Recommended Ski Height for Park

A

atownkingz69

New member
I'm 5'11, riding 171s (Armada AR6s). Height feels a little small and I'm looking for a softer, more buttery park ski for hitting rails/doing switch ups, but also want a ski that'll perform well on medium-large jumps and is light enough to do spins. My all-mtn skis are 185s (Nordica Soul Riders), which feel a bit long for park skis and heavy for spins. Was wondering what height I should aim to target and what skis (was thinking Faction Prodigys or Line Chronics).
 
It depends a lot on the ski itself, such as shape and weight distribution. I am 5'6 and ride 171s or 173s. I couldn't imagine riding shorter skis and enjoying them nearly as much. As far as your 185s seeming heavy for spinning, well duh they're Nordicas. The Prodigys and Chronics have a lot less swing weight afaik. You'll get used to the length and then embrace it. The extra stability and speed will more than make up for the slight amount of extra effort to get them around, which has more to do with technique than the skis.
 
My skis are 3-4 inches taller than me and I don’t notice it because they are rockered. They aren’t light skis tho. I’m the same height and ski a 186 magnus. Get something 180-190 with rocker for butters and you’ll be golden
 
It's all preference, most people will shit on you if you don't ride the longest park skis possible, but 170-180 is probably fine for you. A slightly smaller ski might feel easier to spin/do tricks on but in the end, it wont make a huge difference as soon as you're used to them.
 
14263518:ReturnToMonkey said:
It depends a lot on the ski itself, such as shape and weight distribution. I am 5'6 and ride 171s or 173s. I couldn't imagine riding shorter skis and enjoying them nearly as much. As far as your 185s seeming heavy for spinning, well duh they're Nordicas. The Prodigys and Chronics have a lot less swing weight afaik. You'll get used to the length and then embrace it. The extra stability and speed will more than make up for the slight amount of extra effort to get them around, which has more to do with technique than the skis.
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Thanks, really helpful and appreciate the advice.
 
14263597:MaimHelp said:
My skis are 3-4 inches taller than me and I don’t notice it because they are rockered. They aren’t light skis tho. I’m the same height and ski a 186 magnus. Get something 180-190 with rocker for butters and you’ll be golden
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Yeah I have heard similar from local ski shops I've gone to recently as well. Appreciate the advice.
 
14263622:eheath said:
It's all preference, most people will shit on you if you don't ride the longest park skis possible, but 170-180 is probably fine for you. A slightly smaller ski might feel easier to spin/do tricks on but in the end, it wont make a huge difference as soon as you're used to them.
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main difference is he will look like a dork with short skis
 
14263680:pinkcamo1000 said:
main difference is he will look like a dork with short skis
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170 isnt short, most brands dont make a ski longer than 180, stop being a douche.
 
It's all personal preference, but 171 isn't too short for a park ski. Some pros Andri Ragettli, purposely use skis which are short for their height. At the extreme end, there's some old edits of Henrik doing crazy tricks on snow blades.
 
topic:atownkingz69 said:
I'm 5'11, riding 171s (Armada AR6s). Height feels a little small and I'm looking for a softer, more buttery park ski for hitting rails/doing switch ups, but also want a ski that'll perform well on medium-large jumps and is light enough to do spins. My all-mtn skis are 185s (Nordica Soul Riders), which feel a bit long for park skis and heavy for spins. Was wondering what height I should aim to target and what skis (was thinking Faction Prodigys or Line Chronics).
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181 for the win
 
14263991:sams15 said:
damn, you must be a big guy. I heard that they may be making 189 for next season
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188 cm tall, 200s would only be 12 cm taller than me, so not that silly actually
 
Short will be more nimble but won’t help with landings that aren’t perfect. The reduced length will mean you don’t have the support if you’re too fore or aft on landing (aka run the risk of falling on your face or ass) but it will teach you to ski more balanced.

Ive got some lime Chronics. I’d say get the 178 or 185 depending on what you want. The thing is that the Chronics feel pretty true to length but they’re very light and the tips and tails are soft. So, even though they have a long effective edge end only early rise - they still ski a little shorter with the forgiveness of the tip and tail.

