AlpentalAnon
Member
I
had a chance to take my first turns on a new pair of Kylie 186s at Alpental, WA
earlier today and wanted to write a review.
If you’re in a rush, here’s a short review- these skis are beasts!
We
had about a foot of dry powder for the first runs of the day. I’m used to the wetter snow found in the NW
and it was nice to get some turns in dry powder before things got too tracked
out. The skis floated well, as was
expected with the design. What surprised
me was how quickly the tips would pop to the surface if they got buried too
deep. It’s still early in the season at
Alpental and there were a number of dips that caught me off guard in the flat
light. A quick shift to the backseat
kept the Kylies from submarining almost instantly.
Once
things got tracked-out, I tried pointing the skis through the chop to see how
they would respond. I expected to be
bounced around some, but found the Kylies absorbed everything well and were
very stable at speed, as long as I stayed on top of them. They also have a fair amount of pop and I had
some fun hopping the tips of uncovered trees over the course of the day.
I
took a few tree runs inbounds and in the slackcountry and was happy with how
the Kylies responded to quick turns. We
got another 6” of the usual PNW wet snow as the day went on, which the Kylies
handled well. Same with icy patches and
dry to wet snow transitions.
By
the end of the day, my legs were pretty rubbery and I started lazy-skiing. This is the only time I had problems with the
Kylies. They got pretty squirrelly if I
did not stay on top of them. That having
been said, I don’t see as a problem with the ski. They seem designed to be pushed by the rider,
rather than vise-versa.
Overall,
I’m impressed with the Kylies. I
wouldn’t recommend them for a casual skier and wouldn’t recommend them as a
good ski to learn on. I would recommend
them for a skier with a few seasons under his or her belt that wants a
responsive ski for a wide range of conditions.
Push these skis and you’ll be happy with the results.
had a chance to take my first turns on a new pair of Kylie 186s at Alpental, WA
earlier today and wanted to write a review.
If you’re in a rush, here’s a short review- these skis are beasts!
We
had about a foot of dry powder for the first runs of the day. I’m used to the wetter snow found in the NW
and it was nice to get some turns in dry powder before things got too tracked
out. The skis floated well, as was
expected with the design. What surprised
me was how quickly the tips would pop to the surface if they got buried too
deep. It’s still early in the season at
Alpental and there were a number of dips that caught me off guard in the flat
light. A quick shift to the backseat
kept the Kylies from submarining almost instantly.
Once
things got tracked-out, I tried pointing the skis through the chop to see how
they would respond. I expected to be
bounced around some, but found the Kylies absorbed everything well and were
very stable at speed, as long as I stayed on top of them. They also have a fair amount of pop and I had
some fun hopping the tips of uncovered trees over the course of the day.
I
took a few tree runs inbounds and in the slackcountry and was happy with how
the Kylies responded to quick turns. We
got another 6” of the usual PNW wet snow as the day went on, which the Kylies
handled well. Same with icy patches and
dry to wet snow transitions.
By
the end of the day, my legs were pretty rubbery and I started lazy-skiing. This is the only time I had problems with the
Kylies. They got pretty squirrelly if I
did not stay on top of them. That having
been said, I don’t see as a problem with the ski. They seem designed to be pushed by the rider,
rather than vise-versa.
Overall,
I’m impressed with the Kylies. I
wouldn’t recommend them for a casual skier and wouldn’t recommend them as a
good ski to learn on. I would recommend
them for a skier with a few seasons under his or her belt that wants a
responsive ski for a wide range of conditions.
Push these skis and you’ll be happy with the results.