Volkl Karma vs Hart Lady Twin: the head-to-head review.

[volklgirl]

Drum roll, please.........the long awaited twintip shoot-out is on!

THE HEAD-TO-HEAD TWIN-TIP REVIEW​

The Tester: 190+ lbs, 5'5", 43 Years old, PSIA Level II, Platinum/Gold level Nastar and 2x/week league racer. I prefer stiffer skis with lots of pop that can handle my preference for high speed ripping.

The Conditions: Machine made and natural hard pack, frozen cordouroy, skied-out and tracked up powder, boot-top to waist-deep blower over both a groomed base and natural dirt.

The Test Runs: Screamin' green groomers with the occasional set of spins and some switch skiing, carved-up blue and black groomers with turns of all sizes, ungroomed fresh powder on blues, blacks, and double blacks. Carved and smeared turns on the steeps, hop turns and smeared turns on the bumps.

The Skis:
04-05 Volkl Karma (119-87-111, 177cm):
Volkl’s venerable and time proven all-mountain/park & pipe twin.

Stealthy park-rat looks hide a solid and dependable all-mountain ski that happily goes everywhere with just enough spunk to be fun on anything but the hardest of snow conditions. It’s a surprisingly good carver for a ski of this width, rolling smoothly into and out of medium to large arcs cleanly and easily without a hint of skid. With good technique and lots of commitment, it can even be coaxed into breath-takingly short turns with lots of pop. It excels at a variety of turns in any form of soft snow, making anyone feel like a hero even in difficult spring glop. Like most Volkls it’s happiest on edge at breakneck speeds and its preference is to plow through gunk, crud, and pow at speed rather than surf over top. The Karma’s German race-bred heritage shows through clearly – this is a race horse that’s trained to go all-out, all the time. Unlike most Volkls, though, it’s also fairly happy to smear, skid, and scarve turns at high-to-higher speeds, making butter moves like spins a breeze. This is a ski that inspires trust instantly…..of all the skis I own or have tried, it puts the biggest smile on my face in the most varied conditions. Besides its hesitancy to perform at less than lip-flapping speeds, I have found an occasional tendency to have the tails hang up in bumps and during hop turns in more than 18” of pow. All-in-all, though, this ski is just Good Karma!​

Techno geek stuff:

Mounted with Salomon S14 bindings, 1 cm ahead of the free ride mark to account for my small boot size.
Measured surface length of ski: 176.5 cm
Weight for mounted pair: 14 lbs, 9 oz​

Recommended for:

Speed freaks, heavy weights, or strong skiers looking for the ultimate in in-bounds versatility for any conditions other than ice or deep pow (no matter how manky).​

 

[volklgirl]

07-08 Lady Hart Twin (119-86-110, 176cm):
Hart’s offering to the all-mountain woman skier.

The stunning (yet not girlie) graphics are an immediate eye-catcher! Beneath this outer beauty lies a stout and forgiving Hart. The Lady Twin’s light weight and soft tip makes it pop up over fluff and sugar snow instantly and keeps it lively and responsive. On hardpack, it rivals the Karma by carving rock-steady, beautiful arcs at all but the very highest speeds. While the Karma smooths out terrain features and ripples by plowing through them like an oil tanker plows through the water, the Lady Twin flexes through the ripples like a sailboat riding the waves, giving instant feedback on the snow surface under foot. The most striking difference between the 2 is that the Hart doesn’t groan when kept to lower speed. While the Karma is a Thoroughbred, this one is a hunter/jumper – willing to gallop just below race speeds, yet well-mannered and equally happy to hack along at a trot under loose reins. I have not yet experienced any sign of the Karma’s tail-hang on deep snow days.​

Techno geek stuff:

Mounted with Salomon S810 bindings, 1 cm ahead of the recommended mounting point to account for my small boot size.
Measured surface length of ski: 176 cm
Weight for mounted pair: 12 lbs, 2 oz​

Recommended for:

Lighter weight or moderately aggressive skiers looking for a light and lively ride for most any in-bounds conditions.​

CONDITION/MANEUVER...KARMA..........LADY TWIN
Stability at Speed................5.....................5
Grip....................................5.....................5
Float...................................3.....................5
Short Radius........................4.....................4
Medium Radius.....................5.....................5
Long Radius.........................5.....................4
Slow Speeds........................3.....................5
Carving................................5.....................5
Skidding...............................4.....................5
Powder................................4.....................5
Crud....................................5.....................4
Ice.......................................3.....................4
Feel..........................Powerful & Stable....Light & Lively

In a Nut Shell: My love for the Karmas has not diminished in the 2 years I've had them, but they're no longer my choice for deeper days or the days I'm just not up to skiing flat-out all day. The Lady Harts have more than proven their ability to match the Karmas' performance in all but the heaviest glop with much less rider input required. If you're a hard charging racer type, choose the Karma for race ski performance with all-mountain versatility and unmatched stability. If you're a skier who values fun, relaxation, and versatility over high-speed thrills, pick the Lady Twin for maximum grins. Really, though, skilled women looking for an all-mountain ride can't go wrong with either one!!

Big grins accompanied by big thumbs up for both!!

 

[itri]

Great review, Kris! I'm really glad you're loving the Lady Harts so much...makes me that much more excited to get mine mounted and ready to go. Well, once the stoopid knee lets me anyway!

 

[LilaBear]

That was a fun read. You are so descriptive and create very vivid pictures in my mind. Luckily I'm on the Lady Harts, so I know what you are talking about. They really are go anywhere skis, stable at high speeds, and agile when you slow down some. Looking forward to having them out in the steep and deeps.

Thanks for such an interesting review, it gives me pointers on what I should be experiencing and registering as feedback when I'm out there too.

 

[volklgirl]

Another thought regarding the tail hang I've occasionally experienced with the Karmas.....

Even though both skis are mounted 1cm forward of the "all-mountain" mark, I've noticed that the Harts are still mounted significantly back when compared to the Karmas. Maybe that little bit of mounting magic is just enough to keep that from happening on the Harts. I'd have guess that the mounting point on the Harts would have been ahead of the Karma given that the Harts are women specific while the Karmas are unisex. That rearward mount is probably why I'm liking them so much.

 

[Trixie]

:D Thanks for the race horse, hunter/jumper comparison! There's something I can understand.

 

[fatoots]

Okay, you girls now have me really intrigued by this Hart Lady Twin. I never even considered a twin tip, until this weekend when the demo guy told me to take out the K2 Miss Demeanor. I freaking loved it.

But no one around my mountain has them for me to demo. I really can't afford to invest in a second ski without trying it. How do you guys deal with this?