies. I ended up buying a demo pair of Vision 73s (158cm) from the yurt at Steamboat last week. I didn't get a chance to try every ski I wanted to, but I couldn't resist these at the price.

They might have been the very ones I tried during my trip there! I love those skis! Tried them in a 154, I think. What size did you get?

 

[KarenD]

I got 158's. Quite a change from my 180cm Olins.