Powder's 2008 Buyer's Guide

CMF

CMF

Active member
Why can't they include some kind of ratings system like Freeskier does? I got it a couple days ago and all the reviews sound like they got them from the companies' websites. I geuss I'll just have to wait until September.
 
cause its not an actuall guide...its more of a pic with a description with the ski...plus i dont think they actually test them like freeskier does
 
It would be impossible to test every ski Powder reviews without having some lame Ski Magazine group of testers. I'm pretty sure those guys cover the topsheets of the skis in order to prevent bias.

I agree that Powder needs to provide more realistic reviews of the skis, but it's probably too damn hard to review all of them properly. I love Buyer's Guides, but it's hard to make the format original. At least they tried to do something different and authentic this year by asking all the shops from around the country their favorite skis--makes it more legitimate since they know they can't have an accurate description for each ski.
 
yeah i met some of those testers too. they are bunch old farts with tie ins. bunch of goons looking for some stiffness in between tendy turns.
 
WORD, it's also subject to the skill level/preference/style of those testing the skis...just demo them yourself for the best review.
 
due ski tests usually consist of a range of skiier types/body types, each of these people gives their rating of the ski and then each score is averaged to the official rating. yes it would be better to try them yourself but who the fuck has that much time? plus their are almost no places to demo a wide range of brands in PA or other less established ski areas
 
it's all about the eastern europeans coming into the shop with Skipress under their arm! this is how those convsations went for me:

Customer: "do you have this ski?"

Me: "what kind of a skier are you?"

C: "it not matter. this is ski i want!"

I look at the ski and it's an expert carving ski and I can tell the customer does not have the ability

M: "ok, why do you like this ski?"

C: "this magazine says its best ski on market for expert skier"

M: "where do you ski?"

C: "mostly Blue Mountain"

M: "do you ski down elevator shaft?" (steep expert run)

C: "no that is too steep for me"

M: "then i won't sell you that ski"

C: "then i go somewhere else that will"

M: "please by all means. if someone will sell you the wrong product i wish you the best"

 
its kinda the opposite for me i go into a shop and they think im a worse skier than i am they are like "well maybe you could try a junior ski" and basically i just say fuck that ive been skiing for 10 years or however llong
 
Sounds like great advertising to me. For people on NS who follow skiing year round a guide won't help. . . demos are more helpful to find a ski that fits your style. As for the folk who walk in with a mag under their arm ready to buy, that's exactly who the mags are after anyways. Rich skiers who can afford to buy the newest ski at full retail prices and who will rely on the "expert opinion" of the guide.

Nonetheless, I hope we can get our skis in a guide next year - crazy exposure.
 
the real answer is... because if youre buying anything but lines or heads for this year youre an idiot
 
Wow, your boss must be real impressed by your "idealism" that loses him sales and pisses off customers.

Cool story for impressing kids on Newschoolers though.

Business is business kid, if all they want to buy is the wrong ski, then sell it to them.

If your story is word for word correct, then in essence you are fucking over your boss for the sake of some idiot tourist, (or maybe for your own ego?)
 
hahaha great little attempt at putting me in my place.

as for your little comment about my boss, yes he actually is impressed by my "idealism". does it lose him sales? yes. does he care? no! welcome to ski retail my friend. a land where shops care very little about making a single sale to some bozo that will buy once from you and go somewhere else next time because all he cares about is price. what shops want is a relationship with a family that will keep coming back year after year outfitting racers with new skis, clothing, etc...

business is business? fuck no! to put it in perspective, if i were to sell the ski to that customer and he went out and hated the ski, what would he do? he would bitch immensely! would he blame himself for buying the ski? no. would he blame the magazine for reviewing the ski as they did? no. they would blame the shop and their employees that apparently in his eyes did not know what they were talking about. of course he would leave out the fact that he went against our recomendations. with word of mouth being a major influencer for peoples' buying habits why should i sacrifice the store's reputation and my own by outfitting this guy with the wrong product even though he wanted it?

"cool story for impressing kids on Newschoolers?"

all i have to say to that is "eat a dick!" i really don't give a shit about what the kids on newschoolers think of me. this is the internet. oh and by the way, im not exactly a "kid" im going on 25 moron and i know a lot more of this industry than you think.

 
very true. My family has probly bought 15 pairs of skis from the same shop and 7 bikes because of solid advice and good treatment. My mom runs a ski program and has sent them hundreds of customers. Ski shops make money from loyal customers that come back every year and tell their friends to come back.
 
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