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Ken Jones Demo Day @ Loon 12/7/18

MissySki

Angel Diva
Every year Ken Jones Ski Mart holds a demo day at Loon on the first Friday in December. I've gone a number of times, and always find it pretty enjoyable. It's a day I can demo for free since I already have a pass, it's a Friday so it's relatively uncrowded, and there are usually a good number of manufacturers represented.

This year I had the pleasure of demoing with a couple of other SkiDivas which obviously makes it even more fun than usual since we could compare and contrast what we were looking for and trying out for the day- @lisamamot who has also done this particular demo previously and @Sparky who was visiting from out of state. Perhaps they will feel the urge to review the skis they tried out here as well.

About me, I'm 5'4" ~130lbs and a lower advanced skier. About the conditions, pretty much fast and firm all day with some slick spots developing later in the day, but certainly not icy for the East. A couple of trails had death cookies, and a couple of runs we ventured away from the demo side of the mountain and actually found better and softer snow conditions, but we didn't do that too many times because the trail connecting the two sides on the lower mountain was closed and we didn't want to extend our timing too long and keep demos away from others.

Skis I tried:

Blizzard Sheeva 9 164cm
Salomon QST Lumen 99 167cm
Volkl Yumi 161cm
Volkl Secret 163cm
Blizzard Black Pearl 88 166cm
Blizzard Sheeva 10 156cm
K2 Alluvit 163cm

Blizzard Sheeva 9

These were the first skis I tried, and they were awesome from the first turn! I'm always a little cautious for the first run on a new pair of skis, but these felt natural from the get go. By the time I was halfway down the run my head was spinning with how agile they were, I couldn't believe how quickly they turned yet felt so unbelieveably connected to the snow as well. I felt like I had a velcro strip under each ski, and they just sliced it up. On the second run down I picked it up a little to check out their speed potential, and they didn't need much nudging at all to just zoom away. It was also a super forgiving ski, I didn't need to pay any attention whatsoever to my stance, it seemed happy no matter what I did. I switched on the next run so @lisamamot could take them for a spin as she was curious from my reaction to them, and unfortunately they didn't have the next length up that she would normally ski. This is the only ski I took out a second time later in the day, I wanted to see if my initial impressions still stood, and also how they faired as conditions got more slick later on. Happy to report that I didn't find any difference, and still loved them. I even took them down a trail that unfortunately was absolutely covered in death cookies and gave me a horrible foot massage! That run wasn't fun, but I can't think of any other ski that would have made it fun either, they still got me down just fine. I would have loved to try it in some softer stuff, and bumps, but unfortunately that wasn't available.

I WAS NOT looking to like this ski, nor was I looking for anything in this width or for a new daily driver.. Of course that means I fell head over heels in love with it, and this one will likely be making an appearance in my quiver (and potentially kicking some others out) very soon.

If you've read my previous reviews on the Black Crows Camox Birdie, I'm still very interested in that ski as well. They are a completely different animal than this ski to me, and I think I'd have very different times when I'd bring them out to play. I think the Sheeva 9 could be a very good daily driver for the East, while I think my preference would still go to the Camox Birdie for "powder days" and crud skiing because of the way they get you through complicated terrain without your even noticing it. I'm thinking due to how light the Sheeva 9 is that they would still give me a lot of feedback that tires out my legs in those conditions, but I can't say for sure until I'd try them out and that may also be a preference thing that has to do with my lack of skill in those conditions where a ski that can smooth things out is very beneficial.

Salomon QST Lumen 99

I only really took out these skis because I was waiting for other things to return, and I absolutely hated them.. They felt heavy and completely lifeless after getting off of the Sheeva 9. I literally couldn't get off of these fast enough- NEXT!

Volkl Yumi

I liked the original Yumi without metal years ago when I tried it, and I liked this version with metal as well. I think I like them because to me they are the most forgiving and playful of the Volkl lineup. OR maybe it's because they don't feel as Volkly as the rest to me. In any case, it was a solid ski with the expected great edge hold of Volkl, but not one that excited me very much. It didn't do anything wrong and I can see it as a great East coast daily driver, just not for my preferences with the other options out there.

Volkl Secret

I had to try the Secret, because well there is a lot of talk about it obviously. They were fine as well, but I liked the Yumi more. I used to ski Auras, and somewhere along the way I guess I just lost my love for Volkl. Again, not because they are a bad ski by any means, they just aren't what I prefer anymore. While I like that they are stable and have great edge hold, I just don't find them exciting and feel they are more work than more playful skis which are my preference.

Blizzard Black Pearl 88

I still own the original Black Pearls with the purple bulls, and I still love them. Since so many people are excited about the new BP88, I wanted to see what the hype was all about and if I'd feel an improvement as well. Unfortunately, this one fell flat for me, and I much prefer my original bulls! They were a fine ski, but I felt like they had lost a bit of their playfulness, and I also felt like they wanted me to get more forward than I normally ski the old ones. When I discussed it with the rep, he did say that they are now more of a front side option with the changes, so I think my feelings on it make sense at least. I won't be trading in my current bulls anytime soon.

