Skis designed for girls: do you care?

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Hey ladies,

Just posted on the 2016/2017 ON3P Thread in Gear Talk and thought I'd bring the conversation to Lady Gabber as well.

I'm trying to decide on what ski to invest in for next season, and am torn between a dedicated touring ski (ON3P Steeple) and a dedicated Female ski (ON3P Jessie).

I haven't ever been interested in buying a female-specific ski model from any brand, ever. For some reason, the idea that the ski has been designed with a woman in mind rather then a specific function (park, touring, etc) just turns me off.

Have I been super ignorant this whole time? And is it about time that I considered a ski that has been designed for a woman's physiology? And why do I hold this opinion anyway?

Would love to hear your thoughts.

X
 
Personally I like a longer sidecut so the Jessie is a disappointment to me.

Just because women are smaller doesn't mean they want to ski slower and make shorter and more frequent turns. I don't know when ski manufacturers will finally wrap their heads around this concept, but until they do I will stick with men's skis that allow me to blast turns like this:https://gfycat.com/PositiveHonoredGull.
 
I think its cool that they are making women specific skis. since I am short I can rarely find mens skis in my size and I dont like going for the kids model since I feel I lose quality, so the womens skis have my size and have the quality of the mens. However, I dont like how companies make the designs super girly with flowers and pink all over. For a womens park ski I like the Armada arw but they also have a nice all mountain
 
So I haven't had the opportunity to ride the Jessies yet (but I'm going for it in a couple weeks when I'm back out at hood!), but here's my .02.

My main ski is the 14/15 ON3P Jeffery 114.

I'm picky about what women's skis I'd ride, but I know I would trust Coalition Snow, and ON3P. I've ridden Coalition's Abyss and it can charge, just as I'm confident the Jessies can as well.

You're not ignorant, because good women's skis are a new thing, and there's a select few companies that get it these days and don't make a shitty women's ski anymore.

back to on3p and your choices:

Here are your options, basically.

Steeple vs (no on3p women's alternative)

If you want a ski specifically for touring, forget the Jessie, and get the Steeple.

Jessie 86 vs Magnus (new version Filthy Rich)

Jessie 100 vs Kartel 98*

Jessie 114 vs Kartel 112*

*I don't know the exact lengths of the new Kartels so I'm going off what I remember/ previous years

There's nothing wrong with riding a mens, or women's ski in this case. They're both going to charge, with the Jessies being slightly softer, slightly different sidecut, and different graphic. Go with your instinct but I don't think you'll be disappointed with either. And I'll do my best to check back in when I try the Jessies
 
13705599:nsfairy said:
So I haven't had the opportunity to ride the Jessies yet (but I'm going for it in a couple weeks when I'm back out at hood!), but here's my .02.

My main ski is the 14/15 ON3P Jeffery 114.

I'm picky about what women's skis I'd ride, but I know I would trust Coalition Snow, and ON3P. I've ridden Coalition's Abyss and it can charge, just as I'm confident the Jessies can as well.

You're not ignorant, because good women's skis are a new thing, and there's a select few companies that get it these days and don't make a shitty women's ski anymore.

back to on3p and your choices:

Here are your options, basically.

Steeple vs (no on3p women's alternative)

If you want a ski specifically for touring, forget the Jessie, and get the Steeple.

Jessie 86 vs Magnus (new version Filthy Rich)

Jessie 100 vs Kartel 98*

Jessie 114 vs Kartel 112*

*I don't know the exact lengths of the new Kartels so I'm going off what I remember/ previous years

There's nothing wrong with riding a mens, or women's ski in this case. They're both going to charge, with the Jessies being slightly softer, slightly different sidecut, and different graphic. Go with your instinct but I don't think you'll be disappointed with either. And I'll do my best to check back in when I try the Jessies
Click to expand...

Badass. Thanks for this Erica, super helpful and much appreciated. NS is the best!
 
