Trying to figure out what new gear to get...

[Benm]

hi, i have been researching new equipment and i am struggling. i posted in another forum but it was for people from mostly europe. we all know PA is nothing like that. i found this PA forum so i figured I would post here instead.

I have a lot of experience and was doing double black moguls at killington at 17 years. I am 35 and stopped maybe 7 years ago but went a few times last year, felt the excitement again and got a season pass for this year.

I mihgt be picking up some new gear tomorrow and I was looking for advice on what to look for. In the past, my parents bought it when i was a minor or I went on craigslist and bought whatever cheap poo-poo was available because i was poor. so i have never actually 'shopped'.

Anyway, if anyone could give me guidance on what to tell the ski shop people to help them get a grasp on what I'm looking for, it would be helpful. I've seen things like telling them level 3 (or 3+) and that I'd prefer a stiffer (higher?) DIN. Longer has always been better. Short skis were never comfortable.

Is there any equipment out that would sort of fit the following scenario --

I'm an advanced skier who is looking for something that is aggressive, fast and, maybe the word would be 'technical' (?) (think moguls / slalom, not big air or jumps).
At the same time, I've never really cared about freestyle or parks, though it would be nice to have a ski where I can play around to see if it's something I want to get into.
I'm also not looking for the absolute best of the best skis, just something that people consistently recommend and a model that is a perennial top-pick.

I am not planning on transitioning into something where these skis would become 'park' skis. I plan on buying a cheap, probably used, short pair of twin tips in case I feel like just taking it easy some days. If I want to become more park focused, I'll buy a nicer set for that application.

Recommendations on what to tell staff about boots and bindings would also be a plus. i know that i want stiff boots, but that's about it. 

pros / cons of opting for already mounted bindings vs pick specific ones? I don't know if the bindings that come pre-mounted are tuned for that specific model of ski. also are skis with already mounted bindings tuned or will i need to get them sharpened/waxed?

Sorry, I know there are a lot of questions here, but any help you all can give would be much appreciated. Lots of good info so far in these forums.

I'll be skiing Blue mainly and i'm on the monroe/carbon county border.

Thanks all.

[GrilledSteezeSandwich]

Welcome to PASR...I’ll let one of the gearheads answer your questions.  What skis were you on last season?  

[RidgeRacer]

Welcome brm05. I'll echo GSS and let the gear peeps guide you since a gear person I am not. I like how my skis ski so I stick to a certain width, length, brand etc. Funny thing is that the people here will probably put you on something suited for Europe better than the people in you European ski forum would. You came to the right place.

[toast21602]

Welcome! Come meet up in the lot after skiing tomorrow. 

[Benm]

2 hours ago, GrilledSteezeSandwich said:

Welcome to PASR...I’ll let one of the gearheads answer your questions.  What skis were you on last season?  

I did not pick these skis out for any particular reason aside from the fact that they were long and cheap. They are craigslist specials from probably 10 years ago. I got a lot of looks with those skis on a SEPTA train in August during rush hour.

Volkl P30s - long, I don't know the length offhand but I can figure it out later today. They have white and red Marker bindings, unlike the photo here. Last season I was on these and rentals (i didn't have boots for the volkls until later in the season).

Just a note - this is not my photo.

My skis are in a pole barn 100 yards away and I'm way too lazy to go get them.

Thanks

 

Edited November 15, 2019 by brm05
attach photo

[Benm]

54 minutes ago, toast21602 said:

Welcome! Come meet up in the lot after skiing tomorrow. 

Thanks for the invite toast, maybe I'll stop by and introduce myself. is there some sort of hub in the valley with all pasr members? hah

[GrilledSteezeSandwich]

12 minutes ago, brm05 said:

Thanks for the invite toast, maybe I'll stop by and introduce myself. is there some sort of hub in the valley with all pasr members? hah

Valley lot won’t be open until probably 3-4 weeks from now.  One row down from lodge in summit lot. 

[Benm]

3 minutes ago, GrilledSteezeSandwich said:

Valley lot won’t be open until probably 3-4 weeks from now.  One row down from lodge in summit lot. 

that is very good information. you shouldn't have told me and just sent me to the valley to confuse the hell out of me.

[GrilledSteezeSandwich]

20 minutes ago, brm05 said:

that is very good information. you shouldn't have told me and just sent me to the valley to confuse the hell out of me.

