-
Women skiers, this is the place for you -- an online community without the male-orientation you'll find in conventional ski magazines and internet ski forums. At TheSkiDiva.com, you can connect with other women to talk about skiing in a way that you can relate to, about things that you find of interest. Be sure to join our community to participate (women only, please!). Registration is fast and simple. Just be sure to add [email protected] to your address book so your registration activation emails won't be routed as spam. And please give careful consideration to your user name -- it will not be changed once your registration is confirmed.
tinymoose's Diva East '23 demo report
- Thread starter tinymoose
- Start date
shadoj
Angel Diva
@tinymoose your skis have demo bindings, right...?!? Next year DivaEast demo run? 
tinymoose
Ski Diva Extraordinaire
For sure!@tinymoose your skis have demo bindings, right...?!? Next year DivaEast demo run?
marzNC
Angel Diva
I'm 5'0", 110 pounds, and would go for 159cm for BP88 in the northeast. I've liked the previous versions at that length when on demo skis. Have skied shorter lengths when doing bump lessons at Taos and that was fine. But I would want the extra length to make them more useful in a variety of conditions and terrain.
I enjoyed both the BP82 and BP97 @159cm at the Alta Demo Day last April. I only checked them out on groomers because off-piste was still a big frozen first thing in the morning.
sashak
Certified Ski Diva
I would love to hear your report!
chasinghorizons
Ski Diva Extraordinaire
Yessss another Faction lover. I have 4 now... I love trying new skis but if/when I ever get into touring, I should probably just get Agents and call it a day.
tinymoose
Ski Diva Extraordinaire
I dunno how much of a report it is, but... the Agent is like a freeride, floaty relaxed feel with a weirdly surprising amount of dampness to it despite weighing about as much as nothing b/c wood and carbon. Usually I equate stiffness/rigidity with dampness and weight, and this ski is none of those things, really? I mean it's not a pool noodle, and it's torsionally stiff, and the tail has got a bit of kick to it (I tend to ride my tails at the bottom of my turns... probably a byproduct of being in boots I couldn't flex well for most of my ski career so I love me a stiff tail with energy). They're not the bitiest ski as far as grip, nor do they have the stiffest, most energetic tail, but I think it's a really nice balance of those things plus just a very relaxed ride. I guess that's why I say they basically ski themselves. lol Maybe compared to my SLs, I can put in almost no effort and get a really nice trip down the hill out of them? I feel like they just do a lot of the work for me. I don't have to be on to stay on edge to dampen the ride or avoid chunks of ice.
Mr. tinymoose bought a pair after seeing me ski mine and after my describing them and he just said, "they're just very fun and easy to ski." So many words lol
@chasinghorizons I'd be curious to hear your take on your Faction skis and what skis you have? They're not a big thing out here on the east coast. Not sure where you're at?
chasinghorizons
Ski Diva Extraordinaire
I am mostly in Tahoe and Mammoth areas (CA). I have the Dictator 2, Dictator 3, CT 1 (2021) and CT 3 (2021). 2021 was the year they made the CTs *very* heavy aka very damp, monster truck status. All of them are now mounted progressive.
The Dictator 2 is my soulmate ski. I have it in 155 and it skis effortlessly like it's a part of my feet. They feel sharp and precise, instant response time, energetic and nicely damp. I call them my slice 'n' dice skis. Initially I had them mounted on the marked Classic line and while they had great pop out of carves there, they really demanded a forward stance. I have since remounted them +1.5 progressive and have been much happier with them for off-piste skiing.
The Dictator 3 is the big sister to the Dictator 2 and it feels like it. Sharp and precise but the extra length gives it much more stability at speed and the extra width makes it better for chop and variable snow. I love this ski at Mammoth (great for big mountain runs).
I've only skied my CT 1 once and I have very mixed feelings about it. I'll leave it at that.
I've been using my CT 3 a lot this season because we've been having a ton of pow days. I like it a lot. I have it in 169, and for a ski almost 15cm taller than me it's very loose and easy to maneuver. It's actually really good in trees and bumps and it's a SHOCKINGLY good carver for the 112 width. Initially I did find it harder to roll on edge but now it's really a joy on soft groomers. I also have mine mounted with heavy Pivot 14 bindings, so they are amazing in chop, they just roll right over everything and I barely feel it. I don't have any other powder skis to really compare it to, but I don't regret buying these at all.
xxs_skier
Ski Diva Extraordinaire
How do the Factions compare to your Yumis? I know I just bought Yumis and I'm a beginner, but is it weird that I already want to buy more skis? Or at least daydream about getting more?
