Even if the weather forecast wasn't very good I went again to my favorite resort: LAAX
Weather was cloudy during the morning till midday and then sunny.
OK ladies! How performed my new K2 Apache Recon ski???
FANTASTIC!!!! WOOOOUUUUUW!!!!!!
First I did some runs on my favorite slope .... freshly groomed by these fantastic Pistenbully machines!
I couldn't believe the speed turns I could do without any negative reaction of the ski! No scary vibrations like the first luv has! The slope is a mix of natural and artificial snow. Flat parts/steep parts just go for it! On icy patches there is a good grip from the edge. I had to slow down more than once as the ski wanted to go much faster than I can ride actually!
This put a lot of overload/pressure/strain on my old knees .... my collateral ligaments and ACL hurts a lot and I couldn't barely walk at the end of the day. Pains started right from the first run.
There is a difference in the turns ... the first luv have 13m and the recons 15m radius. I noted this when I did very short turns.
I noted that because of the higher speeds the ski it tends to jump over little bumps ... I got used to it ...
After these speed runs I changed to another run which I do not like as it has too many icy patches .... no problem! Just do your turn and put some weight on the edge. At the end of the run you have to go straight down the mountain as the chairlift is some 100yrds in the flat. I started my speed run much higher than with the first luvs ... oh my god!!!!! never thought I can get that fast with such short skis and without any wobble, scary vibrations or skis that will not hold the direction! After 3 runs I decided its time for some serious skiing. I went to the chairlifts where the really difficult slopes are (black 1-3diamonds). Snow was very difficult to ride. Fresh powder not well groomed and very soft.
Not what I like ... it puts a lot of strain on my knees! Ok down I went the double black slopes. No problem even in the steepest part you can do turns well ... I did not ride that fast because of the state of the slope .... I did speed turns on a very soft (fresh powder not settled by grooming) and the ski holds the turn I want with a precision like a swiss watch.
You can also do any turn you learned in ski school ... the ski will do it. I am sorry I couldn't try it out in the fresh powder. The resort had put up avalanche warning signs (I actually saw a small avalanche going down, 2 freeriding skier triggered it, very scary) and I never tried skiing in fresh powder. Not even 20years ago! It was very tempting as Laax has nice 'freeride areas'. I did not try to do any jumps. No experiments at the end of the day with 'tired bones'.
The end of the day run is the one down to the resort. Very icy with a little artifical snow. Even on a icy slope going straight downhill the ski never shoed any negative reaction. Again .... no problem!
positive:
- turns well at all speeds.
- icy conditions are not a problem, edges hold very well
- keeps the direction at high speed
- no unwanted wobble/vibrations like the First Luvs
- Marker 11.0 bindings open much better than the Marker 10.0
negative:
- turns initiate not as easy as the First Luv (15m vs. 13m)
- more muscle power needed to ride
- less forgiving if you make a mistake (likes to catch an edge)
- a little bit on the stiff side (maybe I should have bought another ski in between?)
conclusion:
A ski that rides fantastic. Maybe not for beginners?
I am very happy with it. Specially the speed you can ride and the security on icy patches.