I’ve also had AR6s and Armada T Halls so full camber armadas. These Chronics will give you the nice camber profile that you’re used to but a nice smooth flex in tips and tails. So, you get the pop but a nice landing platform as the soft ends combine with the camber. Hard to explain but man I love it. Super fun skis. Nose butters are not difficult. Tail butters are not as easy.

For reference, I’m usually a guy who prefers traditional camber in the park.
 
14264569:BradFiAusNzCoCa said:
Short will be more nimble but won’t help with landings that aren’t perfect. The reduced length will mean you don’t have the support if you’re too fore or aft on landing (aka run the risk of falling on your face or ass) but it will teach you to ski more balanced.

Ive got some lime Chronics. I’d say get the 178 or 185 depending on what you want. The thing is that the Chronics feel pretty true to length but they’re very light and the tips and tails are soft. So, even though they have a long effective edge end only early rise - they still ski a little shorter with the forgiveness of the tip and tail.

I’ve also had AR6s and Armada T Halls so full camber armadas. These Chronics will give you the nice camber profile that you’re used to but a nice smooth flex in tips and tails. So, you get the pop but a nice landing platform as the soft ends combine with the camber. Hard to explain but man I love it. Super fun skis. Nose butters are not difficult. Tail butters are not as easy.

For reference, I’m usually a guy who prefers traditional camber in the park.
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Thank you, really appreciate the advice - very helpful!
 
I’ve been riding park for 1/2 a season. My best trick is 180 off small medium jump. :/ and .. I’m always by far the oldest guy in the park at 38 yrs old.

I’m sure I’ll get blasted. I’m 5-8” I just ordered 155cm honey badgers. They come to right above my chin. Will this be good to progress for 1 year?

ive rid 169 fugatives and 149 sprayers. I really felt like I could do more with the 149s, also had more fun all over the hill as a beginner. Also I’m not really hitting large jumps except for just some straight jumps.
 
155 is really short. You’re going to lose so much stability. 149 is insanely short. I’m not a fan of telling people to get huge skis (like is popular advice here) but rather a ski that fits someone’s ability. But 155 and 149 for 5’8” is so short. I’m that height and I can’t even imagine.

What did you think of the 169s?

14270652:KentuckyHills said:
I’ve been riding park for 1/2 a season. My best trick is 180 off small medium jump. :/ and .. I’m always by far the oldest guy in the park at 38 yrs old.

I’m sure I’ll get blasted. I’m 5-8” I just ordered 155cm honey badgers. They come to right above my chin. Will this be good to progress for 1 year?

ive rid 169 fugatives and 149 sprayers. I really felt like I could do more with the 149s, also had more fun all over the hill as a beginner. Also I’m not really hitting large jumps except for just some straight jumps.
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They were my first twin tip park ski that I bought off eBay.. 2007 k2 fugatives. I was basically trying to do a 180 as my first trick and felt like I couldn’t get them around bc they were too heavy. But looking back this Is also probably bc I just started. lol yea I know those 149s i use sometimes are too short but I feel like I have so much more fun in them. You think maybe the 166 badgers would give me a Enough room to grow for 2nd season park skier?

14270653:BradFiAusNzCoCa said:
155 is really short. You’re going to lose so much stability. 149 is insanely short. I’m not a fan of telling people to get huge skis (like is popular advice here) but rather a ski that fits someone’s ability. But 155 and 149 for 5’8” is so short. I’m that height and I can’t even imagine.

What did you think of the 169s?
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I'm 185cm (like 6'1-6'2) and I ride 185cm Chronics they're the best couldn't ask for anything more. They're playful, fast, works super well all mountain and park, both butters go easy. 100% would recommend.
 
How many seasons do you have skiing park?

14270706:din110 said:
I'm 185cm (like 6'1-6'2) and I ride 185cm Chronics they're the best couldn't ask for anything more. They're playful, fast, works super well all mountain and park, both butters go easy. 100% would recommend.
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