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Nordica Olympia Drive

C

CMCM

Guest
I went down to Sierra Ski & Snowboard to look at stuff today. I had a long talk with a knowledgeable, 18 year old guy who had been a racer in high school. He did know a lot in general, but still, he hasn't skied the women 's skis. However, after long discussions about my style and aims, and after checking out my old Nordicas, he seemed to think the best fit for me would be the Nordica Olympia Drive.

Has ANYBODY tried these?
 

runninteach

Certified Ski Diva
I bought the Drive this season and am *very* happy. I am a third-year skiier of intermediate ability who was ready to pick up some more speed and wanted a ski that would allow me to grow. The folks at the shop spent a lot of time with me and ran me through wedge and balance board tests to customize the skis. I ended up having a wedge put on one of the skis, and this has made a tremendous difference in my ability to turn left. I don't know a whole lot of the technical jargon, but I know I love 'em! This was absolutely the right pick for me.

Cathy
 

canski

Ski Diva Extraordinaire
I have not tried the Drives yet (but want to) - I have 3 friends who have them (NH) - 2 sisters who have had them all year - weights about 110 and 135 - ages early 40's and early 50's - both level 8 skiers (ex instructor). We have had lots of snow this year, and they are their only ski - they love them in all conditions - so I told another friend (has been skiing forever - is 70 (you'd never know it), 5'1, 110 and a very good skier - still taking lessons to handle the difficult conditions and just stay updated. She has been on Burnin Luvs for 3 years and has been trying to make better quick turns this year and be more in control on ice. She loved them on Demo Day (154's) - got back on her Luv's and immediately ordered the Drives (from Sierra Snowboard). She got them for last weekend and cannot stop raving about them. Immediately she could do those short turns and control the ice the way she has wanted to, and they are also fast enough (she was having so much fun turning the 1st day, on a windblown day with fresh snow, that she waited until the next day when it was groomed to crank up the speed, and had no problem). She was initially concerned that they are billed as an intermediate ski, since she is not (but she is tiny and not overly strong at her age - just good technique and years of skiing under her belt). When she also knew that the sisters were on them, she felt better, and after skiing on them for 2 days, she claims that she has never been more in love with a ski - in 40+ years of skiing. They should suit you now with lots of room to grow! (and they aren't changing except for graphics next year - so get the deal now!)
 

Christy

Ski Diva Extraordinaire
I just bought these. I started skiing last year and these are my first skis, so I don't really have much to compare them to, but I'm happy with them. I talked to 4 different sales people at 2 shops and after describing my abilities (low intermediate but skiing and improving every weekend), every one of them reccomended the Drive. The Drives were cheaper (half off and only $350) than the other skis they said might be worth demoing, so I know none of the sales people were motivated by $$.
 
C

CMCM

Guest
I bought the Drive this season and am *very* happy. I am a third-year skiier of intermediate ability who was ready to pick up some more speed and wanted a ski that would allow me to grow. The folks at the shop spent a lot of time with me and ran me through wedge and balance board tests to customize the skis. I ended up having a wedge put on one of the skis, and this has made a tremendous difference in my ability to turn left. I don't know a whole lot of the technical jargon, but I know I love 'em! This was absolutely the right pick for me.

Cathy

Cathy....Describe what you mean about that wedge they put in. I also have difficulty turning left!! Do you mean a wedge under the binding????
 

volklgirl

Ski Diva Extraordinaire
That would be called a Cant Strip. What they did was align your knee over the center of your boot so you don't have to make extra movements to get your skis on edge. Being properly canted is a beautiful thing!! I have 1.5 degree high-side-out canted sole plates on my left boot (Langes have removable toe and heel lugs for just this purpose....then you're always correctly canted no matter what ski you're on!).
 

Christy

Ski Diva Extraordinaire
That's really interesting...what is the difference between dealing with cant issues via your boots rather than your skis (I just saw a bootfitter and we talked about this, but he didn't mention that skis could be adjusted).
 

volklgirl

Ski Diva Extraordinaire
If possible, get canting done via your boots! Here's why: while you may change skis during the day, you'll rarely or never change boots; if you have "system" binding on your skis, or you later purchase a set of skis with system bindings, they are very difficult and sometimes impossible to cant (you can't mount a cant strip under a system binding because it mounts to rails built into the structure of the ski).

If you have Lange or Atomic boots, the stock toe and heel lugs can be removed and replaced with their canted lugs. If you have boots without interchangable soles, you have a couple of other options. If your cant requirements are less than 1.5 deg and your boots have adjustable cuffs, it can usually be done inside your boot with wedges under your liner or foot bed, or with a "posted" custom insole (the bottom of the insole is ground to incorporate the cant requirement). If that doesn't work, a GOOD shop can grind the boot sole to the correct angle (you shouldn't do this at home becuase the top of the heel and toe lugs then need to have material added on to keep the binding interface working correctly).

If you haven't gotten a professional boot fitting with an alignment (side-to-side) and balance (fore-and-aft) assessment, you really, really, REALLY should! Women are particularly prone to alignment issues due to our wider hips (Q-angle issues), and generally looser and more flexible joints. Oh, and your cant and balance requirements will need to be reassessed if you get new boots (ie. I need 1.5 deg on my left in Langes, but no canting at all in Salomons).
 

Christy

Ski Diva Extraordinaire
Yeah, I just did have a custom fitting, and we talked about all the boot stuff you just mentioned. I just didn't know anything about adjusting the skis, but it sounds like it's better to deal with the boots.

I just actually got home from skiing for the first time with a little wedge under my line (under my heel) and I can't believe what a difference it makes.
 

etribole

Diva in Training
The Olympia Drive skis were rated among the top all-mountain skis for women by expertskier.com--an independent site.
 

runninteach

Certified Ski Diva
Wish I had known that about the boots. I suppose in my case it won't be too much of an issue because I only get to ski a few times a year and use just the one pair of skis.

But I appreciate that I'm learning so much on this site.
 

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