Not sure if this is okay in the garage or not, but I figure it will get more views here. If it isn't acceptable, let me know and I'll move it.

Anyway, seems as though many non-914 related questions are asked here tapping the vast and varied knowledge base that is the 914club, so I've got one of my own now . . .

Looking to buy some new skis in the near future, looking for suggestions for what to buy. Currently I have some crappy rental skis I got for cheap off ebay, but its time to upgrade (got to now before I am a poor student again). I'm an intermediate skier, ski a few times a year in the crappy, icy northeast, and try to go skiing at least once a year for a few days in CO. So I'm not really looking for top of the line, but I want something that is decent that will last. Can anyone offer suggestions or at least point me in a direction?

Already have decent boots.

Thanks,

Chris

a couple year old set of shaped ski's. shaped ski's are one of the greatest inventions in skiing since ski's if you ask me...

check ebay and i also would look into a swap meet at a local school, thats where i get most of my stuff, usually good prices on last years models, brand new.

I agree that the newer shaped skis are awesome. I wish I had bought mine even shorter.

I would actually recommend that get your own boots first and then rent demo skis. That way, you will get to know exactly what you like.

I just bought a pair of two year old Dynastar's. Parabolic's. Bought them brand new from the sporting good store having there yearly Bargins sale. $100.00, best deal I have ever got.
Parabolic's are the only thing on the market anymore. It has been over 10 years since I went skiing last. Snow sucks in Southern California. Can't wait to go here soon.
If you make it out here this winter let us know, will get a group of the Colo guy's together...
Ok in regards to your original question. I believe it is all a matter of preference..
Look on the internet that's where you are going to find the best deals...

ok DUMP the shaped skis and go for it get "TWIN TIP" skis. they are the best also get something up to your chin in lenght for much more control!! WARNING all skis are NOT alike!!!! it all depends on your ability and style( agressive or passive skier). i did the straight ski , went to slight shaped and then went to a more agressive ski and was happy as you know what!! so on a whim i went on ebay and bought twin tips atomics.... that first day on them was like the best day on skis ever in 30+ yrs of sking. my wife said i had the biggest smile . twin tips are not only for tricks or park use. they work very well in the woods and all mountain. so i'm partial to solomon and i decided to get the 1080 twin tip. had them all mounted up and went to my fav mt. to rip up the trails it was the WORST day on the slopes!!!! the reason was that the solomons were too stiff for my style of sking on the other hand the atomics were very flexible and forgiving. so the best way to find out is to test the dif brands then buy!!! rule # 1 is feet must be happy. new boots sized to YOUR foot is a must . good skis # 2 bindings are #2 TOO!!!! in relation to 914 if you bought new tires but they were for the rain and you only drove them on sunny days your not using your tires to their best potential!!!

Sports-Authority or Garts usually has blowouts on last years equipment you can save up to 70%.

I have been skiing since I was 4 that means I have skied for 47 years, I spent four years ski racing on the pro tour, and another 16 years as a coach and instructor.


I am giving you this background on myself so you may have some respect for my views and recommendations.

Demo or rental is a great way to find what you like in a ski.

New skis are shorter but the running surface is longer than the old skis. The new skis measure about about 10 to 15 CMs shorter than the old skis.
If you are used to skiing on 190's look for a 175 or 180.

If you like to ski real fast dont ski anything less than a 185.
Dont believe anyone that says you can ski a 160 fast thats stable, I know, I ski real fast. If you ever watch the Pros or the Olympians skiing GS or Super G their skis are still long, but if you watch carefully sometimes you can catch them getting handed the shorter skis to hold during the camera shots. HA

Anything in the neighborhood of 165 to 185 will work fine for you recreationally.

New shape skis are different in the fact that the side-cut of the ski will determine it's arc and size of the turn radius. To turn a shape ski all one has to do is roll the ski on edge and put your weight into it and it will carve.
The old style skis were similar in that they carved as well but one had to initiate the turn with forward, neutral and aft pressures on the ski to hold and complete the turn, but they were also able to vary the turn radius by use of more or less pressure applied to the ski called reverse camber.

If you still ski the old way by sideslipping and skidding your way through the turn the new ski will take some adjusting to. The wide tips and tails will dig in and the ski wont flatten out like your used to. You will have to learn how to ski them or you wont enjoy them. A lesson would be a great way to learn to ski the shape skis, then demo and find what you like.

The good thing is the new shape skis are very easy to ski if you let them do all of the work for you, your just along for the ride, and the shorter length helps make them more maneuverable.

You dont need a racing ski but I would recommend an advanced ski or whats called an all mountain ski that can ski variable conditions you will see them described as Piste and off Piste skis. They have better damping ability for speed and can bust through crud and frozen terrain.
The intermediate skis will bounce and flutter all over the place in that shit.
You will want a ski with a medium turn radius.
Any of the popular name brand ski manufacturers will have a ski that will fit the bill. find one in your price range and go for it.

You caught in an enthusiastic mood about this tonight, when I was up in the garage rafters pulling down some of my 914 parts today I brought down my skis, and I went out and purchased some new boots and talked to my old skiing buddies to plan our ski vacation.

