Adding my experience. I have had prototypes DPS in a F95 shape. They have metal in them and they blast through anything and make the mountain butter. I love them in the trees with feet of powder and they are also great frontside. I had to learn them in moguls but I have and they work well for me in those huge and soft moguls. Not my fav on small, close, icy moguls. Not my fav on frontside ice. Possible on each but not fun there. Anyway, those skis changed my skiing and my enjoyment instantly by improving both.
In August I snagged some red A87 C2 184 or 189. I forget. $100 plus shipping! Nobody else bid. So happy! So these skis are phenomenal on frontside, trees, moguls. Not great in powder. Too much work. They get tossed around in manky stuff. But where they shine they are my fav. They snap around so easy. It's like instant transfer from one foot to the other when carving and man do they carve! Paradise at Crested Butte was ice. You know it. I could make a turn at speed with not much slippage and if I initiated a turn and got that little bit of slip I'd just lean further into the turn and they hopped right on the rails for me. We'd just carve right across the face at speed on ice. It was trippy and I'm a big dude. 210, 6'3". Once on rails they would not slip at all unless I asked them to.
They never got flappy. The fastest I've ever gone that my phone tracked me anyways was 52. I don't like to do that a lot. I'd rather be challenged by moguls and trees and the kind of obstacles you find on a double black. So, anyway I was not tracking speed on these skis but at as fast as I was comfortable going they gave me complete confidence they would not get overwhelmed and they didn't. I'm really happy with these skis.
I mentioned to a guy on the lift that they make everything so easy. It was as if I was hardly trying all week. As if they are eager to tear it up.
I kind of thought I'd find myself preferring foundation to alchemist because of my size. Not the case though. I love both variations.
