Help picking carving skis

[Jennessy92]

Hey Divas!

Recently found this forum and love it. I’m looking to get a new pair of skis and wanted y’all’s opinions. We’ve lived in the PNW for 2 years and really got into skiing when we moved here (originally from NC). I consider myself an intermediate, confident on blues, only ski on groomers, and like short turns. I’m 5’4, 110 lbs, and currently on Rossi Sassy7s (150), 118-90-108, radius 16. I like them but feel like they aren’t the super stable and have a harder time getting on my edges/carving. I’m looking for skis to help me improve my carving/technique. I demoed the Stöckli AWs (150) 122-80-106, radius 12.6, at Schweitzer yesterday and absolutely loved them. I really liked the narrow waist. Much easier to get on edge and transition into turns, much more stable and a lot more speed. They are a pretty penny so wanted to see if there were others brands you ladies would recommend. I was planning on demoing the Black Crows Octo birdies (155), 124-84-113, radius 14, when I get back to Seattle/Crystal mountain. I’ve also heard good things about Volkl Blaze 82/volkl yumi 84. Thanks for your help!

 

[ski diva]

I have the Volkl Blaze in an 86 and love, love, love it! A fantastic ski that's great in just about everything. You might want to try the 82's to see what you think. But if you're looking for something narrower, I'd suggest the Blizzard Phoenix. I tried the R13 just last week and thought it was a great carver.

Here are the stats:

 

[Jennessy92]

Awesome! I’ll look into those Blizzards. Thanks!!

 

[Jilly]

Your Sassy 7's are actually a free ride ski. Meant for off piste. So not a groomer ski at all. Along with the Blizzard @ski diva mentioned is the Rossi Nova 14. Similar stats.

 

[Jennessy92]

Thanks for the feedback. Yeah, the sassy7s were the first skis I purchased. I got them on fb marketplace without doing much research other than length. Trying to do a better job this time

 

[nopoleskier]

Hi- I'm on east (ice) coast, we need to carve, which I love to do. I agree with the Ski Diva- The Phoenix is an awesome carver-- Atomic also makes a series of Ladies carvers.. Cloud series, the higher the number the more advanced the ski. Ahh Stockli's they are sweet skis.. I love the CX. 69 under foot. but now I'm on my 2nd set of liberty V76w's- for me they carve and feel as good as the stocklis (i got mine on sale on Sierra trading for 200$!!) I Hope you can keep demoing.. what one person loves another dislikes, it's the best way to find the right ski :-)

 

[Jennessy92]

Hi- I'm on east (ice) coast, we need to carve, which I love to do. I agree with the Ski Diva- The Phoenix is an awesome carver-- Atomic also makes a series of Ladies carvers.. Cloud series, the higher the number the more advanced the ski. Ahh Stockli's they are sweet skis.. I love the CX. 69 under foot. but now I'm on my 2nd set of liberty V76w's- for me they carve and feel as good as the stocklis (i got mine on sale on Sierra trading for 200$!!) I Hope you can keep demoing.. what one person loves another dislikes, it's the best way to find the right ski :-)

Thanks! Hoping to demo more soon. I’ll keep you ladies updated

 

[Jennessy92]

I have the Volkl Blaze in an 86 and love, love, love it! A fantastic ski that's great in just about everything. You might want to try the 82's to see what you think. But if you're looking for something narrower, I'd suggest the Blizzard Phoenix. I tried the R13 just last week and thought it was a great carver.

Here are the stats:

View attachment 24161

I’ve been doing a lot of research and I really think these Blizzards Phoenix R13s are a good fit for me. Unfortunately, I can’t find a place to demo them. Luckily, they are a great price ($399 with bindings) so I’m willing to chance it. The one problem I’m having is trying to decide if I should get the 150 or 155. My current rossi’s are 150. I demoed the Stöckli AWs in 150s and felt super easy, but should I go a little longer to give myself room to advance? I plan on demoing the Black Crows Octo birdie’s in 155 but I’m sure it’s gonna be a bit harder on turns since they are longer so not sure one day will do much. Different website recommendations have me somewhere between 145 and 160 being intermediate, which is kinda a wide range. Any thoughts?

 

[skibum4ever]

Another vote for the Volkl Blaze 86. See if you can find a pair to demo.

 

[WaterGirl]

Hi @Jennessy92 I have the Phoenix 13 TI, I was lucky to purchase them from @SnowHot. They are fun!
I have skied them on perfect groomers, crappy chopped up snow, and spring conditions. There are video reviews on them and a few other reviews on the different models of the Phoenix on SkiTalk.

What version did you demo? There is a TI with metal and a CA without.
Also the version I have has a negative delta binding which works better for me.

You should still demo, I would be curious to get on the Octobirdie, since I have a murder of crows already and there is a lot of love for the Blaze, another good ski.

Edit as far as sizing, I generally ski a 165 in an all mountain, and thats what size my Phoenix are. I also have metal in my other skis, and the TI version seems to work for me.

 

[scandium]

I’ve been doing a lot of research and I really think these Blizzards Phoenix R13s are a good fit for me. Unfortunately, I can’t find a place to demo them. Luckily, they are a great price ($399 with bindings) so I’m willing to chance it. The one problem I’m having is trying to decide if I should get the 150 or 155. My current rossi’s are 150. I demoed the Stöckli AWs in 150s and felt super easy, but should I go a little longer to give myself room to advance? I plan on demoing the Black Crows Octo birdie’s in 155 but I’m sure it’s gonna be a bit harder on turns since they are longer so not sure one day will do much. Different website recommendations have me somewhere between 145 and 160 being intermediate, which is kinda a wide range. Any thoughts?

I think either would work. If there's a lot of narrow cat-tracks or traffic where you ski, the shorter length will be more nimble; if you want to open things up and make slightly bigger turns or have more space, go longer. I do think if you want to carve, go for the piste skis rather than all mountain.

 

[Susan L]

Is buying used/demo skis an option? That could bring the cost down if the AW is what you like. The AW is the women’s version of the AX so you may be able to find a deal on that. My daily carver was the Laser AX for the last few years but I just replaced it with the SC Orea (72mm) and it took me to a whole new level of carving! The AX is 78 underfoot - I used it mainly for carving but it was good for up to 4” of snow and I took it into trees/bumps so I guess they were somewhat all mountain to me, eventhough my Nela 88 is technically “all mountain”. I was going to get the AW but I wanted a pair of dedicated carving skis, therefore the SC.
As for sizing, I prefer shorter skis and never thought of buying longer for room to advance. I am 5’3 145#, my AX is 154, SC is 156, and if a shorter length was available I’d have picked shorter.

 

[Jennessy92]

Update: I made the splurge and purchased the Stockli Montero AW back in February and love them! They have been so great for carving. Thanks divas for all your help and recommendations Next step, finding a good powder/crud buster ski haha