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Rossignol Black Ops Gamer 118, the best powder/crud ski being made? (at least for lighter and some medium sized skiers)

SpeedyKevin

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Been using my 118 a lot more this season. Any amount of new snowfall? Black Ops for sure. Have been loving them and were surprised at how maneuverable they were in tight trees (Thinking the steep parts of dragons tail at Mammoth). 10/10 would buy again when my current pair gets retired
 

GregK

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Seeing more specs on the Sender Free 110 and seems like everyone should ignore the air tip and Sender name as it’s more of a Blackops/Sender combo.

184cm is 2200gr, 20m radius, 140/110/134mm and a rec mount around -4cm with markings at +2cm(progressive)and -2cm(directional).

191cm goes to 22m radius, 2350gr range, 141/111/134mm and a similar -3.5ish cm factory mount point with +2 and -2cm markings as well.
 

SpeedyKevin

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Seeing more specs on the Sender Free 110 and seems like everyone should ignore the air tip and Sender name as it’s more of a Blackops/Sender combo.

184cm is 2200gr, 20m radius, 140/110/134mm and a rec mount around -4cm with markings at +2cm(progressive)and -2cm(directional).

191cm goes to 22m radius, 2350gr range, 141/111/134mm and a similar -3.5ish cm factory mount point with +2 and -2cm markings as well.
My interest has been increasing for this ski. Would like to see one in person! Looks like a few FWT folks were using it this past and current season.
 

GregK

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My interest has been increasing for this ski. Would like to see one in person! Looks like a few FWT folks were using it this past and current season.
Much better looking graphics on the team skiers pairs that I’ve seen. More Blackops/Indie ski like
 

GregK

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Anyone interested in hopping on the Blackops 118 train, Corbetts has both sizes available for 40% off right now at $569.99 CAN/$420 US right now. Had my contact weigh the 2 186cm pairs in the warehouse and both were around 5100gr per pair.

Just picked up a backup set myself in a Banff shop that priced matched and measured the weight which were about 4950gr for my new set which is close to my current set.
 

SpeedyKevin

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Anyone interested in hopping on the Blackops 118 train, Corbetts has both sizes available for 40% off right now at $569.99 CAN/$420 US right now. Had my contact weigh the 2 186cm pairs in the warehouse and both were around 5100gr per pair.

Just picked up a backup set myself in a Banff shop that priced matched and measured the weight which were about 4950gr for my new set which is close to my current set.
Back up set?? You have a ton of back ups haha. If i had not just got a Dictator 2 i would snag another
 

GregK

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Back up set?? You have a ton of back ups haha. If i had not just got a Dictator 2 i would snag another
Backups of CT 1.0(east coast daily driver), CT 183cm CT 2.0(west coast trip daily driver) and now BO 118(west coast trip Powder ski). No skis like any of them next year from anyone else still….:huh:

Love the 23 BO 118 graphics and not sure if they are reusing those graphics for next year. Found a pair with my preferred weight so jumped on them. Sales manager said they were about $40 or so over his cost!
 

ARL67

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Too bad the Black Ops 118 Tatum edition is only available in 176 as the fish topsheets look pretty cool too.

AD184AFC-8796-4CC3-90A6-9ACA8644CA1A.jpeg
 
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ski otter 2

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Anybody know if there's any construction difference between the Tatum Pro version 176 and the regular 118 176 version?

(I do know that it takes a really small and active skier to fit the regular 118 176 ski - otherwise there can easily be fore-aft problems in uneven off piste and variable powder - and for even most lighter weight guys, a definite speed limit, often: the 186 ski is probably the one to go with.)
 

GregK

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No difference between any years of 176cm Blackops 118 and this years “Tatum” graphics and remember hearing the 176cm was originally created for her to ski on.

Knew Tatum Monod was from Banff but it didn’t click till just now that the Monod store I just purchased my new BO 118 from is the “family store” that she worked at when she was younger!


 
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ski otter 2

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This creation of the 176 Black Ops is very similar to the origins of the 179 (180 pull) to go with the 190 pull K2 Pettitors.
Originally, the Pettitor 118 was a derivative of the great 116 final, widest Obsethed, stiffening up the center half of that ski, at 190, with both skis designed for Seth Morrison. But Sean Pettit wanted a shorter version. (Seth was about 5'8", maybe 165 lbs., while Sean was maybe 5'4", 140 lbs. roughly, at most.)
K2 lost interest in sponsoring Seth, who to them had aged out, and was making fewer if any more extreme videos. As a result, the new ski was named for Pettit instead of Seth, even though the optimal length for most people was the longer 189/190 Seth version (moved forward 3-4 cm., not on the line), not the shorter Pettit 179/180 version (skied on the line for little folk, skied - 2 cm. for many).

