Playful, but stable ski for heavier skier (95kg - 210lbs)

M

Moffmo

New member
I'm hoping to get some advice from you guys - since all the reviews online that are I read are written by lighter skiers which confuses me in my choices for skis. I hope you don't mind me repeating the words "playful but stable" as I have seen alot on this forum, but I think my weight differentiates me from the advice given in those threads.

I ski in NZ, mainly southern NZ with the occasional trip to northern NZ. I am 107cm (5ft 7) and weight 95kg (210lbs). I am an intermediate skier with high degree of confidence so I do black runs and do them pretty fast until I get to mogully areas which I suck on lol. I also try and hit natural features like bowls and little jumps etc. I also like to ride switch pretty often, starting to dabble in park, and started to hit the smaller boxes and small jumps.

Looking for a ski that is playful and a lot of fun, but still stable enough that when I do get my speed up that I don't feel like I'm in danger.Currently riding some reallllly old elan m02.2 (like 2006 or something) and they are far too heavy and stiff to have fun with.

I demoed some ARV96 (2020) this season and absolutely loved them for the flex, playfulness etc but they were just downright scary as soon as I got any kind of speed going so was wondering is the ARV96 TI would still be playful (becuase of my weight) but provide me with that stableness.

Other skis I've looked at but clueless as to what to think about them as reviews are always done by someone who weighs like 30kg less than me! So ideally looking for advice from heavier people or people with experience with fatties. Ideally looking around the 95-100 side cut.

- Atomic Bent Chantler 100

- K2 Poacher

- Liberity Helix 98

- Nordica Soul Rider 97

- Line Sir Francis Bacon

- Black Ops 98

- Volkl Revolt 95

- Faction Prodigy?

The faction line confuses me a bit - I think the prodigy 2.0 would be what I need - but hearing alot of people on these forums complain about the durablity. I'm originally from yorkshire in England which means I'm tight fisted and like my skis to last at least a couple of seasons!

Cheers for any input.
 
The moment PB&J might be perfect, I rented them for half the season two years ago, and they are stable enough for harder conditions, and super poppy/playful.
 
That actually reminds me - I tried looking on the moment website last night to checkout the PB&J based on a post on here - but the website is so shit on the mobile that you can't actually have a look at the skis becuase of the cart hovering above everything.

Will have a look now I'm on my PC - hopefully there is still a NZ dealer.
 
14140086:Bened_notnil said:
The moment PB&J might be perfect, I rented them for half the season two years ago, and they are stable enough for harder conditions, and super poppy/playful.
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How much do you weigh? :D
 
I second the PB&J recommendation. ARV 96Ti could also work — basically a slightly stronger, more damp version of the one you skied. I think the SFB would feel very unstable to you if the ARV 96 didn't feel stable enough, and I'd say the same for the Bent Chet 100 and probably the Soul Rider 97.

When you skied the ARV 96, which length did you use and what was "scary" about them? E.g., where the tips getting knocked side to side, were you folding them and ending up "going over the handlebars," was edge hold the issue, etc.?

(and FWIW, if the reviewer really knows what they're doing, the usefulness of their reviews shouldn't be affected by how much they weigh, how tall they are, etc. There are a lot of objective elements of ski performance that you can decipher regardless of your size, as long as you're able to compare skis to others and accurately communicate the differences.)
 
14140116:patagonialuke said:
I second the PB&J recommendation. ARV 96Ti could also work — basically a slightly stronger, more damp version of the one you skied. I think the SFB would feel very unstable to you if the ARV 96 didn't feel stable enough, and I'd say the same for the Bent Chet 100 and probably the Soul Rider 97.

When you skied the ARV 96, which length did you use and what was "scary" about them? E.g., where the tips getting knocked side to side, were you folding them and ending up "going over the handlebars," was edge hold the issue, etc.?

(and FWIW, if the reviewer really knows what they're doing, the usefulness of their reviews shouldn't be affected by how much they weigh, how tall they are, etc. There are a lot of objective elements of ski performance that you can decipher regardless of your size, as long as you're able to compare skis to others and accurately communicate the differences.)
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Great response thank you!

ARV96 - When I got speed, they were chattering and felt very bouncy on the firm snow whereas the ones I currently use (and performance racing ones) would cut through the snow (I hope that makes sense). So in general I felt like I had less contact with the snow. I believe I was using the 177, and I was amazed by how nimble they were as I am used to riding 165 ish length skis.

Appreicate your thoughts on the reviewers, but I guess with my limited experience I don't know how flex, chamber, rocker etc would affect me yet which is a big part of my issue.

Most reviews for ARV96 TI class them as "great for charging" but I was unsure if they would be such a strong for me with my weight for example.

I had a quick chat with some PB&J rep on the online chat and he recommended the PB&J as he is a similar weight, but what length would I get - I was thinking 182 but they are out of stock. Boo. I am liking all the recommendations for moment skis on these forums - they seem to be held in high regard. Free shipping to NZ too which I can't argue with either.

