mwoodsh
Diva in Training
Hello! I am new to the forum, but have been pouring over posts for a while in hopes of figuring out a new set of skis. I'm 6'1, 165lbs, 35yrs old, and I picked up skiing 3 seasons ago because I'm a climber first and needed better, efficient tools to do more remote things in the winter. My wonderful fiance, who used to work in a gear shop, bought me my first and only pair of skis 3 years ago - BD Route 95s, 173cm. Because my goal with skiing was climbing, we mounted Fritschi Vipecs bindings. I've skied nothing else.
I spent the first 2 seasons trying to figure out skiing, mostly off the resorts, to varying success. I have an old ACL repair (from the 1 time I tried skiing in Pennsylvania in high school) and a partial tear in that same knee (from who knows what) so I've had to overcome some fear and pain to learn to ski. I'm vigilant with leg strength workouts and I still mostly ski backcountry with a knee brace, but I've been working on skiing in bounds without a brace.
After battling my way through a couple big trips with big packs last year, I am surprisingly SO HAPPY this year skiing - we've had a bad snow pack and so I've landed on the resorts a ton and I've kinda fallen in love with skiing. I feel like I've become so much more confident and my technique has improved and I'm having fun no matter the terrain. I sneak out several times a week to skin our little resort before work and I think it's the best thing in the world right now. Who would have thought.
As skiing has grown on me, I've begun to wonder if I have the right skis. A good girlfriend of mine just dumped her light, powder skis for Elan Ripstick 94s and feels so much more confident in bounds and in the backcountry. Which has made me think about my set up. I want to have the magic do everything ski, that I can have fun on groomers but ski and enjoy bumps and choppy crap, as well as all the varied terrain that comes with backcountry. I still use my skis to get to climbs, so weight is an issue for me and I often worry about turning and tearing something when I have a heavy pack on me. I feel like this is getting long winded, so here are the skis I'm curious about for my interests and abilities:
Ripstick 102 or 94, 170 cm
Blizzard Sheeva 9 or 10, 172CM
I'm tempted to try something a little wider underfoot if it's a little more zippy because I do like the float. But I'm not sure if that seems silly, since I just got the hang of my 95s and I have knee issues/weight concerns. The things I don't like about the Route 95s? They are pretty chattery in bounds and seem to be at their best in deep powder - which isn't what I ski all the time. Basically, they seem to take a lot of work in anything but deep snow. At the same time, I'm partial to them because I have learned everything on them, so I will probably keep them, but maybe let them rest for a season or 2. And then I wonder if I ski them more, I'll learn more and therefore should just keep chipping away at this skiing thing?
Oh, and I live/play in Montana and the Rocky Mountain region, with occasional trips and adventures north. Left the east coast a long time ago. ;)
Thank you for any input/feedback/experience sharing!
I spent the first 2 seasons trying to figure out skiing, mostly off the resorts, to varying success. I have an old ACL repair (from the 1 time I tried skiing in Pennsylvania in high school) and a partial tear in that same knee (from who knows what) so I've had to overcome some fear and pain to learn to ski. I'm vigilant with leg strength workouts and I still mostly ski backcountry with a knee brace, but I've been working on skiing in bounds without a brace.
After battling my way through a couple big trips with big packs last year, I am surprisingly SO HAPPY this year skiing - we've had a bad snow pack and so I've landed on the resorts a ton and I've kinda fallen in love with skiing. I feel like I've become so much more confident and my technique has improved and I'm having fun no matter the terrain. I sneak out several times a week to skin our little resort before work and I think it's the best thing in the world right now. Who would have thought.
As skiing has grown on me, I've begun to wonder if I have the right skis. A good girlfriend of mine just dumped her light, powder skis for Elan Ripstick 94s and feels so much more confident in bounds and in the backcountry. Which has made me think about my set up. I want to have the magic do everything ski, that I can have fun on groomers but ski and enjoy bumps and choppy crap, as well as all the varied terrain that comes with backcountry. I still use my skis to get to climbs, so weight is an issue for me and I often worry about turning and tearing something when I have a heavy pack on me. I feel like this is getting long winded, so here are the skis I'm curious about for my interests and abilities:
Ripstick 102 or 94, 170 cm
Blizzard Sheeva 9 or 10, 172CM
I'm tempted to try something a little wider underfoot if it's a little more zippy because I do like the float. But I'm not sure if that seems silly, since I just got the hang of my 95s and I have knee issues/weight concerns. The things I don't like about the Route 95s? They are pretty chattery in bounds and seem to be at their best in deep powder - which isn't what I ski all the time. Basically, they seem to take a lot of work in anything but deep snow. At the same time, I'm partial to them because I have learned everything on them, so I will probably keep them, but maybe let them rest for a season or 2. And then I wonder if I ski them more, I'll learn more and therefore should just keep chipping away at this skiing thing?
Oh, and I live/play in Montana and the Rocky Mountain region, with occasional trips and adventures north. Left the east coast a long time ago. ;)
Thank you for any input/feedback/experience sharing!