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Help Needed: New Powder Skis?

WaterGirl

Ski Diva Extraordinaire
Thoughts on options for this year Powder Skis? Looking for dedicated Sierra Cement powder / chowder / top to bottom and in the tree skis. DD needs something longer than her current Shiro Jrs and I might as well demo w/ her :smile: Most of these skis seem to be available (will be able to speed demo many at the mountain). Looking for playfulness but able to get thru the cut up chowder.

Any thoughts on these skis is much appreciated!

Armada - maybe able to get one of the trace -

Atomic Backland FR 109 ? maybe available will have to look.

Black Crows Atris Birdie w/ possible Black Crows Daemon Birdie

Blizzard Sheeva 10 or 12? I know there is love for 10 but what about the 12? Should be able to get on the 10

Icelantic Maiden 101 or 111 not sure which one they will carry, but know they are bringing them in this year.

Nordica Santa Anna 110 - not sure if I can find this. Should be able to find the New Santa Anna 100s.

Rossignol Soul 7 HD W

Salomon QST Stella 106

K2 LuvBoat ? maybe

Volkl 100Eight

Thanks!
 

bounceswoosh

Ski Diva Extraordinaire
Armada - maybe able to get one of the trace -

@Kimmyt demo'd the Trace 108 this weekend and lurved them.

Do you mind sharing height and weight, or what your current powder ski is and whether you like the amount of flotation?

I personally suspect that the Soul 7 would not be a great crud buster (ie, not great in Sierra cement or chowder), but I haven't skied on them - that's just based on talking to people and observing the ski.
 

VickiK

Ski Diva Extraordinaire
What about something just under or at 100, like the Samba or Aura?
 

santacruz skier

Angel Diva
@SnowHot recommended Atomic Backland 102 for me in lovely sierra cement. BF has Soul 7's and skis exclusively sierra cement in deep powder and loves them. He won't even think about buying another pair of skis. Unlike me, ha. Demo'ed Santa Ana 100 and could barely move in sierra cement 4 ft overnight fresh in both 153 and 161. We were in DEEP snow in trees and I was not rocking it. As a matter of fact I kept getting stuck . Santa Anas are really soft but did fine with less snow. Maybe in Utah with dry snow they would have been better. Blizzard Sheeva 10 sounds like fun similar to our Sambas or black pearl 98....Thought you had the volkl one ...... I'm still interested in Great Joy as compared to Black Crows Birdie the turning radius is like 13 compared to 18 in BC.
 

CarverJill

Ski Diva Extraordinaire
I think you said you hated the Head skis but figured I'd mention them in case I'm wrong. I imagine Great Joy or Big Joy should be available to try.
 

nopoleskier

Ski Diva Extraordinaire
Rossi Soul 7's I think you'd like, and the Santa Ana's
I think you'd like the atomics and blizzards too.
I had the K2's Fullof it on this summer at mammoth, not sure if the Luv boat is similar, the Fullofit were fun but not enough ski for me to buy.
Have Fun Demoing!!
 

WaterGirl

Ski Diva Extraordinaire
@bounceswoosh Im 5"4" under 130. She is one "size" smaller than me. Since she is taking a break from free ride team this year, she will be with DH and myself the majority of the time, which means searching for untracked, I want to make sure she is having fun. We are both riding fully rockered skis with longer turn radius as powder skis. The Shiro Jr were 100 under foot full rocker and worked great but she's had them 2 years and is done growing and needs more float. Her other ski is a 85 waist twin tip. She also could use a new pair of daily drivers but a new powder ski is a priority. @santacruz skier I do have the Volkl one W which is also full rocker. @bounceswoosh I know you tried the volkls and the 10cm increments either work or don't. I suspect w/ that width I could even get away with riding the 156, but I have the 166 which has been great for me especially this past year when its been super deep :smile: Riding thru windrifts in the trees is a blast. Knee deep + uneven (snowboard) tracked up cement not so much but then I think thats hard on any ski. @CarverJill it was the head narrow waist skis that I didn't like, I only tried first generation. Never was able to get on a fatter waist graphine ski from Head.

I did demo the Atris Birdie 169 on a riders of the storm day riding in the trees -- a different feel and I liked it. I do own the little sister to the Atris, the Camox Birdie 164 as a replacement for my Sambas. The Atris which was amazing in the trees just seems a bit long - like when they were hanging off my feet on the lift lol, but in the trees super fun. Maybe just being a bit narrower was easier ? or the slight camber under foot? Since DD will be demoing thought I would sample along with her. I think DD will be happy with a lot of these in the 160 range, but that might be too short for me? I feel that Im always in the in-between when it comes to skis w/ 4 sizes i.e. the Nordica 161 / 169. If I was riding dryer powder I would be happy with the 98ish ski, Ive had a few days in super light when the Sambas were fantastic. I'm also looking forward to seeing how the Camox handles some deeper snow. I've ridden them in the wind buff and its dreamy. But dry platinum powder is the exception not the norm, we really need something that can handle the cement. Since the Atris Birdie is now being offered in a 160 this year that might be a good choice for DD as well as the Icelantic in a 162 which I've heard good reviews from the shop testers.
 
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Kimmyt

Ski Diva Extraordinaire
As @bounceswoosh said I demoed the Armada Trace 108s and loved them. Playful yet still able to cut through crud was an exact description of them. I recommend giving them a try. I am 5'3" and 130 lbs and loved the 172, the length felt perfect (I think the length helps with the crud and the ski did not lose any playfulness even in bumps for me at that length). Armada used to do 10cm jumps in length but now has seemed to drop down to about 7cm, so they offer a 164 and a 172 or something like that.
 