Blizzard Sheeva 10

Since I was originally looking for a new east coast powder ski, I wanted to try the wider Sheeva 10. It was a fun ski as well, similiar to the Sheeva 9, but certainly not as quick edge to edge, duh. Unfortunatly I didn't have the right conditions to really try out this ski for my purposes. I was impressed with the edge hold and how connected I still felt to the snow when I got them on edge. Maybe I'll get back on it when better conditions arise, but for now they had nothing on the Sheeva 9 for me, so at least it isn't hard to choose between the two!

K2 Alluvit

This was my second favorite ski of the day behind the Sheeva 9 for how it felt. It was a playful and forgiving ski that was easy to turn and felt like it'd be right at home if softer conditions arose as well. The only glitch was that it was the only ski of the day where I actually slid on a slick spot, and it wasn't even real ice. So though it was a fun ride, it would never make my cut as a daily driver in the east with so many other options available that feel just as good and include a superior edge grip on firm scraped off afternoon snow.
 

lisamamot

Angel Diva
@MissySki you and I are two peas in a ski pod. My demo write-up can be very brief - “what she said on the Sheeva 9, Camox Birdie, Secret and Black Pearl 88”

If I can’t demo the Elan Ripstick 94 I will be relying on you to demo it for me, lol.
 

MissySki

Angel Diva
@MissySki you and I are two peas in a ski pod. My demo write-up can be very brief - “what she said on the Sheeva 9, Camox Birdie, Secret and Black Pearl 88”

If I can’t demo the Elan Ripstick 94 I will be relying on you to demo it for me, lol.

:beer: It is helpful to know someone who has such similiar taste in skis!

Elan is definitely the one I was sad wasn't at the demo who was supposed to be!
 

MissySki

Angel Diva
@santacruz skier @contesstant I thought you would find the following update interesting!

Sooooooo yesterday I decided to drive up to Ken Jones Ski Mart in Manchester NH, which is around 1.5 hrs. from me, to pick up some Sheeva 9s because I had been calling around over the weekend and many shops were out of stock in my size already and saying they couldn't get anymore from Blizzard either. Started getting nervous that I was gooing to miss the boat, so I called Ken Jones and was told there was one pair left in my size and that they would put it aside for me.

Well, when I got there, it turns out that the person I spoke to on the phone mistook the Sheeva 10 for the Sheeva 9 and they were actually out of the Sheeva 9. Mistakes happen, but I was pretty annoyed because this trip was costing me 3 hours of my Sunday for nothing, major bummer! The owner of the shop was there, heard what happened, and recognized me from the demo day, he's a really nice guy that I've chatted with over the years as he is always usually doing the registration at Loon for the event. He offered to call his rep and see what he could do about getting in a pair of Sheeva 9s in my size, and luckily he was able to secure a pair!! I was still a little bit like I don't really want to spend 3 more hours driving here this week, maybe I'll just order online from REI or Backcountry. However, since he felt bad about their mistake he offered me a significant discount on the skis/bindings/mounting, way better than what I could get anywhere else (essentially the amount off was just about free attack 13 bindings and mounting was completely free already of course), plus NH is tax free. So I was like heck yes I will drive back for that!

But wait, there's more.. lol Then I happened to ask, out of curiousity, how much are you asking for that last pair of Camox Birdies in a 165?? To which he (to make up for their mistake some more) offered me another ridiculous deal that I absolutely could not refuse!

Now I had jokingly said to the fiance earlier in the day that I was going to ask if there were any discounts to be realized if I did purchase the two pairs of skis. Though I assumed if there was it wouldn't ever be enough for me to actually go through with it! Well when all was said and done I managed around 22% off of what the total price should have been and this doesn't even take into account any taxes which would have been another ~$100 to purchase everything full price in any other local state or online. The last bit of awesomeness was that I had a couple hundred dollars in American Express Girft Cards from some work prizes I won throughout the year to use up. My actual out of pocket was a STEAL, and I cannot believe all of my luck came from driving 1.5 hours for nothing on someone else's mistake. Couldn't have worked out better, and I somehow will now have my new dream quiver later this week.

Now I really need to pick some skis to sell because this just makes too many options, especially when I think these two and my "ice skates" will pretty much cover anything I want or need out there..

Ken Jones made it right and very worth my time, and quite certainly they didn't HAVE to do any of that for me. It was a GOOD Sunday, Merry Christmas to me! :yahoo:
 

MissySki

Angel Diva
@contesstant do you know what the edges are set at from the factory for Blizzard? Curious if it comes at 2:1 or 3:1.

