Getting new skis and bindings, need help deciding

S

smells_like_tuna

Member
Ok, so... I'm a big guy, 6 feet, 210 lbs. I can't ski park to save my life, but I still like screwing around on jumps and the pipe. I don't do rails cuz... I just don't.

I currently have a trashed pair of original K2 Public Enemies, and this year I'm either gonna get Volkl Karmas or Rossi Scratch BCs, but I can't decide between the two.

I ski Mammoth and pretty much only Mammoth, so I get plenty of steeps, and a fair amount of fresh stuff, so as a heavier guy, I'm leaning towards the Scratch BCs. However, the Karmas seem like they'd be a little better for all-around resort riding when there isn't deep pow. I also race skiercross for my school, just for fun, so that would cause me to lean towards the Karmas, just cuz they're narrower. One thing that confuses me is the fact that all the ski mags give the Karma and the Scratch BC super high reviews, and they say that they're both super-versatile all-mountain skis, yet there's a huge difference in width between the two skis: 11mm at the waist.

Another question I have is what length ski should I get? My current PEs are 179, which seems just about perfect. The Scratch BCs come in 178 or 185, and the Karmas come in 177 or 185. My initial reaction would be to get the longer skis, just cuz I'm a big guy and these are relatively wide skis compared to my current PEs. But longer skis ain't so hot when I wanna go cruise the pipe or screw around in the park, and shorter skis would be better for skiercross. Would it be weird to have something super fat like the Scratch BC and then have them in a relatively short 178 length?

My final question is about bindings. If I get the Scratch BCs, I'll get the Rossi Axial 140 Ti binding, just cuz it'll extend the ski's warranty. But if I get the Karmas, should I still stick with Rossi bindings, or should I consider the new Salomon Z912 Ti? The idea of a super-light binding is very appealing.

Thanks for any input and advice. Sorry for the long post.
 
um...ok so i think you need to realize that if you want to be racing skierX on a set of twins you really should not be looking at pow skis!

now that we've settled that,

i'd recomend the scratch bc! i skied it last year through some pow and on groomers and they performed quite nicely. since you're a bigger guy, the 185's should do you nicely as long as you're a strong skier. personally i don't ski anything under 180 just because i like a longer ski. as for the karmas i would personally stay away from volkl this year since they have just changed manufacturing facilities from germany to china and you might want to watch and see what kind of quality they factory can turn out.

that's my 2 cents

 
This should probably be in the Ski Equiptment Forum, that being said, I'd go with the BC's, super versatile, I'm biased though because I ski them
 
First: skiercross isn't my focus or my concern. It's just something I do for fun every now and then. I'm not gonna go buy skis just for skiercross.

I just found a sweet deal on some of last year's Volkl Karmas, so right now I'm kinda leaning towards those, since they're made in Germany and they're a lot better looking than this year's Karmas.

But what about bindings? The Rossi Axial weighs about 5.5 lbs, while the Salomon Z912 Ti weighs just under 3.75 lbs for the pair. Do light bindings really matter? Should I really take a chance with something all carbon and lightweight like the Z912? I have a pair of look P12s on my current skis, and I've been super happy with 'em, simply cuz they work and nothing has gone wrong with 'em.
 
if u get karmas get marker bindings on them since there same com. as for length go 178 for scratches or 177 for karmas due to what u seem to be skiing i got a friend whos 6'1 180lbs and rides 171 and likes them for everything and as for ski rossis are more pow out of the park softer flex while the karmas are more groomed hardpack and stiff in flex il leave the chosing too u
 
karmas 185, super sexy ski rails the groomers, flys off jumps, floats a bit in the pow pow, but def get the p 14 or the rossi race stock binder with them, NO MARKERS!!!!!!!! THEY SUCK BALLS!!!
 
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