Floating on Powder?

[Tony S]

My family and I recently spent a week skiing Snow Bird and Alta. We experienced a couple beautiful powder days. I thoroughly enjoyed the experience until our last ski day. I submarined my right ski in thigh high powder, I was going pretty fast and got tamahocked. I'm not feeling the love for powder so much anymore. I ended up visiting the clinic at Snow Bird for a couple hours and limped off the mountain. I was skiing my 93 Nordica Enforcers, I was far from floating. I could not see my tips, boots or whatever I stuck into under the surface. It's hard for me to say if it was a lack of skill on my part or just dumb luck. I haven't skied in anything like it before.

Oh no! Heal up!

 

[ScottB]

I think Sink vs float can have more to do with shape and technique than just waist width. Video from last week… I’m on 125s and my exuberant friend filming me is on 112s. He outweighs me by quite a bit btw. He is floating a lot more than I am.

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Just my observations, but your friend seems to be sinking a lot. He is definitely doing the "bounce" technique and doing very nice 3D turns. Hard to really tell what you are doing, but from what I could see of your tips, you are floating pretty well and not bouncing as deep as your friend. I learned to ski powder in Alta and was taught the importance of adding bounce to your turns. You can really get some 3D action going with the right combo of snow, skis, and speed.

 

[charlier]

Do you mean the Dps Pagoda 112RP Tour?

@James yes, DPS Pagoda 112RP Tour. My previous touring powder skis were Elan Ripstick 96, even with heavy pack, the skis were fine in powder (see post #39 and your kind response). My apologies for my typos and lack of proof-reading,

 

[silverback]

Just my observations, but your friend seems to be sinking a lot. He is definitely doing the "bounce" technique and doing very nice 3D turns. Hard to really tell what you are doing, but from what I could see of your tips, you are floating pretty well and not bouncing as deep as your friend. I learned to ski powder in Alta and was taught the importance of adding bounce to your turns. You can really get some 3D action going with the right combo of snow, skis, and speed.

I think you have us backwards, (I’m in the orange & black).

I learned to bounce on skinny skis back in the day and have been transitioning the bounce to more of a retraction with the new equipment but it kind of depends on snow, speed, pitch and turn shapes. In deep snow the bounce is still what’s up.

While you can only see my friend’s tips, he’s on yellow DPS 112rp.

 

[James]

@James yes, DPS Pagoda 112RP Tour. My previous touring powder skis were Elan Ripstick 96, even with heavy pack, the skis were fine in powder (see post #39 and your kind response). My apologies for my typos and lack of proof-reading,

So not too much sidecut on that? The RP was somewhat unique for years.

 

[charlier]

So not too much sidecut on that? The RP was somewhat unique for years.

The Pagoda 178 cm 112PR Tour ski has a a 15 m turn radius (140/112/125). I prefer short-radius ski, skiing in trees and in couloirs. Looking at my skis, they seem more tapered than many other wide powder skis. Although I missed the industry demo's, I am interested in trying out the Kaizen 100 and 112. A bit more tapered than their previous iterations.

 

[ScottB]

I think you have us backwards, (I’m in the orange & black).

I learned to bounce on skinny skis back in the day and have been transitioning the bounce to more of a retraction with the new equipment but it kind of depends on snow, speed, pitch and turn shapes. In deep snow the bounce is still what’s up.

While you can only see my friend’s tips, he’s on yellow DPS 112rp.

You are correct, I assumed you were the skier with the go pro. Well, I like the way you turn em !!

 

[charlier]

I think you have us backwards, (I’m in the orange & black).

I learned to bounce on skinny skis back in the day and have been transitioning the bounce to more of a retraction with the new equipment but it kind of depends on snow, speed, pitch and turn shapes. In deep snow the bounce is still what’s up.

While you can only see my friend’s tips, he’s on yellow DPS 112rp.

Yikes, I am not sure that I bounce much. In powder, my turn is similar to firm snow - carve and arc my skis for each turn. My feet might be closer together and I keep near equal on each ski. I might bounce on low angle slopes, but mostly keep a short radius turn. Perhaps I should experiment, or don’t try to something that is not broken.

 

[Rod9301]

Yikes, I am not sure that I bounce much. In powder, my turn is similar to firm snow - carve and arc my skis for each turn. My feet might be closer together and I keep near equal on each ski. I might bounce on low angle slopes, but mostly keep a short radius turn. Perhaps I should experiment, or don’t try to something that is not broken.

No reason to bounce. This was done a long time ago, on 70 mm skis, to get them out of the snow to redirect them. With fat skis, ski powder just like groomers.

 

[silverback]

If you are in a trampoline and don’t bounce, might as well stay on solid ground. Landing in bottomless pow, feeling the ski bend like a leaf spring then rebound…why not?

 

[locknload]

Some nice bounce and rebound is what makes POW skiing so fun! I really love being on fatter skis in these conditions...just makes it all so fun and you have that larger platform to stand on.

 

[Rod9301]

Same reason you don't bounce on groomers. In the air you don't have control.
And it takes me energy, plus you look kind of dorky.

If you are in a trampoline and don’t bounce, might as well stay on solid ground. Landing in bottomless pow, feeling the ski bend like a leaf spring then rebound…why

 

[crgildart]

TL/DR.. I'm old too.. I can ski in, on, around, under any kind of snow, especially fresh deep pow A LOT LONGER AND MORE EASILY on modern skis than I can on the retro gear I now only take out on hero snow spring days.

Modern wider skis also open up a lot more low angle terrain to being skiable on deep snow days, spo more untracked skiable powder available for everyone.

You're either crazy or have no idea what it's like skiing good conditions on modern gear.

The downside is that it's sooo much easier that now there's 9707734520 times more people showing up to snatch the goods. That's the only problem with modern gear..

 

[slowrider]

Skied a variable and challenging run this morning on carving skis. This keeps me in the sport.

 

[silverback]

 

[mister moose]

I learned to bounce on skinny skis back in the day and have been transitioning the bounce to more of a retraction with the new equipment but it kind of depends on snow, speed, pitch and turn shapes. In deep snow the bounce is still what’s up.

No reason to bounce. This was done a long time ago, on 70 mm skis, to get them out of the snow to redirect them. With fat skis, ski powder just like groomers.

Same reason you don't bounce on groomers. In the air you don't have control.
And it takes me energy, plus you look kind of dorky.

Modern wider skis also open up a lot more low angle terrain to being skiable on deep snow days, so more untracked skiable powder available for everyone.

The downside is that it's sooo much easier that now there's 9707734520 times more people showing up to snatch the goods. That's the only problem with modern gear..

Sigh. The deep burn of wider rockered skis. Oh well, that cat isn't ever going back in the bag.

Isn't bounce a bigger form of rebound? And if you get more dynamic in powder, you get more rebound and more 3D. This does NOT mean you A) hop, B) come off the snow with your skis into the air. Me thinks if you're getting no rebound in powder you must be in cruise control arcing wide turns with slow transitions. Not that there's anything wrong with that.