This is a great thread! Will someone help me find the right size pow ski for me? Currently my park skis (Line Celebs) are 148cm and my pow skis (Moment Bella) are 152cm. My Moments feel pretty long for me already but now i'm wondering if I should go longer and charge harder....

I'm 5ft tall (155cm) and ski all conditions and every sort of terrain.

I'm scared that with a longer ski i'll start to go backseat though.....What do you ladies ride and how do you size your skis based on ability?
 
13705888:dkirse said:
This is a great thread! Will someone help me find the right size pow ski for me? Currently my park skis (Line Celebs) are 148cm and my pow skis (Moment Bella) are 152cm. My Moments feel pretty long for me already but now i'm wondering if I should go longer and charge harder....

I'm 5ft tall (155cm) and ski all conditions and every sort of terrain.

I'm scared that with a longer ski i'll start to go backseat though.....What do you ladies ride and how do you size your skis based on ability?
Click to expand...

So, I'm pretty much 5'9" (175 cm??) so idk how much this will help.

I have a pair of 172 4FRNT Madonna's for learning on. They're short, and I can spin em.

Once I have tricks, and I just want to charge around, I jump up to 181 ON3P Kartel's.

That's a jump, nearly 10cm of added length. But- on my 172 if I get pretty forward and aggressive I'm bucking frontwards and over my skis.

My pow skis are the 4FRNT Hoji 179, and honestly they're the most comfortable. I don't find myself wanting to go back, or feeling like I'll be bucked.

I think a lot of it comes form trying different sizes. Ski lengths aren't consistent across the board. What's a 172 in one company isn't a 172 for another. I usually start in small size changes and go until I find one I can't really ride. I'll back off from there and sit on the one I think is perfect.

EDIT: so I can avoid double posting:

what shape do you want in a pow ski? I'd look at a 155 if you feel your a strong intermediate to advanced skier. I personally prefer my low skis to be a little longer, as I have a surfy style and have a reverse camber ski.

**This post was edited on Jul 19th 2016 at 8:16:39pm
 
13705888:dkirse said:
This is a great thread! Will someone help me find the right size pow ski for me? Currently my park skis (Line Celebs) are 148cm and my pow skis (Moment Bella) are 152cm. My Moments feel pretty long for me already but now i'm wondering if I should go longer and charge harder....

I'm 5ft tall (155cm) and ski all conditions and every sort of terrain.

I'm scared that with a longer ski i'll start to go backseat though.....What do you ladies ride and how do you size your skis based on ability?
Click to expand...

I'm so much taller so it's hard for me to put in input. but also keep in mind you can go longer on a rockered vs camber ski because the rocker is going to ride like a shorter ski because of the early rise takes off contact edges
 
13706041:safarisam said:
So, I'm pretty much 5'9" (175 cm??) so idk how much this will help.

I have a pair of 172 4FRNT Madonna's for learning on. They're short, and I can spin em.

Once I have tricks, and I just want to charge around, I jump up to 181 ON3P Kartel's.

That's a jump, nearly 10cm of added length. But- on my 172 if I get pretty forward and aggressive I'm bucking frontwards and over my skis.

My pow skis are the 4FRNT Hoji 179, and honestly they're the most comfortable. I don't find myself wanting to go back, or feeling like I'll be bucked.

I think a lot of it comes form trying different sizes. Ski lengths aren't consistent across the board. What's a 172 in one company isn't a 172 for another. I usually start in small size changes and go until I find one I can't really ride. I'll back off from there and sit on the one I think is perfect.

EDIT: so I can avoid double posting:

what shape do you want in a pow ski? I'd look at a 155 if you feel your a strong intermediate to advanced skier. I personally prefer my low skis to be a little longer, as I have a surfy style and have a reverse camber ski.

**This post was edited on Jul 19th 2016 at 8:16:39pm
Click to expand...

That was a ton of info! I'm definitely into trying out different shapes and sizes! My Moment skis have a mustache rocker and I really do love the way the ski rides, but i don't think it gives me the style I want.