Good luck,

Chap

Oh you are right, I hated everytime I went to mamouth.

firstknight13 is on to something here. Twin Tip yes, that is what you want. A nice twin tip snow board. Don't waste your time with 2 planks straped to your feet. Be free and carve the mountain. If your new to skiing don't waste your time. You want something that handles like a 914 not a 911

Yes I agree, take up boarding but dont give up on skiing, there both fun to do. You dont see many boards OB. There great for going down hill, but forget about hiking around on them.

I do both as do most of my friends.

Well said.. I have Rossi xx and Rossi B/C twins and they are Great!

Guess I should have been a little more specific, I currently have a pair of crappy rental shaped skis that are a few years old, the edges rusted to crap in my humid basement, so its time to find something new. I've been skiing on and off since I was 5 (damn, 20 years), with big breaks in between, but I've never really gotten good at it. Decent, not good. Definitely sold on the shaped skis, just not really sure what to look for in terms of good brands, specifics to look for in a ski, etc. The advice listed here certainly helps, thanks!

These twintip skis sound interesting, what is the benefit of having two tips?

Like I said, I do already have some pretty good boots, so demo-ing is definitely possible. Suggestions of skis to start with?

What is the difference between Piste and off-Piste skis?

Oh yeah, I'll be out in CO around New Years, I'm sure I will be at Breckenridge and hopefully Vail!!

Thanks again for all your help.

-Chris

Oh yeah, I'd like to try boarding, but with the cost of skiing along with the infrequency I go, it just doesn't make sense to try it. Why spend 60+ bucks to be on my ass all day, I get paid to do that at work!

I rented Solomon XScream's for a couple years then bought a set. I ski 90% in VT but make a week/long w'end trip out most years.

Try the demo's for a w'end then buy the one you liked best. I forked out about $700 a few years ago for my current gear and have gotten my money out of. I'm on the fence about buying a new set of ski's but once you get used to a set...

Chris - if you don't mind, let us (me!) know where you find the best deals...

Yeah, no problem, hopefully I'll be able to pick up some skis and bindings for around 300 . . . we shall see.

Piste (groomed runs) off Piste powder, crud. All mountain skis are medium flexed or best for all round skis.
I have a pair of older 195 Dynastar 4X4's for my inbound all mountain ski, and Rossignol B4's with releasable Naxio21 locking free-heel bindings and lightweight Randonee boots for out of bound treks and powder.
On the groomed slopes in Minnesota I ski a 192 Rossignol racing GS ski.
On the groomed runs at the mountain I sometimes pull out my 80's vintage 223 Rossignol downhill boards or my 210 Élan Super G's (sweet)

If I had to narrow it down to one pair of skis the older Dynastar 4X4's or the Rossi B4's would be it.

Twin tips skis are for trick skiing and tube riding in the freestyle park, they can handle hard landings when jumping and are designed to go in both directions.

Instead of recommending specific models to buy you need to go out and see whats available then do a little research on them on the internet. There are so many models
I dont have a clue until I research them on the net.

Any of the manufacturers make great skis:
K2
Rossignol
Dynastar
Salomon
Atomic
Volant
Fisher

There's generally a ski review in skiing magazines that give good info so you can pick according to your ability, the type of skier you are (fast vs bump vs both), terrain you generally like skiing on, etc.

You forgot Volkl, best dam skis and made in Germany!
Started skiing at 3, 40++ years ago.(20 years racing)
Now I've finally perfected the turn ,the shape skis came out and change everything.

No prob, I get my skis at the Thrift store, Cheap!
Hey! I'm a 914 owner, and W/O a lot of money!

chris, i used to be a ski/ski boot salesperson so i have a little bit to say

as far as twin tip skis go, if you arent riding in the park and doing tricks...you dont need them

there are two types of construction with skiis, sidewall and cap, sidewall seems to be more durable (i prefer this construction on my snowboards) and on the east coast you want durability...but if you arent too aggressive, this is not a matter...

as far as east coast vs CO goes, they are two different ballparks..i actually have two snowboards for this reason, one for trails and one for powder...but you can get a good mixture.

one ski that is very good (not sure if they still make them, but they probably do) is the Rossignol bandit line..they make 3 widths, and the narrowest of the 3 is most suitable for the east coast, but still wide enough to have fun in some deeper snow, i believe its called the bandit1/bandit X...we sold TONS of these skiis and everyone seemed satisfied.

secondly i think you should look at the Head Monster, it also has different widths, its a very durable ski and useful on ice and deeper snow...its shape is great for deep snow, but it has what is called the "intelligence" system, which are these fibers which stiffen when they experince vibrations, this will keep the ski from chattering too much when its on icy surfaces..it does work pretty well too
this ski also has an integrated binding system which is mounted on a rail (much like a monorail train) and screwed at the center point between the bindings only...this allows the ski to flex fully when youre in a turn, otherwise the ski will only flex before and after your boot,

honestly you have tons and tons of choices...and my best advice would be to go to a reputable ski shop (if youre serious about advancing in skiing) and talk to their salespeople, theyre all trained, and if you go to a place where they dont make commission, you will get alot less crap. try to avoid sports authority if you arent sure what youre looking for.

hope this helped
-Aaron

Your not to far from NYC. I sold boards at Paragon Sports for several years. If you wont come over to the dark side then let me try to set you up with one of the guys in the ski shop. They are a great shop and will give you demo deals.

