mcmary
Certified Ski Diva
Welcome fellow Bogus skier
I imagine you're demoing from the two shops at the bottom of the hill. It's a shame they haven't had free demo days the last few years. Those are a great opportunity to figure out what you like. You should also check the Bogus rental shop. It's been several years since I've done it but they did have a performance rental and a decent selection. I actually hated the first ski I took out and they let me take a different one. All of the shops will apply your rental fee toward ski purchase but if you hate the ski you got from the bottom of the hill you're stuck with it for the day.
I've always done a ton of research on skis thinking I could read all these reviews and figure out what I wanted. Then I'd go to a demo day and hate all the skis that I was sure I'd like. I noticed a pattern. The quality that is most relevant to whether or not I like a ski is turn radius. I don't like anything with a short turn radius, skis with a medium turn radius are the ones I've liked best. Your Atomics have a short turn radius. BP88 also has a short turn radius. If you demo the BPs and don't like them, maybe look for a ski with a medium turn radius. Evo lists turn radius for all the skis they carry.
Short turn radius - BP88, Sheeva 9 & 10, Volkl Secret 96, Elan Ripstick 94, Santa Ana 88
Medium turn radius - Volkl Kenja 88, Rossignol Rallybird 92, Moment Sierra
I am also 5'2" but 30lbs heavier than you. I ski 160cm Black Crows Atris. It is a wide ski but it does surprisingly well on groomers. I'm not a quiver person. I have one ski and it needs to do everything. I'm sure a narrower ski would carve better on groomed runs but I only ski those when I have to. At a demo day in 2019 I tried the 178 Atris because that was all they had available. I did a groomed and off trail run on it. It was definitely too long for me. But I learned enough about the ski to buy the 160s. Another ski I really liked was the Moment Sierra. I tried the 162 and 172. I'd have bought 162s if I hadn't just got my Black Crows. You can definitely handle 150-160cm skis. Sadly, most shops push women toward shorter and less aggressive skis. I know several women your height and similar weight skiing 150-160cm skis.
I have a custom molded footbed probably from the same shop that's recommending you get them. I have pretty normal feet so I wasn't sure I needed it. I was having issues with the forward lean of my boot and I wanted to make sure I tried everything. The forward lean issue was solved by riveting my boots into walk mode. I was able to move the footbeds to new boots. They're about 14 years old now so the investment can be worth it.
I ski when it snows and my sister and I ski every Sunday. If you'd like to get together let me know!
I imagine you're demoing from the two shops at the bottom of the hill. It's a shame they haven't had free demo days the last few years. Those are a great opportunity to figure out what you like. You should also check the Bogus rental shop. It's been several years since I've done it but they did have a performance rental and a decent selection. I actually hated the first ski I took out and they let me take a different one. All of the shops will apply your rental fee toward ski purchase but if you hate the ski you got from the bottom of the hill you're stuck with it for the day.I've always done a ton of research on skis thinking I could read all these reviews and figure out what I wanted. Then I'd go to a demo day and hate all the skis that I was sure I'd like. I noticed a pattern. The quality that is most relevant to whether or not I like a ski is turn radius. I don't like anything with a short turn radius, skis with a medium turn radius are the ones I've liked best. Your Atomics have a short turn radius. BP88 also has a short turn radius. If you demo the BPs and don't like them, maybe look for a ski with a medium turn radius. Evo lists turn radius for all the skis they carry.
Short turn radius - BP88, Sheeva 9 & 10, Volkl Secret 96, Elan Ripstick 94, Santa Ana 88
Medium turn radius - Volkl Kenja 88, Rossignol Rallybird 92, Moment Sierra
I am also 5'2" but 30lbs heavier than you. I ski 160cm Black Crows Atris. It is a wide ski but it does surprisingly well on groomers. I'm not a quiver person. I have one ski and it needs to do everything. I'm sure a narrower ski would carve better on groomed runs but I only ski those when I have to. At a demo day in 2019 I tried the 178 Atris because that was all they had available. I did a groomed and off trail run on it. It was definitely too long for me. But I learned enough about the ski to buy the 160s. Another ski I really liked was the Moment Sierra. I tried the 162 and 172. I'd have bought 162s if I hadn't just got my Black Crows. You can definitely handle 150-160cm skis. Sadly, most shops push women toward shorter and less aggressive skis. I know several women your height and similar weight skiing 150-160cm skis.
I have a custom molded footbed probably from the same shop that's recommending you get them. I have pretty normal feet so I wasn't sure I needed it. I was having issues with the forward lean of my boot and I wanted to make sure I tried everything. The forward lean issue was solved by riveting my boots into walk mode. I was able to move the footbeds to new boots. They're about 14 years old now so the investment can be worth it.
I ski when it snows and my sister and I ski every Sunday. If you'd like to get together let me know!
Do you like Bend? I've never been out that way at all. Kinda chose it blind cause I just bought an Ikon pass, haha, and I wanted a late season option and I'd never been there (I'm in Seattle now, was in CA before)
