Expanding my quiver

[Cyclone6]

I have been shopping the sales online and have potentially found a couple good deals. Currently I have a pair of Rossignol Spicy 7 skis, which have an 86mm waist width. They really struggle on ice, chatter and feel really unstable. I'm looking to sandwich these with a narrower pair for ice days/trips to Maine and a wider pair for deeper powder. The sale skis I'm looking at have 76mm and 91mm widths respectively. Is 91mm wide enough for a foot of powder? I don't do backcountry so that's the most I've encountered at the resort. The spicy 7's really shine in 6" or less/on soft groomed snow. Any more than 6" and I have to work to make them not submarine.

 

[fgor]

I personally don't think 91mm is wide enough for a foot of powder, but others who are better skiers than me might have different opinions I have the same experience as you with my 88mm skis - they love to dive under the snow and send me flying. I don't think 91mm is quite enough of a width jump to make a difference unless the whole shape of the rocker profile is much more powder oriented. What are the skis you're looking at?

Of course I've seen people absolutely killing it in powder on skis ~75mm underfoot... but they're a lot better than me!

Maybe look for widths in the high 90s and up for a powder ski? e.g. I've heard the liberty genesis 96 is really good in powder for its width and something about the rocker profile shape and the softness of the tips mean it doesn't tend to dive. Never been on one though

(FWIW my personal quiver has widths 70mm, 88mm, 104mm)

 

[Cyclone6]

I was worried about that, I suppose 91 is not too different from 86. I'll keep looking!

 

[scandium]

I have been shopping the sales online and have potentially found a couple good deals. Currently I have a pair of Rossignol Spicy 7 skis, which have an 86mm waist width. They really struggle on ice, chatter and feel really unstable. I'm looking to sandwich these with a narrower pair for ice days/trips to Maine and a wider pair for deeper powder. The sale skis I'm looking at have 76mm and 91mm widths respectively. Is 91mm wide enough for a foot of powder? I don't do backcountry so that's the most I've encountered at the resort. The spicy 7's really shine in 6" or less/on soft groomed snow. Any more than 6" and I have to work to make them not submarine.

It's not just the width, it's also the shape of the ski and the rocker profile - I think @Analisa mentioned that here with the summary being that wider widths are generally better for making floating and learning to ski in powder easier, but width is only one part of the equation. She may also be able to chime in with recommendations as I rarely see enough powder to need a wider ski.