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Cage Match Comparison 2017 Blizzard Peacemaker vs 2017 J Skis The Metal

Philpug

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Yes, even at 49 years, 48 months, I still get jibby.

Screen Shot 2016-12-05 at 1.56.57 PM.png

Hmmm, do the kids still say “jibby” ... or did they ever say it? Not sure, but either way, even in my advancing years. I still like to play in the park, hit a box, and throw a 3 (aka heli). Thanks to Jason Levinthal, we can do lots of fun stuff on skis because he had the bright idea of putting a tip on the back of the ski: now we can land and ski backward on purpose. Jason in his TedX talk said he was never in this for the money because, well, because IMHO he was being polite: every ski manufacturer who has ever offered a twin tip owes Jason a few bucks. (Which is a few bucks per ski that he will never see.) Fast forward to today: after selling Line Skis to K2, Jason took some time off and then started a new project, J Skis. He took what he knew in ski design and created a direct sales model to get his hand-signed skis straight to the consumer.

J Skis' participant in this cage match is The Metal. One word that cane to mind as soon as I got on these was playful, like a golden retriever puppy. Not only did they gravitate toward the park, but they wanted to hit every pile of snow and pop off every knoll; when they weren’t doing that, they were made beautiful round turns while up on edge.

From a sales and marketing standpoint, the Blizzard Peacemaker was never a huge success; it was was either considered the Gunsmoke's little brother or overshadowed by the sales juggernaut of the Bonafide. This is a shame because it is a worthy ski on its own merits. I know it is @Spencer’s favorite ski, a skier who has strong technical skills yet loves to tussle in trees and patch-skis every month in summer. The Peacemaker is a stronger ski than The Metal; they are both modes of skiing transportation, but where the Peacemaker is a mountain bike, the Metal is a skateboard.
  • Why choose The Metal? It's just damn playful. You want the whole mountain as your playground and you see everything is a feature. Take em for a ride.
  • Why choose the Peacemaker? You want a great all-mountain ski that is stable yet will play. It's a ski that takes you back to your youth or buys another season in the sun.
  • Other skis in the class: K2 Marksman, Line Sir Francis Bacon, Dynastar Slicer Factory.
 

NESkiBum

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Dec 8, 2015
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Hey Phil. Glad to see you got on the Metal to let us know how it skis. What size Peacemaker did you ski. What size would you suggest if I'm on a Bonafide 180 which is perfect for me? Is the 179 going to be long enough or do I need to go to the 186? I'm 5'9" - 185lbs skiing mainly in the Northeast with a trip or two out west each year.

On another note I have the Pinnacle 105's you suggested on the way. Can't wait to get on them. Now I guess I need to get rid of the 95's.
 
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Philpug

Philpug

Notorious P.U.G.
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Hey Phil. Glad to see you got on the Metal to let us know how it skis. What size Peacemaker did you ski. What size would you suggest if I'm on a Bonafide 180 which is perfect for me? Is the 179 going to be long enough or do I need to go to the 186? I'm 5'9" - 185lbs.
Depends on what you want it to do. I like the 179, doesn't feel short, it is playful in the trees. The 186 can open up and run some more.
 

Josh Matta

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Dec 21, 2015
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Hey Phil. Glad to see you got on the Metal to let us know how it skis. What size Peacemaker did you ski. What size would you suggest if I'm on a Bonafide 180 which is perfect for me? Is the 179 going to be long enough or do I need to go to the 186? I'm 5'9" - 185lbs skiing mainly in the Northeast with a trip or two out west each year.

On another note I have the Pinnacle 105's you suggested on the way. Can't wait to get on them. Now I guess I need to get rid of the 95's.

IMO

180 Bonafide = 186 Peace maker...

179 Peacemakers skis really short at least for me, its has basically no tail. . I could see having in in the slot I have my skis really short 177cm Soul riders which is playful skis that can do anything just never expect it be stable in broken snow. The Soul Rider does not ski as short.... IMo the Regulator would be better at that role from Blizzard, and if you can find a pair some 177cm "the ones" which is still blizzard best twin tip:P. Theinteresting thing about all of the blizzard twins is they are fairly stiff but skis fairly short for their sizes.

I need to borrow my buddies Metal for a couple runs to see what all the fuss is about. it is curious that the metal back ski is less burly than the non metal skis but it happens.
 

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