alaskakid
Active member
Hi all,
Funny to be back on NS after literally a decade. I'm behind on ski tech, and was hoping to get some advice on the Kartel 108/116 skis. I'm 5'9, 150lbs, fit. This season, almost half of my season is going to be at Alta/Alyeska, so I want to get a west coast quiver, even though the rest of my season will still be in the east. I'll make the west coast skis work in the east. I'd like to get an in-bounds powder ski and an all mountain ski to still have a rad time even when it hasn't snowed in a while. About my skiing:
- Freestyle oriented, roots are in park. I LOVE natural hits. Constantly looking for something to throw a butter or a spin on. I like to land switch, too. And I'm ok landing in a mogul field and running it out
- I guess I "charge", so I like to ski fast in open bowls, and I only go into the trees when I'm searching for softer snow. Open bowls are my bread and butter. A stiffer ski would probably be good for this, but I'm not looking for a GS ski
- If the conditions are particularly firm, I do rip groomers with my GF, but when I do this, I ski 90% switch
- I have 171cm Filthy Riches, and I've been really happy with them (even though I tore out a Pivot binding) for park and cruising east coast mountains. They're why I'm looking at other ON3P skis. They're obviously too short on me, but I don't mind that for jibbing
- I have beat up 184 Salomon Rocker 122's with Guardian bindings that I got from a gracious buddy. I liked these skis for west coast powder, but they are a bit too much for tight east coast trees, although they work. I'm looking to get a new pair of powder skis without frame bindings
The Kartel 108 and 116 seem like a sensible option for me. I have some questions below. Based on my skier profile:
Would the Kartel 108 be a rad west coast firm day all mountain jumper? I have some hesitation that it may be a little too wide
- If yes, should I go 181 or 176? I realize that a 176 would also potentially be a great tool for east coast tree skiing, but I really am looking to optimize for west coast conditions
- If no, do you have any other ideas? Are the Kartel 98's not enough ski? What about other cheaper options, like ARV 106's, etc. Any got any other skis I should consider?
Would the Kartel 116 be a fun west coast/AK in bounds powder/super soft conditions/tracked out powder ski? I am more confident that that 116 is right for me
- If yes, I should probably go 181, right?
- If no, do you have any other ideas? I've thought about Armada JJ's, Bentchetlers, and a few Line skis which I'm less hyped about. Anyone got any other skis I should consider?
Would a quiver of the Kartel 108 and 116 be too much overlap? It kind of feels like there is a lot of overlap, but I've never skied all mountain on a 108 width ski, just a 100mm waist ski. I do wish the Kartel 108 was more like 103.
I am curious what you all think, and thank you in advance for your comments. For the record, I searched pretty much exhaustively between here and TGR, and couldn't really find this comparison. Also for the record, it is truly difficult to post a question like this on TGR - talk about archaic rules for first time posters. Surprised their community has more than 15 posters.
Cheers!
**This thread was edited on Oct 8th 2017 at 1:20:10pm
Funny to be back on NS after literally a decade. I'm behind on ski tech, and was hoping to get some advice on the Kartel 108/116 skis. I'm 5'9, 150lbs, fit. This season, almost half of my season is going to be at Alta/Alyeska, so I want to get a west coast quiver, even though the rest of my season will still be in the east. I'll make the west coast skis work in the east. I'd like to get an in-bounds powder ski and an all mountain ski to still have a rad time even when it hasn't snowed in a while. About my skiing:
- Freestyle oriented, roots are in park. I LOVE natural hits. Constantly looking for something to throw a butter or a spin on. I like to land switch, too. And I'm ok landing in a mogul field and running it out
- I guess I "charge", so I like to ski fast in open bowls, and I only go into the trees when I'm searching for softer snow. Open bowls are my bread and butter. A stiffer ski would probably be good for this, but I'm not looking for a GS ski
- If the conditions are particularly firm, I do rip groomers with my GF, but when I do this, I ski 90% switch
- I have 171cm Filthy Riches, and I've been really happy with them (even though I tore out a Pivot binding) for park and cruising east coast mountains. They're why I'm looking at other ON3P skis. They're obviously too short on me, but I don't mind that for jibbing
- I have beat up 184 Salomon Rocker 122's with Guardian bindings that I got from a gracious buddy. I liked these skis for west coast powder, but they are a bit too much for tight east coast trees, although they work. I'm looking to get a new pair of powder skis without frame bindings
The Kartel 108 and 116 seem like a sensible option for me. I have some questions below. Based on my skier profile:
Would the Kartel 108 be a rad west coast firm day all mountain jumper? I have some hesitation that it may be a little too wide
- If yes, should I go 181 or 176? I realize that a 176 would also potentially be a great tool for east coast tree skiing, but I really am looking to optimize for west coast conditions
- If no, do you have any other ideas? Are the Kartel 98's not enough ski? What about other cheaper options, like ARV 106's, etc. Any got any other skis I should consider?
Would the Kartel 116 be a fun west coast/AK in bounds powder/super soft conditions/tracked out powder ski? I am more confident that that 116 is right for me
- If yes, I should probably go 181, right?
- If no, do you have any other ideas? I've thought about Armada JJ's, Bentchetlers, and a few Line skis which I'm less hyped about. Anyone got any other skis I should consider?
Would a quiver of the Kartel 108 and 116 be too much overlap? It kind of feels like there is a lot of overlap, but I've never skied all mountain on a 108 width ski, just a 100mm waist ski. I do wish the Kartel 108 was more like 103.
I am curious what you all think, and thank you in advance for your comments. For the record, I searched pretty much exhaustively between here and TGR, and couldn't really find this comparison. Also for the record, it is truly difficult to post a question like this on TGR - talk about archaic rules for first time posters. Surprised their community has more than 15 posters.
Cheers!
**This thread was edited on Oct 8th 2017 at 1:20:10pm
