fgor
Ski Diva Extraordinaire
About me: 5'3, 115lb cautious intermediate skier in New Zealand (ski blues and reds). I had a couple of runs on these at Mt Hutt ski field. Current daily drivers - 2020 Black Pearl 88 @159cm.
I was skiing with a guy friend today who was interested in trying a chargier ski - he swapped his skis for the mens Vantage 90Ti so I asked if I could try the womens equivalent. The shortest size they had was 161cm so I took that one out. I was excited to try it out because I don't get on very many all mountain skis with metal in them, and I recall having more fun than I expected on a Volkl Kenja last year (though it was a bit tiring). My skiing has improved since then so I thought this ski could be pretty fun.
However, although the ski absolutely holds a good edge (feels better than my BP88 in that regard) and is a smoother ride, it was sort of missing something for me. They felt like a lot more effort to ski and definitely wanted to be driven, which is fine, but I didn't feel like I got rewarded a lot for driving them properly? I put in some real effort on my second run and my friend admired my turns but I wasn't that taken with them and was happy enough to get back to my BP88. The BPs just feel more fun!
I recall when I demoed the Vantage 86 C W (in 157cm length) early last season, I thought it was a good ski but unexciting somehow. I had more fun on some of the other skis I tried. I'm not sure what it is about the Vantage skis that makes them feel adequate but sort of... boring? I know many people like them so for whatever reason - just not for me
I know they have a slightly longer turn radius than a lot of skis I've tried so it could be that I enjoy skis that feel more turny!
(The Vantage 90 Ti W @ 161cm has a 16.5m radius, while my Black Pearl 88 @159 has a 13m radius.)
The skis have this honeycomb sort of translucent panel in the middle. (mens on the left, ladies on the right) It looks kinda cool, especially on the mens IMO!
I was skiing with a guy friend today who was interested in trying a chargier ski - he swapped his skis for the mens Vantage 90Ti so I asked if I could try the womens equivalent. The shortest size they had was 161cm so I took that one out. I was excited to try it out because I don't get on very many all mountain skis with metal in them, and I recall having more fun than I expected on a Volkl Kenja last year (though it was a bit tiring). My skiing has improved since then so I thought this ski could be pretty fun.
However, although the ski absolutely holds a good edge (feels better than my BP88 in that regard) and is a smoother ride, it was sort of missing something for me. They felt like a lot more effort to ski and definitely wanted to be driven, which is fine, but I didn't feel like I got rewarded a lot for driving them properly? I put in some real effort on my second run and my friend admired my turns but I wasn't that taken with them and was happy enough to get back to my BP88. The BPs just feel more fun!
I recall when I demoed the Vantage 86 C W (in 157cm length) early last season, I thought it was a good ski but unexciting somehow. I had more fun on some of the other skis I tried. I'm not sure what it is about the Vantage skis that makes them feel adequate but sort of... boring? I know many people like them so for whatever reason - just not for me
I know they have a slightly longer turn radius than a lot of skis I've tried so it could be that I enjoy skis that feel more turny!(The Vantage 90 Ti W @ 161cm has a 16.5m radius, while my Black Pearl 88 @159 has a 13m radius.)
The skis have this honeycomb sort of translucent panel in the middle. (mens on the left, ladies on the right) It looks kinda cool, especially on the mens IMO!
