2023 Peak 104 and 110

[tomahawkins]

Some profile and rocker shots of my new 104s (@184) and 110s (@188). The rocker shots are decambered, the forward edge of the strap is the mount point.

Mass comes in at 2050g for the 104s and 2070g for the 110s.

Peak, nice packaging, BTW. Thanks for the note Andy.

 

[Tricia]

Not sure if you caught Chris Davenport's comments about the 110 in the interview but he seemed quite enamored.
Sharing video at the time stamp from the interview.

 

[Tricia]

BTW, I see they're leaned up against a boat. You know they're not water skis, right??

 

[Bad Bob]

They could work well as paddles.

 

[ski otter 2]

Not sure if you caught Chris Davenport's comments about the 110 in the interview but he seemed quite enamored.
Sharing video at the time stamp from the interview.

Thanks for this post, going right to the heart of it, in that interview, regarding the wider skis.

Chris was saying good stuff specifically about the 110, and right after, just to confuse things for me, Bode was saying more good stuff specifically about the 104SC, which really got to me. That ski, because it was for side country, "earn your turns" setup stuff, was not the resort ski, and was not on my radar when ordering. Gives me second thoughts, more to deal with. (I got enough skis already, for Heaven's sake.)

@tomahawkins, you were on the same wavelength as me: I ordered the same two skis, same lengths. So I'll be interested in how the 104 compares to the 104SC for sure. You are probably going to put Pivots on them. For me, it will be older marker demos or Schizos. (I gotta play with the mount point, and put others on them too.)

 

[tomahawkins]

BTW, I see they're leaned up against a boat. You know they're not water skis, right??

Wait...what?

 

[tomahawkins]

Not sure if you caught Chris Davenport's comments about the 110 in the interview but he seemed quite enamored.
Sharing video at the time stamp from the interview.

Yeah, I was planning the 104s to be my main goto with the 110s coming out only occasionally. But holding and flexing these skis, I think I may invert my strategy. Caveat, home mountain is Baker.

 

[tomahawkins]

@tomahawkins, you were on the same wavelength as me: I ordered the same two skis, same lengths. So I'll be interested in how the 104 compares to the 104SC for sure. You are probably going to put Pivots on them. For me, it will be older marker demos or Schizos. (I gotta play with the mount point, and put others on them too.)

This season I'm going to try something different. One pair (probably the 104s) I'll mount with Strive demos -- I'll loan 'em out to my friends and play Peak ambassador at my local hill. The other I'm going to try Tyrolia FreeFlex 16; I already have the 110mm brakes.

 

[ski otter 2]

That sounds pretty neat. It would be fun to see how they do with both.

Seems like the 98 and the 110 may be the ones closest to chargers (though what Bode said leads me to think the 104scs may be slalom type chargers, dunno). So the 110 might do well with the FreeFlexes.

So it depends a bit on how the 104s are compared to the 104sc.

 

[Tricia]

@jimtransition said he got on some 98s when Dav was in Portillo last week. I'd be interested to hear what he has to say.

 

[jimtransition]

@jimtransition said he got on some 98s when Dav was in Portillo last week. I'd be interested to hear what he has to say.

I enjoyed them! The 184 felt a bit small for my size and the conditions (slightly sun affected pow). I think they would be great for me on chalky snow and softer bumps.

 

[Quandary]

This season I'm going to try something different. One pair (probably the 104s) I'll mount with Strive demos -- I'll loan 'em out to my friends and play Peak ambassador at my local hill. The other I'm going to try Tyrolia FreeFlex 16; I already have the 110mm brakes.

If you ever make it down to Breck with those skis......

I have the DPS Foundation 106CTs in 185 mounted up with Strives. It would make for an interesting comparison.

 

[ski otter 2]

The 104s and 104sc have some conflicting things said about them on the Bode videos and Peak website, a bit confusing.

At one point Bode says he was excited to work on the 98sc and 104sc because they were "side country," and thus didn't need to be good at carving. That freed him to change things more with those skis.

Also, at one point on the website, someone writes there is a large contrast between the carving of the 98 and the surfy feel of the 104.

Now, in these latest videos, Bode is saying that the 104sc turned out to be an amazing carver, just leaping across the carved turn with rebound like an FIS SL ski.

Not sure I can integrate all these things. Will have to just see what happens, I guess.

 

[ScottB]

As great a skier as Bode is, as an orator he does not always put things in their proper context, so they can be understood properly. I thought he was talking about the 104 ski at first in the video, but on my second listen he did specifically say 104sc. Hopefully the 104 performs similarly, but maybe not. Bode did say the 104sc far exceeded his expectations, so its hard to gauge the sc against the regular 104, as his expectations could have been a lot lower for the sc. The 104 could be the better carver, its just that he expected it to be, so it doesn't stand out in Bode's mind as much. SkiOtter2 you are spot on with your comment, Will have to just see what happens.