You’re welcome and anytime...I’m on a roll already had a customer tell me what an angel I am.  Wow she doesn’t know me that well lol. 

[toast21602]

34 minutes ago, GrilledSteezeSandwich said:

Valley lot won’t be open until probably 3-4 weeks from now.  One row down from lodge in summit lot. 

If we’re lucky. That’s still early for it to open considering it’s mid November now. 

[GrilledSteezeSandwich]

58 minutes ago, toast21602 said:

If we’re lucky. That’s still early for it to open considering it’s mid November now. 

I was thinking that as well...we need another equally good cold snap to even think about the valley.  

[toast21602]

1 minute ago, GrilledSteezeSandwich said:

I was thinking that as well...we need another equally good cold snap to even think about the valley.  

Correct. We need to good juju and sacrifice @saltyant to the snow gods

[Johnny Law]

2 hours ago, brm05 said:

that is very good information. you shouldn't have told me and just sent me to the valley to confuse the hell out of me.

p30 is a nicer old school carving ski but my guess it aint doing you no favors. 

How tall are you ? How much do you weight roughly ? What do you like about those skis ? What do you not like ? What do you want a new pair of skis to make easier ? Can you carve the ski ? If so what kind of radius do you like ?

I have some skis, if you want to try some stuff out.  If you want a pair of twins I have at least 4 pair you can straight up have. I have a pair of stockli stormriders too with bindings I've been trying to give away since last year that you could totally have. 

Do you know what size boot you are ?

[Benm]

6 minutes ago, Johnny Law said:

p30 is a nicer old school carving ski but my guess it aint doing you no favors. 

How tall are you ? How much do you weight roughly ? What do you like about those skis ? What do you not like ? What do you want a new pair of skis to make easier ? Can you carve the ski ? If so what kind of radius do you like ?

I have some skis, if you want to try some stuff out.  If you want a pair of twins I have at least 4 pair you can straight up have. I have a pair of stockli stormriders too with bindings I've been trying to give away since last year that you could totally have. 

Do you know what size boot you are ?

Yeah, i do like that ski, but I don't know what else is out there.

I'm 6ft, 175-180lb. Those skis felt good. Nice speed, very responsive. I like them, they're just old and I have some money to spend on new gear so I want to replace them. 

I don't really want to make anything easier, I would be able to ski in anything. I'm just looking for something newer, maybe a little more 'playful' but I don't want to sacrifice the speed / agility for it. I know that it's difficult because usually those two things go against one another. I guess a good analogy would be something liks the p30s but twin tip and maybe a little lighter.

I don't know what you mean about carving the ski. Are you asking if I can make hard turns? Yeah that's no issue at all. I will happily spray any target you point out. I'm never really out of being parallel.

Maybe I'll take you up on an offer for a set twins so I have something to play around with. I'm getting older and it's been a while since I really got back into it and I'm not sure whether I want to stick with my current style or transition into a more casual, freestyle type of skiing. Are you local to Blue? 

I don't know what size boot I am. I'm a 10.5 shoe. My boots that I have now were from goodwill and they fit so I bought them. Yeah, crazy I know. But I didn't know if I was going to get back into the sport or not. It was a $10 gamble. I'd spend more renting them.

There's a whole lot of 'I don't knows' in there, sorry lol

Thanks

[saltyant]

31 minutes ago, brm05 said:

I'm 6ft, 175-180lb.

I don't know what size boot I am. I'm a 10.5 shoe. 

We have the same measurements. I think 170 length RTMs would work great!

Edited November 15, 2019 by saltyant

[Benm]

4 minutes ago, saltyant said:

170 length RTMs

Do they make them any longer?

Also, I'm trying to search for them but Volkl's site doesn't even show them (unless they're called something else), google is showing RTM 76 / 84 / 8.0. Is there a specific variant?

Thanks

[saltyant]

6 minutes ago, brm05 said:

Do they make them any longer?

Also, I'm trying to search for them but Volkl's site doesn't even show them (unless they're called something else), google is showing RTM 76 / 84 / 8.0. Is there a specific variant?

Thanks

I bought 170s because the ski shop gave me a good deal on them, I think around $500. Everyone on here says I should have bought 177s but I doubt I'd notice any difference.

I mostly ski groomers, and powder once a year, and they work just fine for me. Not sure why you cant find them on Volkl's website. I think the figures you mentioned are width - mine are 81s.