For anyone who has skied both the Pettitors and the 118 Black Ops, the Black Ops are clearly a knock off of the Pettitors; though you would never get the Rossi people to admit this. They would say the widest Black Ops was a modification/improvement of the OG Rossi S7, which may be partly, sort of, true. The S7 is a classically good ski, but I've never heard you can move it foward to make it "turny," and better (like the longer Pettitors and Black Ops 118 and Sender Squad).

Seth himself skied his Obsethed 190/116 at +4.5 cm, where a few friends - and K2 Reps at the time -
also skied both that Obsethed and the 190 Pettitors.

When I tried this, I found that +4.5 was the point where one stopped feeling and being able to drive the tips, even just a little bit; those skis thus became more freestyle, pivoting around their radius more, and being better for airs, flips and switch.
(But I like to drive the tips at least a bit while getting some of that "pivot around the radius" feel, @ +3.5 to +4).
 
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GregK

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Was nervous when Ski Essentials kept comparing the new Sender Free 110 to the Soul 7(not S7!) in feel on their review video. Probably because of the air tip and light swing weight but still gives me pause. Hoping they get rid of the air tip and extend the rubber further into the tips/tails before I need to replace my CT 3.0!

Saw a pair of Pettitors on the hill the other day and thought of you!

Most skis will get more turny as you move forward but usually much more abrupt changes occur as their “minimum width” section is far shorter than the Blackops seem to be.
When I put digital callipers on my 118 TIGHT on the minimum width(-8cm from Center) I could move them forward or back 8cm easily each way before they even started to catch on the wider points on either side. Usually happens MUCH quicker than that combined with the more symmetrical rocker allows more movement front and back without issue.
 
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ski otter 2

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Was nervous when Ski Essentials kept comparing the new Sender Free 110 to the Soul 7(not S7!) in feel on their review video. Probably because of the air tip and light swing weight but still gives me pause. Hoping they get rid of the air tip and extend the rubber further into the tips/tails before I need to replace my CT 3.0!

Saw a pair of Pettitors on the hill the other day and thought of you!

Most skis will get more turny as you move forward but usually much more abrupt changes occur as their “minimum width” section is far shorter than the Blackops seem to be.
When I put digital callipers on my 118 TIGHT on the minimum width(-8cm from Center) I could move them forward or back 8cm easily each way before they even started to catch on the wider points on either side. Usually happens MUCH quicker than that combined with the more symmetrical rocker allows more movement front and back without issue.
Thanks! This is a really elegant explanation/indication of the greater range of choice with mount position on these skis,
something I had no clue about the reason for what was happening - just knew the range of mount position change that worked well
was far greater than with most skis. One could get three or four different, good skis hidden in the same longer Pettitor,
Black Ops Sender Squad 112 (related to their length), and to a lesser extent, the Black Ops 118, at "only" 186 (pull length a bit less).
 
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ski otter 2

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Man, finally got a pretty good powder day here on the Front Range. 6" yesterday plus surprise 6" this morning, Sunday - still snowing through most of the morning.

Finally I could bring out the Black Ops 118s, with snow to work with. Wow. This ski just puts into perspective all the soft snow skis I've been playing with these last few years. (Peak skis 110 and Candide 3.0s; and others.) If there's even 3," it's the Black Ops 118s that are coming out, no question.
Life is short, gotta go for it.
 
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GregK

Skiing the powder
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Man, finally got a pretty good powder day here on the Front Range. 6" yesterday plus surprise 6" this morning, Sunday - still snowing through most of the morning.

Finally I could bring out the Black Ops 118s, with snow to work with. Wow. This ski just puts into perspective all the soft snow skis I've been playing with these last few years. (Peak skis 110 and Candide 3.0s; and others.) If there's even 3," it's the Black Ops 118s that are coming out, no question.
Life is short, gotta go for it.
I get on wider skis every chance I get! Hopefully we get some snow in Banff/Lake Louise tonight and tomorrow not so I can get on my Blackops 118 too!
 

Tony Storaro

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Get lots of compliments on them every time I have them out. The sheer size of them gets lots of attention to begin with though. Haha

You also got the trout ones? I saw you got the gators which are mighty fine but the trouts are just…wow
 

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