Gloria

Ski Diva Extraordinaire
Do you still have your Sheevas? If so I would consider something in the 90ish waist and passing those onto her for deeper days. My DD demoed skis all last season and ended up with Santa Ana 93? She probably close to your daughter’s size but a little bit older and more able to make decisions. At her size she decidedly does not like skis over 100 unless there is 2 feet of light snow and then she’ll use an old pair of mine. She doesn’t like wider skis in heavier wetter powder, she prefers the narrower ones as she says the extra width just allows more snow to stick to them and makes them heavier but at her weight they don’t necessarily float any better. She also absolutely did not want a quiver - a wide ski and a narrow ski. It’s too much work to go to the lodge and change skis it’s also evidentially not cool at her age to do so. So after a couple months of demoing she ended up with these and the only thing she has skied them in IS wet heavy powder and crud and she really really loves them.
 

WaterGirl

Ski Diva Extraordinaire
@Kimmyt thanks for update on the Trace, curious if it has that Armada "feel" of past TSTs or the JJ? Or is it totally different?
I did see they do have 164 which would be better for DD who is only 5'2".

She is a balanced skier who likes to get some air time in, something playful but also a stable at speed.

@Gloria yes I totally understand what your are saying. I know the girls have similar background w/ free ski and yes, she did ride her 85 waist ski most of the time as did her coaches. I do have the Sambas they are my "rock skis," we are only 5mm BSL difference, so once there is enough snow for me to ride my new skis I'll hand them over to her. The recent boot fitting/ demo / purchase has made the light bulb go on for DD as far as ok, maybe there is something way better out there that I could have more fun on.....and maybe its ok to spend some time demoing.....

We do have access to some other skis as I have a friend who keeps her stuff at my place, can get on the Santa Anna 100 from last year has demo binding and currently DD had been re experiencing "carving" while sampling her older almost full camber 72 waist (one size too small) carving ski with her new boots (track binding) until we remount the toe on the 85 ski. Its been a hoot to see her lay down some tracks lol
 

Kimmyt

Ski Diva Extraordinaire
So I ski the TST as my daily driver, but I ski it in a length that is probably too short (165). I think the TST excels at the playfulness that a lot of Armada skis seem to exhibit but maybe lacks the stability at speed due to the tip shape and dimensions of the ski. The Trace 108 felt playful and I loved it in the bumps, but had a smidge more dampness to it than the TST, and when I took it in chopped up powder it ate it up and allowed me to carry a speed I wouldnt be able to achieve on my TSTs. The turning radius is longer on the Trace 108, which certainly adds in. And, while I say 'dampness' it is still not what I would consider a damp ski, as I'm not usually fan of skis that have that characteristic. To me, in a nutshell, the Trace 108 felt like a more 'mature' version of the TST, if that makes sense.
 

WaterGirl

Ski Diva Extraordinaire
Thanks @Kimmyt makes total sense. I think more dampness would be a good thing, and having demo'd the TST I understand what you are saying, good to know you can get more speed than TST. Hopefully the shop that carries Armada will have this ski to try.

I was also thinking about the dampness of the Icelantic line of skis -- the Maiden is getting a lot of hype at ski shop. I found this eye candy clip below from the website but then found a new review that said this ski was not meant for the air, and would keep you grounded b/c it was too damp..... :crazy:

https://player.vimeo.com/video/230105079?title=0&byline=0&portrait=0
 

SnowHot

Ski Diva Extraordinaire
@SnowHot recommended Atomic Backland 102 for me in lovely sierra cement. BF has Soul 7's and skis exclusively sierra cement in deep powder and loves them. He won't even think about buying another pair of skis. Unlike me, ha. Demo'ed Santa Ana 100 and could barely move in sierra cement 4 ft overnight fresh in both 153 and 161. We were in DEEP snow in trees and I was not rocking it. As a matter of fact I kept getting stuck . Santa Anas are really soft but did fine with less snow. Maybe in Utah with dry snow they would have been better. Blizzard Sheeva 10 sounds like fun similar to our Sambas or black pearl 98....Thought you had the volkl one ...... I'm still interested in Great Joy as compared to Black Crows Birdie the turning radius is like 13 compared to 18 in BC.
Edit: wrong thread. Moved answer to the Santa Ana thread.

TheBackland 102 is such a fun ski, but also the Blizzard Sheeva 10, which is also 102 under foot.
 
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contesstant

Ski Diva Extraordinaire
I'm looking to pick up a pair of Sheeva 10s to "compliment" my Santa Ana 100s (2016 version) for the reasons stated above. The Santa Anas seem to lack when the snow is dense. I tested the Sheevas with @SnowHot last January, and boy, did I love them and the conditions were NOT good--as challenging as I've ever skied. The Sheevas made it easy (as did the Black Pearl 88s.)
 

santacruz skier

Angel Diva
The Santa Anas seem to lack when the snow is dense.
I demoed for two days in both 153 and 161 and thought they were okay but better on freshly packed powder than dense sierra cement... I'm going to try the Sheeva 10 as I'm a fan of my 2014 Sambas that will need to be replaced. I have to find @SnowHot in Truckee this season....
 

SnowHot

Ski Diva Extraordinaire
I demoed for two days in both 153 and 161 and thought they were okay but better on freshly packed powder than dense sierra cement... I'm going to try the Sheeva 10 as I'm a fan of my 2014 Sambas that will need to be replaced. I have to find @SnowHot in Truckee this season....
Blue Zone Sports in Truckee
 

skibum4ever

Angel Diva
I just read the specs on the Atomic Backland. It sounds like it might be just what I want - want, not need.

Has anyone skied them in heavy powder?
 

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