Knitjenious
Angel Diva
I think this just means you are in the right place!
sashak
Certified Ski Diva
Thanks they do sound fun!
skinnyfootskis
Angel Diva
Ski divas are enablers ;)
tinymoose
Ski Diva Extraordinaire
A bit late, missed this earlier, but current year:
I dunno about cute, but I think it's cool they put one of their local mountains (Bec Des Rosses) on the skis! This years Agent skis are a topographical map of the mountain. Last year was an image of the mountain.
Prior year:
tinymoose
Ski Diva Extraordinaire
Truer words have never been spoken.
Factions definitely have a more floaty, surfy relaxed feel to them than the Yumis. Yumis feel like they have a stiffer tail and more edge grip. I definitely feel like I remember my Yumis feeling burlier than these Factions, granted I haven't been on a pair of Yumis in over a year at this point.
sorcamc
Ski Diva Extraordinaire
those are cute AND cool! Enjoy them!! I have been contemplating throwing a pair of bindings on a race ski that my daughter only wore like 4 runs in her life. They are a 163 Doberman GS, but they are junior...I dont know if it really makes a difference..I know they say up to 110 lbs, but I KNOW all of my kids when they were racing were above that..and I see kids these days that def are heavier than 110 on Jr skis. ok, totally OT, but thats my inner thoughts and possibly a request for someone to "enable" me in a different direction!! hahah
Sokolva
Ski Diva Extraordinaire
Thank you for all the demo reviews and thoughts, it is really helpful as a fellow petite skier.I was feeling down after a rough demo day yesterday, so never got around to posting yesterday's skis so here are yesterday and today's skis all lumped together. First two are from yesterday, second two are from today:
154.4 Black Crows Captis Birdie - I thought these were going to feel a lot like the Vertis Birdie if not more soft-snow oriented b/c more rocker, but these were a lot of ski for me. I could bend them, but they wore me out. Maybe b/c of my size and their beefiness, I didn't get the same floaty, surfy feel I got with the Vertis Birdie. Edge grip on these was definitely better than the Vertis Birdie, maybe because these have all sidewall construction and the Vertis is semi-cap construction.
157 Blizzard Sheeva 9 - I know these are a well loved ski on this forum, but this ski both felt too wide and too long for me at my size and skill level. They were fine on groomers, but I really felt the width and length in the bumps. Definitely not a stiff ski. Didn't feel like I had issues bending them on the groomers. They also come in a 148 but I feel like that would ski wicked short with the amount of rocker this ski has.
154 Faction Agent 1.0X - These may have been the winners of the week for me. They didn't have quite the edge grip of the Black Pearl, but weren't far off. And they had a less groomer oriented feel to me, although not quite the floaty, surfy feel of the Vertis Birdie. Overall, I found them to be a super stable, fairly grippy ski, with a bit of a soft snow oriented feel to it.
149 K2 Minderbender 85 W - These skis and I did not gel. I don't know if it was the length or the flex or the tail or just a host of issues, but other than being turny, they didn't do anything for me. I didn't feel the edge grip was all that great, and they weren't as damp as I would have liked. I felt like I felt every little ice chunk I skied over. Overall, just meh. I would have blamed it on my legs being tired, but I took the Factions back out after this and liked them just as much as before, despite conditions being more scraped off than earlier in the day.
So take what you will from my ramblings, if they're of any use to you.
Sokolva
Ski Diva Extraordinaire
I'd say have fun with them, as long as you aren't going to be taking them into insanely demanding terrain, I don't think going over the weight limit will cause harm. I'm not an expert on ski construction, so someone can correct me if I'm wrong, but isn't the weight limit more to indicate what weight the skis operate at peak condition when used to race? As in, over 110 pounds they are too flexible and won't be stiff enough for race skis? I'd be pretty disappointed if race skis snapped simply by a slightly heavier rider riding them normally, as skis of quality construction should be quite durable. Would love to hear how they ride if you end up trying them out!
