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Gear Northeast Big Hills Touring Setup Decisions

Slim

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If you are very experienced at xc you can probably have fun with a range of setups. Can you xc down a blue groomer without pain? Short black diamond powder?

For the money and versatility it just might be convenient to go with skins though not ideal for the steep xc traverses you wish to skate.
This is true,
last spring , some college girls were skate sking up a green run, and down a blue run at our hill. Where we were skiing up and skiing Alpine gear down. Some PE ole just have way more skills and fitness :golfclap:.
 
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Tony S

Tony S

I have a confusion to make ...
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Team Gathermeister
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People have been super helpful in this thread. Thanks!
 

Wilhelmson

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This is true,
last spring , some college girls were skate sking up a green run, and down a blue run at our hill. Where we were skiing up and skiing Alpine gear down. Some PE ole just have way more skills and fitness :golfclap:.

I forget his name but the tall former xc olympic gold winner was passing people on an icy blue trail.
 
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Tony S

Tony S

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I forget his name but the tall former xc olympic gold winner was passing people on an icy blue trail.
I don't think we've ever had an xc gold medal winner among US men. Right? I think Jessie Diggins [edit & Kikkan Randall] is the only American. Bill Koch famously won silver in 1976.
 
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Wilhelmson

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I don't think we've ever had an xc gold medal winner among US men. Right? I think Jessie Diggins is the only American. Bill Koch famously won silver in 1976.

I will look him up. Tall guy.
 

ScottB

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Wondering what skis like this would be like on Tony's proposed route. I would like to ski similar routes, which are basically fire roads / trails through rolling terrain which usually end at a mtn peak (maybe 1-2K vertical from low to high spot). I have classic xcountry skis with new salomon bindings and boots. The boots are a combo skating/classic boot and feel a lot like a very light weight AT boot, a little less support, but not much less. The bindings have a wedge that goes toe to heel and keeps you in side to side when heel is down. Heel is always free to pivot, but if you keep it down, you can turn the skis really well. Without metal edges, it is easy to get out of control on any steep downs, but on soft snow I can do tele turns on them quite well. I wouldn't take them up anything steep, due to lack of edges on the down, but the control compared to my old 3pins is amazingly better. I also have an AT setup which I use for side country and will work my way into straight back country. My skins are really grippy and would make rolling terrain slow and very sticky on the gradual down. My skins are typical hybrid mix. so its just the nature of the gear.



The wider skis without bindings look interesting to be able to use whatever binding and boot you want. If the scales are not too slow on the gradual downs, these look interesting. The skis in the video glide great. For anything steep, I would like to be able to lock my heel. Really light weight AT pin bindings and light weight AT boots might be a nice combo to go with these skis. Kind of a hybrid x country / AT setup for all types of terrain. I guess they would be the ultimate compromise setup, great at nothing but good at everything you could experience.
 

James

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i have no advice, other than it’s dangerous out there...

I ran into Biff, tele guru here and Japan. Spring 2019. We were buying the same ski, the Dynastar Slicer. He was mounting his teley of course. This is what I learned-

AT- Stands for Ain’t Tele
Randonnée - French for “can’t tele”

And now we return to the Meatloaf song “Paradise by the Dashboard Light”, already in progress. He’s rounding third when Miss Teley pipes up-

“Stop Right There!
I gotta know right now...
Before we go any further
Do you love me?...”

Sounds like the answer is “willing to give it a try and see what happens.”
 

GB_Ski

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Wondering what skis like this would be like on Tony's proposed route. I would like to ski similar routes, which are basically fire roads / trails through rolling terrain which usually end at a mtn peak (maybe 1-2K vertical from low to high spot). I have classic xcountry skis with new salomon bindings and boots. The boots are a combo skating/classic boot and feel a lot like a very light weight AT boot, a little less support, but not much less. The bindings have a wedge that goes toe to heel and keeps you in side to side when heel is down. Heel is always free to pivot, but if you keep it down, you can turn the skis really well. Without metal edges, it is easy to get out of control on any steep downs, but on soft snow I can do tele turns on them quite well. I wouldn't take them up anything steep, due to lack of edges on the down, but the control compared to my old 3pins is amazingly better. I also have an AT setup which I use for side country and will work my way into straight back country. My skins are really grippy and would make rolling terrain slow and very sticky on the gradual down. My skins are typical hybrid mix. so its just the nature of the gear.