Edited November 15, 2019 by saltyant

[toast21602]

26 minutes ago, saltyant said:

We have the same measurements. I think 170 length RTMs would work great!

Stop. You know nothing about skis or gear. Now is not the time to try to make brother Doug laugh. 

[JFskiDan]

1 hour ago, Johnny Law said:

p30 is a nicer old school carving ski but my guess it aint doing you no favors. 

How tall are you ? How much do you weight roughly ? What do you like about those skis ? What do you not like ? What do you want a new pair of skis to make easier ? Can you carve the ski ? If so what kind of radius do you like ?

I have some skis, if you want to try some stuff out.  If you want a pair of twins I have at least 4 pair you can straight up have. I have a pair of stockli stormriders too with bindings I've been trying to give away since last year that you could totally have. 

Do you know what size boot you are ?

@brm05 pay attention to this guy, and then buddy up to indiggio, and mbike....those are the 2 guys more so into bumps that i can think of off hand.  

Since bumps arent my bag, i'm not much help with your selection of skis for Blue, other than to tell you this.....i would lean towards a ski that gets decent marks for crud.  I think this is what Jlaw is eluding to when he says it might not be doing you any favors. 

24 minutes ago, saltyant said:

 I think 170 length RTMs would work great!

@brm05, you should buy ladies skis before considering these.  

[indiggio]

Is there a reason you're hung up on twin-tips? 
You state that you're not into park or big jumps, not that Blue has any anymore, so that would indicate that you're not going to be skiing switch very much, if at all.

You also say you're looking for length, speed, aggressive, which with twin-tips, you're loosing length and TTs tend not to be meant for speed or aggressive skiing, they tend to be more noodles than planks.

Also, depending on what terrain you're going to skin, TTs can be more of a hindrance than a help.
The turned up tails in the bumps causes all sorts of headaches, ask me how I know.

Skiing TTs with friends makes you an annoyance, mainly because of the rooster-tail of ice, snow, etc. they throw up behind you, but if that's what you're looking for, go for it.

Not trying to dissuade you, but just throwing out some thoughts.

 

[GrilledSteezeSandwich]

31 minutes ago, brm05 said:

Do they make them any longer?

Also, I'm trying to search for them but Volkl's site doesn't even show them (unless they're called something else), google is showing RTM 76 / 84 / 8.0. Is there a specific variant?

Thanks

RTMs are a Jerry ski. 

[Benm]

Just now, indiggio said:

 - below -

Is there a reason you're hung up on twin-tips? No, I was just wondering if there was anything out there that is downhill oriented, but had twin tips incase I wanted to try out freestyle / parks.

You state that you're not into park or big jumps, not that Blue has any anymore, so that would indicate that you're not going to be skiing switch very much, if at all. Did not know this, but it is good to know, makes the TT aspect sort of moot.

You also say you're looking for length, speed, aggressive, which with twin-tips, you're loosing length and TTs tend not to be meant for speed or aggressive skiing, they tend to be more noodles than planks. Right, I understand and I had mentioned that they are sort of opposites and one would take away from the other.

Skiing TTs with friends makes you an annoyance, mainly because of the rooster-tail of ice, snow, etc. they throw up behind you, but if that's what you're looking for, go for it. I didn't know that this happened but i'd probably be solo most times so it wouldn't matter.

Not trying to dissuade you, but just throwing out some thoughts. Thanks, this is some great info to consider. TT looking much less desirable. Will likely just have two sets, one set being TT for casual / freestyle and one set for downhill.

Thanks

[Benm]

4 minutes ago, GrilledSteezeSandwich said:

RTMs are a Jerry ski. 

i don't know who jerry is but i probably don't want to be jerry.

[JFskiDan]

1 minute ago, brm05 said:

i don't know who jerry is but i probably don't want to be jerry.

You pick up quick.  

[indiggio]

12 minutes ago, brm05 said:

 Will likely just have two sets, one set being TT for casual / freestyle and one set for downhill.

I only had a pair of TTs for when I was teaching my son to ski, so that I could monitor him.
Once he learned to ski, I got regular downhill skies and don't even use the TTs anymore and they're shot.

Most of the bumper have two sets, regular downhill and a pair of mogul skis specifically for the bumps.

@tarponhead and I think @zzslope swear by Blizzards, as I think those have been getting pretty good accolades for all mountain skis lately.
They probably have some opinions on them as well.