Or you could borrow one of my boards and I may have a set of boots for you. Give up 3 days of skiing this year and by the 4th day you will be thanking me for making you walk away from the planks.

leo, do you still ride? i just got my season pass in the mail from Mountain creek..its crappy but close

I am a Fischer man for life. I've had a set of their best all-mountain skis for several years now and see myself buying the same in a year or two for now.

they are fine for the east but if you are looking for an ultimate carver they aren't good for that. and they kick ass in the powder out west to boot. great all around ski that does everything.

I'm not in a very good ski area but if I were, I'd look into the new Rossi's

(Alta, Alta, Alta, Alta, Alta, Alta, Alta, Alta, Alta, Alta, Alta, Alta, Alta, Alta, Alta, Alta, Alta, Alta, Alta, Alta, Alta, Alta)

This season is going to be all about skiboarding for me. It's worth checking out.

Volant invented and perfected the recreational shape ski (and the cap ski too for that matter). Heck, we were putting 15 degree side cuts on our GS skis in 1993 and our downhills were running over 13. It was the fastest downhill ski made up until 2001.

However, you do not want to touch a Volant unless they are nearly free. There is no longer any real customer support, so if you have any sort of problem, you will be stuck.

As a recreational skier, you really only need to worry about a couple of things:
1. You want a ski that is relatively soft longitudinally compared to your weight. Siff skis stink - they are horrible to turn. Add a deep side cut and you will simply have a horrible experience - the thing will hook like mad. The reason manufaturers made skis stiff was so they held an edge on ice and hard snow. So...
2. Find a ski that is VERY stiff TORSIONALLY. This gives you the best of both worlds - a ski that initiates a turn easily and holds an edge.
The volant had the highest stiffness to torsion ratio. The way the other manufacturers tried to match us was by gluing extra crap on the top sheet of the skis - look at the Atomic and Rossignol for a reference. So, again, a soft flexing ski that does not twist is the goal.
3. Length is not a big deal at all. I used a 204 shaped GS ski in the early 90's. I now ski a 163 shaped ski - and I am 6'2", 250 lbs. I ski 25-40 days a year and I will run gates with it anywhere anytime. The only thing that requires any adjustment is getting used to your balance point - obviously you cant leverage the tails as much on a short ski. However, being that you are just getting back into the game, you will not have any trouble at all - you will probably feel like a rock star compared to the work involved on your old equipment.
4. There is too much of a good thing - some shapes are WAY to deep. I would reccommend not going past an 16 degree side cut.
5. I totally agree with the above about demoing. Spend your money on a great pair of boots. Then find a shop that has a good selection of demo skis and that will apply at least a portion of your rental fee to what you ultimately decide to buy.

Watch for end of the year deals. We used to sell all of our demos at the end of the year for what just the bindngs cost - 850.00 worth of skis/bindings for 125.00. Most of them had less than 10 full days on them.

If you decide to go the Sports Authority/Garts route, drop me a PM - I still have really close ties with them.

I also agree - put Volkl in your top 3.

Have fun playing in the snow!

I just bought a pair of Head XRC 800's at the end of the season last year. I tried a dozen different types of skis and these were the only ones I liked. I like Head. They retailed at $1200 but I got them for $500 and am really happy with them...so far.
I tore my pelvis apart last winter and ended up in rehab for 10 weeks but this year I'll do it all over again.

Night skiing at Mountain Creek is a blast. It's a short drive to play in the slush. No lines at night and great nachos at the bar for after. I am a little spoiled after getting a chance to ride at Tahoe, but I'll take what I can get. My favorite day drive would be Windham and then Mountain Creek for half day. For a weekend Okeemo is a fun mountain and not toooo far. Beyond that I'm gettin in a plane.

Oh to answer the question, yes I still ride. Lets go!

Sorry for the Hijack Chris. With the season comming you got me excited.

The Trickybus has beefy tires and a rack when you guys are ready.

Holy hot damn, thanks everyone for your help! Looks like I've got a lot of research to do, but I definitely have a better start now. I'm sure I'll be posting with potential skis to get opinions later on when I narrow down my search.

Leo, Aaron, Pete, I am definitely down for some NEW ski trips, have you ever hit up Blue Mountain in Leighton, PA? They have night skiing too, not too far either. Decent for this area, been there a few times because it was close to where I went to college.

yeah ive been to blue mountain once its a pretty fun mountian, a day trip there would be fun to take

Starting in 2 weeks I'll be using Buffalo as home base. VT is a 6hr drive from there & I have a season pass to Killington/Mt Snow & a couple others. I plan on being up there at least every other w'end after B school applications are all sorted (mid Jan).

-pt

Any one opt for Whislter Blackcomb?? Just opted for a season pass this year. Trying to ski > 30 days this year. Last season hit 22 days