saltyant

Thanks Root. I assume that's a reputable dealer and then they ship them through the mail? The Loft shop wants $899 for them and I think that's highway robbery when the same skis are available online for much, much cheaper.

I hate small talk with strangers and I like comfy seats with backs to them. I have to socialize with people enough all day long on the lift rides and that's enough for me.

170 length, 81 width. Other numbers on the skis are 128/81/109 16,3 They also have 3D glass and 3D ridge so I think that's good...

Hopefully, because that means I'm advancing in ability. But at this point, based on my experience level, I cannot image a better ski than the RTM 81 due to how well it performed for me today. I'm not sure what more a ski can improve on...? And I'm not being a wise guy with that sentence, I literally don't know. I understand that powder skis make a huge difference in powder, but how often do we get actual pow days around here? Nearly all my runs are on groomers right now, and as long as they get through the less than ideal conditions then I'm fine with them for now.

Nope, they directly deducted the $0.33 from the base price.

Ok I edited it above, hopefully that is a good synopsis !

Ah I don't feel like writing a report tonight. The RTMs were good. The Vantage seemed equally good but since I spent so much time on the RTMs I'm not sure anymore. I only tried the Vantage for an hour. I tried Rossignol 84s which seemed less stable. Since i felt the RTMs were harder to turn than what I'm used to, I think I'll stick with 81. I didn't try Kendos because they seemed out of my league.

Yes, I bought a hot dog for $3.17 and put yellow mustard on it. I forgot to ask if they have spicy mustard which is my preferred mustard type. Since there were no tables available, I had to eat my hot dog with yellow mustard while standing like some kind of animal. The best part of the day was when due to my Camelback Hero Pass and the Food & Beverage Discount, I saved 10% on my hot dog so I ended up only paying $2.85 and saved $0.33.

To answer your question in the Blue thread, I didn't buy the RTM 81s yet. I'm shopping around until I find a bargain, and if I can't find one then maybe I'll wait until the end of the season. But I think I'm spoiled now and can't go back to my entry-level Elans. I tested the RTMs in everything I could - hard pack, pure ice, sugary piles, and death cookies. I am very impressed at how much better the ski felt in those conditions. I think I'm fine with the 81. It was harder to turn then I'm used to, but the stability is a good trade off. Anything wider I felt like I would have a hard time making turns.

Rofl this is more entertaining than skiing at Camelback someone please bring me popcorn up to the top of the Stevenson lift

I really like them. I feel more confident on the cookies and hard pack. Much more stable than my Elans. I dont know how much of this is psychological and physical, but I really like the RTMs

Hahahaha. Eaf come to CB. Both our express lifts work and you can see me skiing like a boss on my RTM 81s

Cool, and then Chamonix in 2020 right?

Actually I attribute a lot of my recent decisions to you. When I was stuck on the turnpike at Quakertown, I was going to turn back. Then you said something like "so what, you ski 3 hours instead of 4. YOLO". That post changed my mind and I ended up having a great time at Blue.

I'll have to start posting there next year after ski season. I had a great season this year. Logged 4,475.7 miles, and biked up Pike's Peak, Mount Evans, rode from Silverton to Durango, and around Moab and Monument Valley. I'd ask where you guys start riding from, but don't want to get yelled at anymore today for threadjacking. Are you allowed to threadjack your own thread?

Forgot to mention that I got both the skis and my current poles for $15 combined. What a bargain.

At this point as long as the bindings are indemnified and function properly I'm good. This reminds me, the first pair of skis I bought were for $15 at the Goodwill store. I think they were "Geze" bindings, and there's virtually no information about them online. They were so old I couldn't get them to adjust properly to get my boots in.

Lol, you're talking to a guy that overanalyzes every little detail and decision. But true. I just want to get on some different skis and see how they feel, instead of just getting bogged down in all the intricate details. You're all well versed in it from years and years of experience, but to someone who's relatively new it's quite daunting. I've been biking for a long time and finally feel like I have a pretty understanding of what kind of road bike I want to get. That came from years and years of riding experience. In that area there's a whole gamut of subtle differences between bikes that it's also really tough to decide what to get.

It'll be interesting. It seems you can research skis ad nauseam, but the information is meaningless unless you can translate it into how it impacts your skiing.

I can put it off until then, but I kinda want something sooner because I'll be skiing 3 times a week and also going to Vermont in early February. What I'm thinking is I'll try demoing tomorrow to see if I really like any ski - it's only $60. If not I'll stick with the Elans and wait until the two demo days at Blue and Camelback. Regardless, I'll attend Buckman's demo day because I'm really interested to see how different skis feel. And I'm pretty sure if I buy something now, it won't be my last pair of skis. I think someone said JohnnyLaw has like 50 skis or something. It seems trying different skis is the best way to learn about how they work because there are so many differences it's mind boggling.

Oh boy I didn't ask the shop. I hope model years don't make too big of a difference... just another variable to factor in.

Ok, thanks for pointing that out. I won't know how steel vs. whatever else feels until I try it. If I feel like steel is too advanced for my level then I'll look for something else.

Because skis are non-refundable, I want to demo a ski before buying it. I called 4 shops today. 1 doesn't do demos period, and 2 do not demo skis that I'm interested in. So that leaves the demo shops at either Camelback or Blue, or another mountain. So I guess my choices will be limited to those skis, unless I can find a ski comparable to one that I like tomorrow.