Help with new skis

[lindseyinalaska]

Hi all,
I am trying to pick out a new pair of skis but am having a hard time. I am coming off a pair of Atomic GS skis that I love (170s). They are about 6 years old and its time for a new pair. I want a ski that will handle my eastern style of skiing. Basically I am looking for an all mountain that will ski ice, crud and the groomers. I also am looking for something that won't sink in powder (if we ever get it). I am an expert skier that goes everywhere. I prefer longer turns and go probably medium speed. I am also open to unisex ski suggestions as I have just ventured into the women's ski arena.

I tried the Salomon Siam 10 today and liked them (last years model I believe). Someone told me they were bad on ice but I tested them on some skied off areas and they seemed okay to me and all other reports from ski shops have suggested them as a good all around high end women's ski. Any ideas how they respond on real ice? Anyone have them and like to share what they like/don't like.

THANKS for any help you can offer!

 

[lil mountain girl]

hi!

i'm looking for new skis this year as well . . . yay!

i haven't tried the Solomons, but i have been demoing different skis and it's been SOOO HELPFUL.

despite what reviews, friends, or others say . . . the only way to know if you like a ski is to try it out.
it's really helpful to figure out what you like . . . and don't like in the ski.

i'm sure some of the other divas have some awsome tips when it comes to trying out different skis.
here are some things that i've found helpful in demoing so far:

*ski several runs on each pair of skis -- AT LEAST 4 or 5 runs
*ski different terrain types if possible (steep, mellow, bumps, etc.)
*alternate short quick turns and long turns
*try to ski different snow conditions (groomed, crud, hardpack, powder, etc.) if you can
*try different lengths out in the same ski -- if you can

i hope this helps!

Happy Skiing!

 

[volklgirl]

When you do your demo day, print off the ski score card (Gear Review thread) and make lots of notes. Buy the one that makes YOU grin from top to bottom!

That said, check out both Volkl and Nordica's womens lines. Both are making outstanding skis for the expert woman and both should be exceptional on ice.

 

[Jilly]

If you liked the Siam 10 (?) the new versions are the Jewel line. Origin is the top one and similar to the Siam 10. Like volklgirl suggests add the following to you ever growing list
Nordica - Victory and Firefox
Fischer - Breeze and Vapour
Rossi- Z9 or Z5 (forget about their women's line, and I'm on the Z5)
Atomic - Sugar Mama's
Salomon - X-wing 10 (very similar to the Origin - no flowers and cheaper)

Like I said - your ever growing list to try!!

 

[Robyn]

If you liked the Siam 10 (?) the new versions are the Jewel line. Origin is the top one and similar to the Siam 10. Like volklgirl suggests add the following to you ever growing list
Nordica - Victory and Firefox
Fischer - Breeze and Vapour
Rossi- Z9 or Z5 (forget about their women's line, and I'm on the Z5)
Atomic - Sugar Mama's
Salomon - X-wing 10 (very similar to the Origin - no flowers and cheaper)

Like I said - your ever growing list to try!!

I have to disagree about advising someone to not even try the Rossi women's line. I ski the Attraxion V and LOVE them. Everybody is different.

 

[Jilly]

Robyn, Siam is Salomon's all mountain skis. Rossi Attraxion line is a craver model. lindseyinalaska would need to look at the Bandits. I just found the women's offering from Rossi not up to par compared to some of the others. The Attraxion 5 is a good ski for the right Diva, but not an exracer!

 

[Robyn]

I'm an ex-racer and a ski racing coach. And it was recommended to me by our head coach. Obviously, every Diva is different which is why I'm saying not to discount any ski automatically.

 

[altagirl]

By all means, try everything you can. When I go up to demo skis, I'll demo everyting I can.

But I've got to say, the Rossi women's skis I've tried are some of my least favorite skis I've ever been on - they were extremely noodly and didn't feel stable at speed. And even the Rossi unisex skis B3s, XXX's etc. - I don't like those much either, though they're a lot better than the women's skis. The B4's were the only ones in the lineup that felt reasonably good to me last year, which still isn't saying much when there were other skis that I loved.

That said, we're all built differently and ski different terrain, like skiing at different speeds, etc. So just because I don't like them doesn't mean they aren't good for someone else.

Back to the original question - what kind of ice are we talking here? Like blue ice you need a race ski to hold an edge or what we consider ice out here, which just means a patch of man-made snow that if you have a decent edge on a torsionally stiff fat ski, you're fine on?

Because personally if you're looking for one ski to be good at real ice and powder? That's not happening, to be honest. But if you're just talking about needing to be able to handle slick manmade spots, that's different.

For an all around ski, I'd suggest something like the Head i.M.88. But demo all you can and see what you like. I did that last year when I was looking for a new "everyday/all-purpose ski" to handle the conditions when it hadn't snowed much last year.

 

[lindseyinalaska]

I guess I mean mostly skied off man made "ice" though we do get some real ice sometimes but I think the majority is the man made stuff. Its hard cause I skied out west last winter and am having a hard time remembering Maine snow. Thanks so much for the great help so far!

 

[altagirl]

I guess I mean mostly skied off man made "ice" though we do get some real ice sometimes but I think the majority is the man made stuff. Its hard cause I skied out west last winter and am having a hard time remembering Maine snow. Thanks so much for the great help so far!

So where are you skiing?

 

[SnowHot]

By all means, try everything you can. When I go up to demo skis, I'll demo everyting I can.

But I've got to say, the Rossi women's skis I've tried are some of my least favorite skis I've ever been on - they were extremely noodly and didn't feel stable at speed.

Ditto on this comment. As seen in my review here:
Rossi Demo Day left me uninspired

Yet, there are many who swear by Rossi and will ski nothing else. Its an individual thing and you can't sell yourself short, when it comes to your toys!!

 

[lindseyinalaska]

So where are you skiing?

mostly at Sunday River and Loon.

 

[ski now work later]

I have the Volkl Attiva AC3s ('07) and they are super stable and fast in hardpack conditions and cut through crud very well. The '08 version appears to be the Fuego. I would check them out; you should be able to demo those in Maine.

 

[w.ski]

The Fuego is the women's version of the Tigershark 10 (without the little switch thing that the unisex version has). I think the Tierra might be the '08 version of the AC3s.

 

[lindseyinalaska]

So I went with the Siam 10s love them! also loved the Salomon X-Wing 10 but found that it was a little rougher than the women's version when going through the crud. Tried the Fuego but wasn't a huge fan. they were very snappy but didn't like the idea of making long radius fast turns.