I'm looking into getting Armada VJJ 2.0 155 but I'm worried about the length....I really just want a SUPER wide playful ski to surf around.

Other than that, I'm looking into sizing up in my park skis as well, maybe like a 10cm jump like you said? I was hoping to start riding a 161cm ski so that I can buy from most companies. Often times the only skis that accommodate me and my size are youth skis which are (more likely than not) lesser quality than women's or men's skis.

Buying skis is always so frustrating for someone my size hahaha
 
13706062:nsfairy said:
I'm so much taller so it's hard for me to put in input. but also keep in mind you can go longer on a rockered vs camber ski because the rocker is going to ride like a shorter ski because of the early rise takes off contact edges
Click to expand...

That toooootally helps! Thanks girl! I'll look into more rockered skis. I was itching to try out Moment's Hot Mess 162 since they added a triple camber technology to it but i don't think camber is what i want....
 
13706115:dkirse said:
That was a ton of info! I'm definitely into trying out different shapes and sizes! My Moment skis have a mustache rocker and I really do love the way the ski rides, but i don't think it gives me the style I want.

I'm looking into getting Armada VJJ 2.0 155 but I'm worried about the length....I really just want a SUPER wide playful ski to surf around.

Other than that, I'm looking into sizing up in my park skis as well, maybe like a 10cm jump like you said? I was hoping to start riding a 161cm ski so that I can buy from most companies. Often times the only skis that accommodate me and my size are youth skis which are (more likely than not) lesser quality than women's or men's skis.

Buying skis is always so frustrating for someone my size hahaha
Click to expand...

A reverse camber (or full rocker) ski is super survey, and makes a big length jump more manageable!!

the VJJ wasn't for me, but I have several friends (and my little sister) who love it. The volkl one W comes in a 157 I believe and is a pretty popular wide ski as well. I had the Volkl Kikus out in Tahoe and they slayed. I'd also look at the Line Pandora 110!!! It was one of the most popular skis in my shop, and they have a wide range of lengths. (I can't remember them off hand, but I know I put a few short ladies on em') K2 also had some shorter pow skis. Liberty makes a fat women's pow ski that comes Ina 157 or under I think as well.

Youth skis often times have different cored and weight distribution that a women's or men's ski.
 
I'm a tall woman so there aren't any women-specific skis long enough for me (I just picked up a pair of 190cm SFBs)
 
13705599:nsfairy said:
So I haven't had the opportunity to ride the Jessies yet (but I'm going for it in a couple weeks when I'm back out at hood!), but here's my .02.

And I'll do my best to check back in when I try the Jessies
Click to expand...

good news I rode them and will post my review real sooN!
 
Hi there,

I helped design the Jessies, along with a team of 2 other girls.

(Here's a write up about the three of us and our backgrounds:

https://shop.on3pskis.com/blogs/news/41723265-hey-ladies-introducing-our-2016-womens-line)

I have the 100s that I rode every day last season, and I love them. Unlike what was said earlier, the sidecut isn't meant for small ladies that make small turns. I rode mine so hard, and I never felt like they were dainty. We took a lot into consideration when designing, and I think they're a really great all mountain ski. Skiing daily at Jackson Hole, but coming from a park skier in Ohio background, they're awesome. They do great even in deep snow, are still jibby enough to pop off a rock or drop and I even take 'em in the park from time to time. And I can even look like that gif in the first post while skiing them. They're a very flow-y ski. They're not meant to charge down a face in AK.

They also ended up being my touring ski. I love them, but they're heavy af for that purpose. I'm still going to use them as my touring setup/everyday setup (but I also got a pair of the Jessie 108 that I'll use on deeper days inbounds or hiking).

So it depends on what you're looking for. If you're wanting to invest in a sole touring set-up I'd say go for it, but if you're just looking for a new everyday setup I'd take a chance with the Jessie's.

Feel free to ask if you have any other questions!
 
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