Medium Intermediate Intermediate Skis

[Read Blinn]

This is an area I don't know much about. A friend's daughter's boyfriend is looking for a pair of mostly piste-oriented all mountain skis. They shouldn't be new this model year, nor exotic, because he wants to keep it under $250 with bindings (I know where to find demo pricing).

He's 5' 10", 185, a mid-range intermediate, and I think an athletic guy. His girlfriend and her family are into skiing, and he wants to ski more (and keep up with them).

My impulse is something softish and turny to make skill-development easier, but then if he's trying to keep up with his potential in-laws, soft can be alarming.

Any ideas?

 

[Philpug]

"Soft" is relative. I would consider something that is softer and more balanced longitudinally for ease but stiffer, torsionally. Notice I added an "er" to soft and stiff like you used the "-ish". As far as what ski? Well, the used market is fickle so scour Craigslist and maybe someone here has some older skis that they grew out of. @Dwight is at a Play it Again sports, he could keep an eye out.

 

[Read Blinn]

"Soft" is relative. I would consider something that is softer and more balanced longitudinally for ease but stiffer, torsionally. Notice I added an "er" to soft and stiff like you used the "-ish". As far as what ski? Well, the used market is fickle so scour Craigslist and maybe someone here has some older skis that they grew out of. @Dwight is at a Play it Again sports, he could keep an eye out.

Thanks Phil — +1 on torsional stiffness. I should mention this is eastern skiing.

I have an old pair of Dynastar Legend 4800s I'd give him. They don't have a ton of snow time, maybe 35 days, but they need base work (including a weld near one edge) and the bindings would need replacement (they're Marker rental bindings pulled from a pair of Olins). They're not the most modern-looking skis out there, though.

 

[PinnacleJim]

I would think an all-mountain ski with a waist around 80 to 85 would be where I would look. Something like a Fischer Motive or Rossi Experience. For the east, you do want something with a hard snow bias as most of your time is on firm surfaces.

FWIW I had a pair of Legend 8000s back in the day. Never impressed with their performance on firm New England surfaces. I wouldn't spend money to put new bindings on those 4800s.

 

[Read Blinn]

I'd thought of the Experience. I liked the 88s I demoed — maybe a bit wide for the purpose, and the 84s fall off some. I'll look at the Motive, too. Thanks.

 

[trailtrimmer]

Any interest in a 1st gen Brahma with nice tops sheets and perfect bases? I have a pair with a perfect world cup tune on the bases, no chips on the tops and Griffons set up for a 316ish to 326 BSL.

 

[Read Blinn]

Any interest in a 1st gen Brahma with nice tops sheets and perfect bases? I have a pair with a perfect world cup tune on the bases, no chips on the tops and Griffons set up for a 316ish to 326 BSL.

I'll pm you. Thanks.

 

[cantunamunch]

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Elan-Wavef...d=142145754791&_trksid=p2055119.c100022.m2048

 

[Read Blinn]

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Elan-Waveflex-76-Skis-2016/142626508383?_trkparms=aid=222007&algo=SIM.MBE&ao=1&asc=39262&meid=52a89e7817cc4816abf19108727739d7&pid=100022&rk=4&rkt=4&sd=142145754791&_trksid=p2055119.c100022.m2048

Possibly, possibly . . . price is right, anyway.

 

[dbostedo]

Sounds a bit like my first purchase, and I'm on Atomic Nomads... Maybe an older model there - the Blackeye or Smoke (non-Ti unless he's skis fast and aggressive). I also looked at the Dynastar Powertracks, and Rossignol Experience line. Any of those in an 75-85 waist makes for an easy turning, solid all-mountain ski in the east, IMO.

Not sure if you can find any that would fit in that price though...

 

[Dwight]

Possibly, possibly . . . price is right, anyway.

These are good skis. Wife has these from 2 years ago.

I can look at Play it again, but skis for his size are usually slim to find. Except new, but they are more than his price range.

I personally would go with Rosi Experience line to begin with. Liquidation Sports is a very good source of used skis, coming from resorts.
http://www.liquidationsports.com/in...perience+RTL+Skis+with+Axium+100+Bindings+-+G

 

[cantunamunch]

Possibly, possibly . . . price is right, anyway.

IIRC, @KevinF campaigned Waveflex for quite a few years in the NE

FWIW I think the 4800 in a 175cmish would make a competent rock ski for someone his size. Herself loved hers - and I heard about it several times when I swapped off her pair. She hasn't been that happy on a frontside ski until we got her VWerks Codes.

 

[KevinF]

IIRC, @KevinF campaigned Waveflex for quite a few years in the NE

FWIW I think the 4800 in a 175cmish would make a competent rock ski for someone his size. Herself loved hers - and I heard about it several times when I swapped off her pair. She hasn't been that happy on a frontside ski until we got her VWerks Codes.

I skied two or three pairs of Elan's into the ground, but I haven't been on an Elan in a long, long time now. I don't know how the modern variations compare to the ones I used years ago. Elan dealers / demos became impossible to find, so...

 

[Read Blinn]

Sounds a bit like my first purchase, and I'm on Atomic Nomads... Maybe an older model there - the Blackeye or Smoke (non-Ti unless he's skis fast and aggressive). I also looked at the Dynastar Powertracks, and Rossignol Experience line. Any of those in an 75-85 waist makes for an easy turning, solid all-mountain ski in the east, IMO.

Not sure if you can find any that would fit in that price though...

Thanks, D — I found some Blackeyes at a good price (Ti, b/c I think he can handle them), and also a pair of Powertrack 89s. Now we'll see what's what.