The wider skis without bindings look interesting to be able to use whatever binding and boot you want. If the scales are not too slow on the gradual downs, these look interesting. The skis in the video glide great. For anything steep, I would like to be able to lock my heel. Really light weight AT pin bindings and light weight AT boots might be a nice combo to go with these skis. Kind of a hybrid x country / AT setup for all types of terrain. I guess they would be the ultimate compromise setup, great at nothing but good at everything you could experience.
Looks similar to Voille BC skis.

If your skin are too grippy, buy another pair of narrow skins, trim them really really narrow, like 2 inches. Risk is you are exposing your base to rocks, trees, etc.. https://www.wildsnow.com/5917/backcountry-skiing-skins/
 
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Tony S

Tony S

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Wondering what skis like this would be like on Tony's proposed route.
Thanks Scott. Actually I know EXACTLY what they'd be like because those were the skis I rented last time I skied that trail, set up for tele, with cable bindings. They were mostly fine if not inspiring - it was a good use case for those skis. They were mentioned at least once up thread. I guess the obvious "cons" would be:
1) As someone pointed out up thread, they'd probably be pretty disappointing as a skin-up, ski-down resort ski on the inevitable hardpack.
2) I positively hate fishscales on any kind of gentle downhill just because they are so damn slow. In general I find that the people who evangelize fishscales are also people who don't actually like to ski; they welcome anything that slows them down.
 

Wilhelmson

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The whole point of xc is that it sucks and is a good way to waste time and get in the best shape of your life. For the same suck factor you could boot up tuck. I think the sbounds or waxable equivalent with some burly boots and just deal with the steep part. Just don't break a pole too far from the car.
 

cantunamunch

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2) I positively hate fishscales on any kind of gentle downhill just because they are so damn slow. In general I find that the people who evangelize fishscales are also people who don't actually like to ski; they welcome anything that slows them down.

A long time ago Atomic did a weird microbump pattern instead of scales. Quite fast. Wish someone still did it.
I'll see if I can take some pics in due course. Not feeling terribly snow-motivated atm.
 

neonorchid

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A long time ago Atomic did a weird microbump pattern instead of scales. Quite fast. Wish someone still did it.
I'll see if I can take some pics in due course. Not feeling terribly snow-motivated atm.
Don’t know if it’s the same but one of the inline skaters (does local group XC ski adventures when we have an incredibly rare good snow year), uses an old long and narrow metal edged three pin binding XC ski with a waxless base resembling corse sandpaper.
IIRC, he had said they were from the 1970’s. The guy is a strong in-line skater and wasn’t skiing any faster on the flats or downhills than those of us on fish scales.
 
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Tony S

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Tony takes the plunge into mounting his own bindings. With the help of some nebbiolo. ;)

@skibob @jmeb @mdf

20201209_175957-01.jpeg
 
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jmeb

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Tony tends the plunge into mounting his own bindings. With the help of some nebbiolo. ;)

@skibob @jmeb @mdf

View attachment 117237
That looks delicious.

I'm about to open a bottle of Rhone blend and mount some Shifts.

FYI -- if you haven't mounted tech before, G3s Zed video is a good basic process that helps ensure good heel-pin alignment.
 

tch

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Make sure to drink a lot. That way, when you mess up, you won't care so much.
:duck:
 
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Tony S

Tony S

I have a confusion to make ...
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20201209_175957-01-jpeg.117237

Man, those are short 2x4’s you’re skiing these days.
That looks delicious.

I'm about to open a bottle of Rhone blend and mount some Shifts.

FYI -- if you haven't mounted tech before, G3s Zed video is a good basic process that helps ensure good heel-pin alignment.
Yeah, doing a dry run on the 2x4 first. Plus my stepped bits haven't arrived yet.
 

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