Not that I've gotten to ski my new Sheevas yet as we are stuck in a thaw/rain/freeze/repeat cycle here in the east and I keep skiing on the frozen days with my "ice skates". Saw on a conversation on Facebook that someone was saying that all Blizzard skis come 3:1 from the factory, and I can't for the life of me remember if my other Blizzards are set that way or not now. I thought most of my skis were 2:1.. My ice sktes are the Viva 8.1ti and I could certainly imagine them as a 3:1 with how fantastic the edges hold on ice, but I'm not sure at all what my Black Pearls would be.. So I was wondering if all would come from the factory the same, or if it's per model as well. :noidea:
 

contesstant

Ski Diva Extraordinaire
Most likely 1:2 or 1:1. I always just get mine tuned immediately anyway :becky:
 

MissySki

Angel Diva
Yes. Factory tunes tend to be all over the map. And I'm spoiled :love:

Haha nothing wrong with that! For me I usually wax myself before skiing new skis, but I don't tune to begin with. I guess when I bring them in I'll have to find out what the edge is at since I'm very curious now!
 

lisamamot

Angel Diva
Haha nothing wrong with that! For me I usually wax myself before skiing new skis, but I don't tune to begin with. I guess when I bring them in I'll have to find out what the edge is at since I'm very curious now!
Wait, you wax before skiing?! I go with the “if it looks good it is fine” waxing approach, lol. No wonder you are so zippy :thumb:

I believe Blizzard does a 3:1 and they have a good reputation in ski shops for shipping with a quality tune. Unless the shop recommends tuning a particular ski before skiing I always start with the factory tune and then let it get tweaked later if needed. People talk about needing to detune tips/tails, etc to keep them from hooking but I never have noticed a need for that. Not sure if I am missing something or not but so far so good!
 

MissySki

Angel Diva
Wait, you wax before skiing?! I go with the “if it looks good it is fine” waxing approach, lol. No wonder you are so zippy :thumb:

I believe Blizzard does a 3:1 and they have a good reputation in ski shops for shipping with a quality tune. Unless the shop recommends tuning a particular ski before skiing I always start with the factory tune and then let it get tweaked later if needed. People talk about needing to detune tips/tails, etc to keep them from hooking but I never have noticed a need for that. Not sure if I am missing something or not but so far so good!


I've done both on the waxing or not waxing before skiing a new ski issue. I like to do it because I think the factory wax starts great, but pretty rapidly diminishes, and this is probably due to the fact that bases dry out and who knows how long ago they were actually finished at the factory before we get on them? Also for example, when we skied the Black Crows demos that they had just mounted the night before, I felt super glidey in the morning and noticed it go away throughout the day feeling like I needed a wax and the edges of the bases looked thirsty. I'm just assuming he didn't do any work to the ski besides the binding mounting that night before lol. I have not waxed my new skis yet, but plan to if I get a chance, if not owell I'll do it after the first time if need be.

What I DO need to do is wax my Vivas after the past couple of rough snow/ice days on them, poor things. The 3:1 makes sense, I can't imagine the Vivas being anything else with how good they are on ice. I'm really curious on the Black Pearls though.. I read that the Black Crows come at a 1:1. Now I want to call around to some shops around here and see if they up the side angle to a 2 for the east coast or not. Since I want them for powder days here, not a big deal (and could the 1:1 be part of how they swivel so smoothly??), but I want to know where they are at for when I eventually bring them for a tune, and to not accidentally use the wrong guide to touch up edges at home.
 

contesstant

Ski Diva Extraordinaire
Wait, you wax before skiing?! I go with the “if it looks good it is fine” waxing approach, lol. No wonder you are so zippy :thumb:

I believe Blizzard does a 3:1 and they have a good reputation in ski shops for shipping with a quality tune. Unless the shop recommends tuning a particular ski before skiing I always start with the factory tune and then let it get tweaked later if needed. People talk about needing to detune tips/tails, etc to keep them from hooking but I never have noticed a need for that. Not sure if I am missing something or not but so far so good!
I don't think they come with a 1:3, Man Friend says it's typically 1:2. And there have been a lot of issues the past two seasons with their stuff coming with some...issues. I've seen numerous skis that needed quite a bit of work, including my own. In fact, my Sheeva 9s are STILL not quite right. I never assume anymore. So, if you get out there and are suddenly struggling, don't assume it's you :wink: It could very well be the ski needs some TLC, even right from the factory.
 

MissySki

Angel Diva
Ugh, I hope that is not the case. I really need to check them out soon since I likely want to bring them to Aspen for diva west. I just haven't wanted to bring them for our super recent ice and the fact that I've seen rocks and such mixed in some areas from the recent rain.. not exactly exciting conditions for new skis lol

The reason I had thought that most of my skis were a 2:1 is because that's the guide angle I have at home for touchups lol, and the fact that 3:1 dull faster so 2:1 seems like a good compromise. But now I'm scared to play with my edges at all on any that I'm not sure about without finding out what they are set at first.

What issues did you have with your Sheevas? Edges, or was the base not true etc.?
 

elemmac

Angel Diva
This website shows 1:3 for Blizzards. Was curious on another pair of skis not too long ago, and stumbled upon that site. Not exactly sure what their credibility is, but they state, "This information is based upon factory published specs or the angles I've measure when prepping new skis. However the angles should always be checked before tuning any skis for the first time." So I would think that it's 1:3, but if you are going to sharpen them, maybe it's a good idea to get them checked prior to taking an edger to them.
 

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