My current quiver is the
Head Supershape e-Original, 170cm, 12m radius (my teaching ski + rec carver)
Blizzard Bonafide 97, 183cm, 18.5m radius (charger + cheater GS ski in a fat suit)
K2 Mindbender 108Ti, 186cm, 22.8m radius (pow + soft chop ski)
I ski between 30/70 to 90/10 on/off-piste, depending on the day's conditions.
I'm 5'11", 175 pounds, and based in Lake Tahoe but moving to the east coast after this season. I'm aiming to progress through the PSIA certifications. (I'm a very rookie instructor; I just started this past season and my L1 exam is coming up later this spring... but just in case that's a helpful tidbit. I did not grow up skiing, so it feels like I'm playing catchup to my coworkers sometimes )
Anyways, recently I've been itching to add something between the e-Originals and the Bonafides. Not out of any urgent need, but dang those spring sales are tempting. In particular, none of my skis feel particularly versatile. Off-piste, the e-Originals can feel pretty hooky/catchy, and the Bonafides feel very heavy and planky. On piste, the Bonafides and especially the Mindbenders can feel imprecise and require pretty empty slopes for responsible carved turns.
Additional data points for skis I've owned/demoed:
The Head Kore 87/93 in 177/184cm and Supershape e-Rally/Titan in 170/177cm seem interesting, but admittedly for very different reasons. I'm also not sure if there'd be too much overlap on the e-Original or Bonafide side.
Thanks for reading my wall of text!
Head Supershape e-Original, 170cm, 12m radius (my teaching ski + rec carver)
Blizzard Bonafide 97, 183cm, 18.5m radius (charger + cheater GS ski in a fat suit)
K2 Mindbender 108Ti, 186cm, 22.8m radius (pow + soft chop ski)
I ski between 30/70 to 90/10 on/off-piste, depending on the day's conditions.
I'm 5'11", 175 pounds, and based in Lake Tahoe but moving to the east coast after this season. I'm aiming to progress through the PSIA certifications. (I'm a very rookie instructor; I just started this past season and my L1 exam is coming up later this spring... but just in case that's a helpful tidbit. I did not grow up skiing, so it feels like I'm playing catchup to my coworkers sometimes )
Anyways, recently I've been itching to add something between the e-Originals and the Bonafides. Not out of any urgent need, but dang those spring sales are tempting. In particular, none of my skis feel particularly versatile. Off-piste, the e-Originals can feel pretty hooky/catchy, and the Bonafides feel very heavy and planky. On piste, the Bonafides and especially the Mindbenders can feel imprecise and require pretty empty slopes for responsible carved turns.
Additional data points for skis I've owned/demoed:
- Head Supershape i.Titan 170cm - These were my first skis and definitely an unwise choice as a beginner, but damn they were a lot of fun on piste. Got rid of them when the bindings started to go.
- Nordica Enforcer 104 179cm - Mixed feelings, great through chop but felt imprecise and lifeless on a groomer. Sold these after a few seasons since the majority of the time I was on them, I thought "Hm, I'd rather be on my Supershapes"
- Elan Ripstick 88 180cm - Absolute noodles, really did not like these. Gave up way too much stability and carving performance for whatever I gained in "playfulness".
- Volkl Racetiger GS 180cm - Loved these skis on empty weekdays, but I don't get too many of those unfortunately so I sold them. Way more competent off piste than a cheater GS ski has any right to be, perhaps due to the long radius? To be clear, I'm not saying they were good, but I felt less crappy when following buddies off piste than I was expecting.
- Stockli Laser SL 165cm - Demo'd these and really learned what "edge to edge quickness" meant. Felt dense and smooth in a good way, but was pretty unforgiving for my skill level at the time in any snow that wasn't very flat and firm.
The Head Kore 87/93 in 177/184cm and Supershape e-Rally/Titan in 170/177cm seem interesting, but admittedly for very different reasons. I'm also not sure if there'd be too much overlap on the e-Original or Bonafide side.
Thanks for reading my wall of text!