Fat skis, what should I chose

[Marwe]

I´m having some problems. I´m 155 cm and 53 kg(116 Lbs) been skiing the Alps and the Swedish mountains from childhood, now i´m 23.
I thought my K2 Apache Crossfire(160 cm) was working fine in every condition. Was skiing the whole mountain whit them and was okay. Then I tried a friends K2 Apache Chief(181 cm) way to long i know. but they where wonderful. So then I realized that I need a pair of fat ones for the soft and powder but they shall still be working on harder snow.
Shall keep my Crossfire for the really hard snow and some ice that pretty often is the case in the middle of winter in Sweden.

The fat ones gonna have a pair of Fritschi Diamir Freeride Plus binding then I gonna going on tours mostly. But don´t want to have a pair of randone when I prior the run down... Gonna go up on Elbrus(europe's highest mountain) in end of Mars and ski down =).
I have been looking on three diferent skiis and would be wary glad for some help to choose. Sadly I can´t try them first then my economy isn´t the best and skiis in Sweden is pretty expensive :mad: so I shall order them from Germany (www.sport-conrad.com). So please some help!

The skis is:
Völkl Aura 163 cm
Dynastar Legend Exclusive Powder 158 cm or 163 cm
K2 Apache Coomba 167 cm

Or any other ide´s?

I want a stable ski then I really like to going fast

// Marie

 

[tradygirl]

The K2 would be my choice based on the list of needs you gave. It's 100+ in the waist and it sounds like it's a pretty stiff ski (should perform well at high speeds in a variety of conditions). Plus, you are already a K2 skier, so you'll probably like them.

You might want to look at the Volkl Gotama as well.

 

[pinto]

Actually, I read that the Coomba's are "on the softer side of medium" in flex (from Sierra Jim on Epic), and quite light. That sounds more like a women's ski, doesn't it, ha ha. But I agree, that sounds like a good choice for a lightweight off-piste skier.

And no one has anything bad to say about the Auras ...

 

[altagirl]

Yeah, I love my Gotamas. Though Auras are nearly identical to Mantras (same dimensions, a bit softer and lighter) and I loved Mantras. It just depends on how much versatility you want. I think Mantras/Auras are ideal as an all-purpose ski - they edge well and handle crud and powder well too. The Gotama is a little more powder-specific.

 

[skigrl27]

I just bought (today) the K2 Nancy's after reading review after review...the Aura was my other option, but went with the Nancy because I think the sidecut will be better on groomers, plus its a twin tip for riding switch.

The Aura's reviews were phenomenal - but a few complaints arose for instability in crud. So I went with a longer pair of the K2 Nancy - which has rave reviews as well. Can't wait to try them out...and will certainly post a review after a nice pow day.

 

[jaydog]

I'll put in a word of support for the Dynastars. I have the Exclusive Legend non-powder version in 158 cm, and I'm quite happy with them. They're light and have good float in powder, but are also stiff enough to handle crud. They certainly wouldn't let me get sloppy with my technique! So the versatility is there. That being said, I haven't skied the powder version, so I don't know how much it differs.

In terms of length, my 158's only seem to be about two centimeters longer than my old 153cm K2s. I've also been skiing for 2 years as opposed to your 20 or so years, and I'm about your size, so you'd probably want the 163, based on the length of your K2s.

 

[astridhj]

Marie,
I don't know much about fat skis, but I see the Coomba wins all the tests here in Norway. Of course, everyone skis differently, so it's hard to tell which one will be best for you.

BTW, where do you ski in Sweden?

-Astrid

 

[Marwe]

Now I have made my choice, it become Völkl Aura (163 cm) whit a Dynafit Vertical ST binding and a pair of Scarpa Diva boots. Have´t tried it yet but hopefully i can go up to the mountains around Christmas otherwise it will wait until middle of January when it becomes Chamonix until may =)

Astrid: I use to ski in Vemdelen most of the times when that closest to home, but like Ramundsberget alot also. Where do u use to ski? I thinking abit of spending the season next year in Norway, where's the best place to be?

 

[Quiver Queen]

Marie & Astrid,
You wouldn't want some visitors from the States, would you????

 

[Bravosarah]

^ or Canada

 

[astridhj]

Everyone is welcome :-)

Marie, I live in Bergen, so I ski at Voss, Myrkdalen, Eikedalen and Hemsedal. Actually this season I've been mostly in Hemsedal, which is a 4 hour drive from Bergen. If I would choose a place to ski for a whole season, Hemsedal is probably one of the best. It is also centered in the middle of Norway, and you can use it as a base for going around to other resorts.

There are loads of other good skiing resorts in Norway, but most of them are pretty small, so I wouldn't spend a whole season there. But absolutely worth a visit. If you can manage to find the skiing movie "Kong Vinter", you can see scenes from around Norway. I recently watched the movie while on work last week. The South African I was working with at that time asked me if we weren't afraid of all the trees....

BTW: I've also just bought the Völkl Aura with Marker Duke bindings. Haven't gotten around to testing them yet, due to me being at work, but will definately test them during Christmas if my boss doesn't send me to work again.

 

[MaineSkiLady]

Astrid: GLEDELIG JUL!
Ah, Norway ---
What a beautiful country.
Bergen, what a beautiful city.
I have not been there, but my son was there and loved it.
I hope to visit someday.

 

[SnowHot]

Ah, ha, the next diva GTG Norway !!

Honey! Don't use up those FFM's just yet!!

 

[astridhj]

SnowHot, I have to admit my english is good, but not that good, and I sometime have problems understanding all of the american abbreviations. And my work language is english, so I'm a bit ashamed... But I manage

MaineSkiLady: Bergen is a really beautiful city, especially when it's not raining. I really recommend a visit. Merry Christmas to you too.

Marie, if you choose the Dynafit bindings, what sort of boots are you using? I'm thinking about buying rando boots if I can find a pair that fits me, and I can use both rando and normal boots on my Marker Duke binding. I can even use the new NTN binding on telemark on those bindings

 

[Marwe]

astridhj: Scarpa Diva Thermo. Hav´t skied them yet, will do that this week. But just trying them on it feels really nice. they flex good in walking mood and feels pretty stiff in ski mode, so i think it would be nice =)

 

[SnowHot]

SnowHot, I have to admit my english is good, but not that good, and I sometime have problems understanding all of the american abbreviations. And my work language is english, so I'm a bit ashamed... But I manage

FFM's = Frequent Flyer Miles.

We started an Acronym dictionary in the Site Feedback and Help forum area. It helps all of us on occasion. May help you, too. Feel free to add to it, if you see something that's missing

 

[astridhj]

I can't believe I've missed that post. Thank you so much, SnowHot :D