Ski beta for a clueless Aussie

J

jimit

New member
ok so I've only skied in 'straya (read: hard icey shite, no powder)... buut I'm heading to Canmore/Banff for the winter real soon & I *need* some help about what skis to get.

how fat are ppl's ski's in the Rockies? how fat/stiff do they have to be to avoid sinking in the snow?

I'm 186cm & 72kg (umm, 6'2" & 158lb I think).

Not really interested in skiing parks, want to get better at big lines, ski everywhere, all conditions type thing. Looking for an alpine touring set-up so I can go back-country also.

 
You could pick up a pair of volkl explosifs in banff for fairly cheap. or some t-rocks. umm maybe armada ants if you want to buy new. when you get to banff just brose around the shops and ask what they have for their fatter and a bit stiffer selection of used or new skis.
 
wow, u must be tall and skinny if your 6'2" and 150 lbs. but eitherway, i would say a ski thats atleast 90 mm underfoot and mid 180s in length would be a good choice
 
I'd go with a 185-189cm in length. You probably want to get an all mountain ski. One which is great for all the conditions the rockies can throw at ya. Skis id recommend is the rossignol scratch bc in a 185, the K2 seth pistol in a 189, the Line prophet 100. I have a feeling you will get on pow day and be hooked on deep snow and fat skis, so maybe a K2 Maidens, or Armada JP. vs. Julien. I would not suggest the Armada ANT, its a stiff 191, and unless you are a super strong skier, or a a bigger guy 180lbs+, I wouldnt recommend. The JP is close to the same size but alot softer. When you get into banff try and demo a few pairs of fatter skis and see what ya like. Usually shops will make you rent em for a day but if you buy em they will put the price of the rental towards the purchase.
 
public enemies will do if your on a budget, and i wouldn't suggest the Ant's or JP Juliens, they are probaly a bit too wide, and expensive for just resort skiing and you won't need a ski that wide unless you go catskiing or something. i would say ARV's or seth pistols.
 
My Seths are pretty good all mountain. their waist is close to 100mm 98 i think, so they float very well in the deep stuff, thy cut through any crud, and are even fun on groomers. Go with the 189's. If you're going to be doing some switch riding, have the bindings mounted forward a few cm, mine ar at +5, +4-5 should be good.

I've heard good things about the ARV, i'm pretty sure they're stiffer then the Seths, and their waist is 95mm at 185cm.

Whatever you choose, i wouldn't go with anything fatter than a 100mm, they day's where that would come in handy are too few and far between. anything from 90mm to 100mm will give you enough float on the powder days, and still allow for all mountain versatility.

http://www.armadaskis.com/product/skis/ARV.php

http://k2skis.com/k2factoryteam/ski.asp?productid=20
 


awesome people, cheers for the tips! muchly appreciated. catch you on the hill (6 sleeps till I leave!)
 
The arv's are really really soft. They're not meant for skiing fast and hard but more for jibbing around in a little bit of pow. For the guy who's coming: 189 Seth's would be a perfect ski for you.
 
buddy if your looking for a touring setup, look at the g3 reverends or your better getting the barons cause you can take them back to straya and still ski them there. you should also get fritschi freeride bindings or the naxo 01 tour bindings as well because they're strong enough to hold up to the resorts as well as sneak off to do day trips in the bc. as for length it depends on what your skiing ability is and remember just because your a decent skier in aus doesn't mean your decent here. kinda like a decent canadian surfer in aus. your best bet is to cruise around to the shops like monods, ultimate, glacier shop as well as mountain magic in banff
 
yep I'm figuring on Freeride bindings or the NX21 (people seem to be saying these are a big improvement on the earlier Naxo models). Prob look at Scarpa denalis or Garmont Adrenalines for boots (I'm big into climbing as well, have spent far more time in the mountains climbing than skiing so far).

I was under the impression that G3 made mostly tele-specific skis, & that tele skis aren't so good with alpine or AT bindings - because of the differences between weight distribution & dynamics from the different styles.... so tele skis tend to be much softer? Is this not the case?

hear you about skiing abilities, I'm only really an intermediate skier, & am counting on going back to being a complete bumbly newbie in Canada. Hopefully 5 months of skiing with change that though!

Not so fussed if skis aren't suited to Australian conditions. In reality I will ski more days in a season in Canada than I will in 2 or 3 years in Aust - I figure its more important for skis to suit Rockies conditions.

 
dont you think thats too much ski for him if hes that light? 90 underfoot is good all mountain like curtting across groomers to head back to chair but....never mind mid 180's is fine
 
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