- Moment PB&J

- K2 Poacher

- Liberity Helix 98

- Black Ops 98

- Volkl Revolt 95

- Faction Prodigy?
 
It's probably worth mentioning that I very rarely get into deep powder so that doesn't need to be a concern.
 
14140198:BigPurpleSkiSuit said:
I'd seriously take a look at some of the stuff ON3P does. They make a big, durable, burly, yet playful ski.
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Having looked around for reviews for the PB&J - the ON3P Kartel seems like a good contender - problem is getting some into NZ.
 
14140126:Moffmo said:
Great response thank you!

ARV96 - When I got speed, they were chattering and felt very bouncy on the firm snow whereas the ones I currently use (and performance racing ones) would cut through the snow (I hope that makes sense). So in general I felt like I had less contact with the snow. I believe I was using the 177, and I was amazed by how nimble they were as I am used to riding 165 ish length skis.

Appreicate your thoughts on the reviewers, but I guess with my limited experience I don't know how flex, chamber, rocker etc would affect me yet which is a big part of my issue.

Most reviews for ARV96 TI class them as "great for charging" but I was unsure if they would be such a strong for me with my weight for example.

I had a quick chat with some PB&J rep on the online chat and he recommended the PB&J as he is a similar weight, but what length would I get - I was thinking 182 but they are out of stock. Boo. I am liking all the recommendations for moment skis on these forums - they seem to be held in high regard. Free shipping to NZ too which I can't argue with either.

- Moment PB&J

- K2 Poacher

- Liberity Helix 98

- Black Ops 98

- Volkl Revolt 95

- Faction Prodigy?
Click to expand...

Got it, that helps.

I think the ARV 96Ti could work, though based on my experience, what you're describing sounds like it comes down more to shape, rather than weight or stiffness. I find that the ARV 96's slightly more tapered shape is more prone to getting knocked around than something like the PB&J, or the ski that I think could work really well, the 181 cm Dynastar Menace 98.

The Menace 98's shape is pretty traditional, but it also has a pretty deep, yet subtle tip rocker line and a pretty symmetrical flex, so it carves really well and can "slice" through the snow kinda like a traditional carving ski, but it still feels very playful. And it's a pretty damp ski, which helps in the stability department. If you go that route, I'd mount it around -6 cm from true center so that you can ski it with both a directional and more centered stance.

The Jeffrey 96 or Woodsman 96 could also work really well for you, if you're able to get them in NZ. Vs. the PB&J, the Jeffrey / Woodsman are more damp and stable, but a bit more sluggish / heavier in the air. I'd go Jeffrey the more you care about freestyle performance, and Woodsman the more you want to be able to drive this ski through the shovels with a forward stance.

I can't speak to the Poacher, Revolt, or Prodigy 2. The Black Ops is definitely stiff enough for you, but consequently, I think it'd feel pretty punishing / demanding. The Helix 98 could also work, though your comments about the ARV 96 have me worried that the fairly lightweight Helix might not feel stable enough.
 
14140293:patagonialuke said:
Got it, that helps.

I think the ARV 96Ti could work, though based on my experience, what you're describing sounds like it comes down more to shape, rather than weight or stiffness. I find that the ARV 96's slightly more tapered shape is more prone to getting knocked around than something like the PB&J, or the ski that I think could work really well, the 181 cm Dynastar Menace 98.

The Menace 98's shape is pretty traditional, but it also has a pretty deep, yet subtle tip rocker line and a pretty symmetrical flex, so it carves really well and can "slice" through the snow kinda like a traditional carving ski, but it still feels very playful. And it's a pretty damp ski, which helps in the stability department. If you go that route, I'd mount it around -6 cm from true center so that you can ski it with both a directional and more centered stance.

The Jeffrey 96 or Woodsman 96 could also work really well for you, if you're able to get them in NZ. Vs. the PB&J, the Jeffrey / Woodsman are more damp and stable, but a bit more sluggish / heavier in the air. I'd go Jeffrey the more you care about freestyle performance, and Woodsman the more you want to be able to drive this ski through the shovels with a forward stance.

I can't speak to the Poacher, Revolt, or Prodigy 2. The Black Ops is definitely stiff enough for you, but consequently, I think it'd feel pretty punishing / demanding. The Helix 98 could also work, though your comments about the ARV 96 have me worried that the fairly lightweight Helix might not feel stable enough.
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Thanks again Luke - very comprehesive reply!

I really like the sound of the on3p skis - but I'm going to have to rule them out as just getting them shipped out here + duty makes them almost 1.5x more expensive than the moments. Hopefully in the future they can find some dedicated NZ dealers!! (Maybe next time I take a trip to America I'll pick some up eh!)

I do like the sound of the PB&J and Menace 98, they both seems to tick all the boxes. The Menace is probably easier to get in NZ but I haven't found any shops with them in stock yet.

So at least I am down to 2 skis now - will be reading/watching lots of reviews over the next couple of days and keeping an eye out for any deals to see if it helps me make my decision.

For anyone that has experience riding either of these ski's - how "catchy" are they when you ride switch - just another criteria to help push me to towards one ski over the other lol :)
 
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