What skis do athletes on the FWT use?
- Thread starter ljackstar
- Start date
-eREKTion-
Active member
Depends who they're sponsored by, you just need a big stable ski for freeride.
patagonialuke
Active member
It varies a lot. Some are on stiff, heavy, directional skis like the old Dynastar Pro Rider, Blizzard Bodacious, Volkl Confession, etc. Others are on much lighter and more playful skis like the Armada ARV 116 JJ, Blizzard Rustler 11, Atomic Backland 117, etc. Just depends on each skier's style and their sponsors. Some choose to prioritize playfulness over stability so they can throw tricks easier and are willing to deal with the lack of stability. Others prioritize stability and are willing to deal with a ski that's not quite as easy to spin, not as balanced in the air, etc.
patagonialuke
Active member
13988363:ljackstar said:
Yeah, the pro-level riders have to hike up to the top of the line, but since it's just one hike, most would rather have a ski that's solid on the downhill rather than have one that's slightly lighter during that one hike.
-eREKTion-
Active member
13988363:ljackstar said:
The most they'll ever hike is ~1 hour, so very little thought is given to the skis on their back. If you watched Hakuba at all it should give you a good idea of the types of skis used by different riders. The guys taking the more playful lines (Markus Eder, THall, etc.) were on lighter more progressive skis like the Revolt 121, ARV, or the Rustler. The more directional riders were riding bigger heavier skis like the Bodacious or Pro Riders (I think Tabke was riding RX's). Freeride comps, despite all their faults, are sort of the wild west of skiing at the moment. You can be playful and flowy or chargy as fuck and still gun for the podium, so it's really about how you ride.
You should just buy the playful charger, the Moment Wildcat it'll do errrthing.
Denseclouds
Member
13988367:patagonialuke said:
^ This. They also will prioritize a regular downhill alpine binding compared to a tech touring binding
onenerdykid
Active member
For Atomic, the men are on Backland 117 skis, Ultra XTD 130 or Redster CS 130 boots, STH2 16 bindings. And Arianna uses the Bentchetler 120, Redster CS 110 boots, and STH2 16 bindings.
Re: Backland 117 skis- the 193 length is stiffer than the 186. I used the 193s this weekend and they were SO sick on bigger, more open faces but (for me) they were a handful in the trees. I think I will be sticking with the 186 as my tree ski.
Re: Backland 117 skis- the 193 length is stiffer than the 186. I used the 193s this weekend and they were SO sick on bigger, more open faces but (for me) they were a handful in the trees. I think I will be sticking with the 186 as my tree ski.
xxACIDTRIPxx
Active member
Billy Goats, Bibbies or Wrens would be my choice if I where to compete.
13988491:mvxri said:
Is it the right thing for me? I dunno probably not, but in the last 2 years I think I have gotten a lot better at skiing and watching the event last week got me hyped. In reality I'll probably just compete in the Lake Louise Big Mountain Challenge and I'll make up for my skiing in the lounge afterwords.
I nerded out and looked at last year's athletes when I was choosing a big boy ski. Most common ski was Rustler 11. Kore 117 was there 2 or 3 times, and there were also a couple of guys each on Dynstars and Atomics.
3 of the top 10 skied Rustlers...cool ski, but I bought Wildcats instead (mostly because they were a lighter version of the Black Crows Anima, which was the ski of last year's overall winner).
3 of the top 10 skied Rustlers...cool ski, but I bought Wildcats instead (mostly because they were a lighter version of the Black Crows Anima, which was the ski of last year's overall winner).
Cyanicenine
Member
13988506:Benny.310 said:
Is this a for real ski? I only see it mentioned on a TGR gear rumor thread. The Revolt 124 is just the Volkl Two renamed, which was a popular FWT ski when it came out, and still remains so with its new name (not sure why every voklk ski is just called the revolt now). I have a pair and I love them.