 

[ski otter 2]

On the other hand, Bode goes into places with ski dynamics that nobody else vocalizes, or maybe is even aware of - in ways that make enough sense to me, given he did that with the Crosson 78s and they added a whole other dimension to my skiing, and quiver, in pretty much the way he described, even though it was sort of out in left field from everybody else. So I'm hopeful, even excited.

Another note, Chris Davenport just did a podcast with Blister about things with him and Peak skis that was short on detail, but he did say that of the five Peak skis he took down to Portillo for a few weeks, he spent the most time on the 104sc. Now, this could easily be because he is to be the expert on the backcountry aspect of things (most related to "side country," I gather), and of the five that was the only sc ski, or lighter weight ski more suitable for a back country set up. But also, I can't imagine him spending max time on anything other than one of his favorite skis of the five either, for whatever conditions he ran into.

 

[tomahawkins]

Yesterday was first day on the Peak 104s (184). Baker had 19" inches of new snow and cold conditions -- great because it didn't turn to mash potatoes nor compacted concrete, which is the norm on a powder day. Much of the mountain started to open up. I spent my day in midweek mode lapping Chair 6 to 3 with several runs down Canuck's or the Pan Face / Honkers combination with a run along Chicken Ridge over to Austin, one down Sticky's, a few on the steeps of Rock Wall, and one down The Chute (first day open). Getting into The Chute this early in the season was a little tricky as the entrance was a narrower than my skis are long. But once past the throat, it set up for some nice steep turns. For reference.

Steeps:

One aspect of the skis Bode comments on is the long radius and slow rise rocker to prevent hooky behavior on steep, cut up sections. The skis did not disappoint. On sections of Rock Wall, some around 50 degrees with new snow above a layer of ice and rocks, hop turns were easy to snap off and provided controlled and stable landings. For me, skis with greater sidecut have variable results when landing a hop turn as either the nose or tail catches first causing you to either pitch forward or backward. I wouldn't say these skis are free from this behavior, but it was much less that most other skis I've taken into this terrain. Bode talks about a short support platform underfoot (aka. hockey skate). I'd say this is true here. And traversing at speed across steep faces produced no surprises; easy to control straight tracks even at high edge angles.

Powder:

Good powder day. The 104s floated as expected for 104s with nice rocker lines. Fun, playful turns. You don't have to force anything.

Crud and Early Moguls:

I love crud and soft new bumps. I take the slow line fast and Honkers and Upper Canuck's are my gotos. Getting in to Honkers meant crossing some rocks, but the scratches were worth it. These skis are so much fun here. It was my first day out and they made me feel like I picked up where I left off last spring.

Carving Groomers:

Meh. They're 104s with taper and little sidecut. What were you expecting here?

 

[tomahawkins]

Day 4 on Peak 104s. Cool day at Baker with 11" in the morning. It snowed all day. 104s are wide for a daily driver, but for this place I think they are about perfect.

Wind picked up after 1 and started filling in all the corners. Not sure why, but I like fresh wind pack even more than powder. And the turns these skis rip in this snow is undescribable; it's like their on autopilot, flying over bumps and ridges, through and over drifts; they're an absolute riot. Some of the best turns of my life on Honkers day. Thanks Peak.

Great day. Ringer cat agrees.

 

[cantunamunch]

Windbuff kicks ass especially when it refills for you.

 

[ski otter 2]

I've had a few more days on the Peak 98/84, and a few on the Peak 110/188, in both soft new snow and on groomers, for both skis.
Five stars for both. (Comments on the 98 elsewhere, in that thread. )

For the Peak at 110/188, it's a near ideal freeride ski, such as advanced/expert freeriders would like, at least at my size, etc.
Da bomb.
It is also an ideal crud charger, at my profile. Top of the heap.

(And, as Bode says, it shines carving on packed powder crusty groomers in the Rockies too.)

(But, as I said in the 98 thread, my impression is it will do fine for a lot of skiers handled in a more relaxed fashion; versatile that way.)

At 188, this ski is just right, at least for my profile. Super damp, quick turning at the same time, especially relative to other skis - for instance, to me, the other current top such ski, the 194/112 Salomon Blank. I hope to have fun the rest of this season skiing them both,
A/B comparisons.

At the moment, advantage Peak 110/188. Wow.

 

[ski otter 2]

P.S. I broke down not long ago and hooked up a TV again (after a year and a half without one up here in the mountains).
( I don't get antenna reception, so it had to be a paid service.)

Anyway, the service guy they sent out recognized my Peak skis against the wall, and asked how they were.
He said he was a big Bode Miller fan. He'd named his first son "Bode."

We got along real well.