I have 4 pairs of skies at the moment. Sometimes i'm ending up with 2 pairs of them at the slope, since the conditions change often over the day. My rule is, as wide as neccessary, as narrow as possible.
I'm so glad someone is talking about this. As an Australian skier, I see way too many people on skis way too wide for the typical Australian conditions. So much of ski choice is about marketing and following market trend. Twenty years ago I bought my first powder ski (K2 Apache XP). They were a whopping 78mm underfoot. A few years later I upgraded to a 98 mm Kastle ski and only used that ski for when conditions dictated (i.e. fresh, deep-ish snow). Nowadays, I've gone skinnier (74 mm) and longer. About 70% of the time I'm hitting groomers and for the remaining 30% I just need to work a little harder when I'm off piste. And when mother anture provides, I pull out skis to suit those consditions. Meanwhile I'm seeing stupidly fat skis inbounds in Oz resorts, irrespective of conditions. How are you meant to get any kind of edge on those? Especially on those icy days (and we had more than out fair share of them this past southern winter).
As a beginner, I ended up buying a 97mm under foot after listening to my friends! Man it felt so bad, couldn’t get on the edge, had trouble stopping it always. It’s like 2 giant snow boards attached to my feet! Now I went and bought a 78mm under foot. It’s much easier to use them to learn what I want. I agree with Ms Pickle, may be 5 ~10 years later I might get back on that 97mm.
I have worked in the ski industry for 40+ years. I live in New England and ski Loon Mountain in NH. I have lots of skis but Volkl Deacon 84 or Blizzard Brahma 88 are my everyday drivers for our typical conditions. My wide NE skis are Salomon QST 92 and Nordica Enforcers 94 for NE Powder, trees and natural snow trails.
I ski Cannon and Bretton and find few days that are powder ski days, I love it when we get them. I mostly ski Atomic Redster S9(two pair) 68 under foot, others are Head Monster 83, Volkl 98 and a pair of Head World Cup, 66 under foot as an early season ski. I never loved groomers until I start on the S9's six years ago. They hold like glue on NH ice.
I love this conversation. I had a co-worker move to Whitefish and buy a pair of Armada VJJ's like 114 under foot and she's an intermediate skier at best, she just struggled for so long until I finally got her to try my daughters salomon 99's and it was a game changer for her.
The BEST ever! Two experts in ski technique and gear. Understanding the industry and helping the skiers. Tracy you rock!! Deb, you rock!! These are two amazing Pacific NW skiers who know what they're talking about.
My overall philosophy has changed in recent seasons and now my go to ski has 119/70/99 dimensions. Here in the East they are great skis on piste, can get up on edge quickly, and can get the job done in softer snow too. Wider skis are fun and floaty when there's fresh snow or crud and I use them sparingly. But in general I find narrower wasted skis to be much more versatile, especially nowadays with the sidecuts and wider shovels.
European skier here, on Fischer Ranger 102FR skis, which are great for all conditions, nice & loose, twin tippy with short contact lengths, so I can throw them side to side easily on piste or off piste, but can still carve pretty well if needed. I had to ski narrowish Head (~82mm) wide skis a couple of years ago, after getting a core shot on my old Rossi Soul 7s. These were certainly more effortless when it came to carving on piste but otherwise felt one dimensional. And hard work on crud or powder. Give me wider skis every day of the week (within reason!).
I remember once when an absolutely legendary ski writer and influencer made this point on an online skiing forum that was popular at the time. He mentioned that ski company marketers and ski shops were doing the majority of skiers a disservice by steering them into skis that were wider than what was ideal for what and how they would be skiing most of the time. Oh, man, you should have seen the roasting he got! He was basically run out on a rail. I really think it's true and shouldn't be controversial. Maybe things are getting more sane these days, but boy was everyone attached to their wide skis back then. This was maybe 5 or 6 years ago. My rule of thumb is, if it hasn't snowed in the previous 3 days, I bring out my Dobermanns at 65 underfoot and carve tracks on groomers. Super fun. My widest ski now is 93 and I can't think of a day in Colorado in the past several years when I really wished I'd had wider. If I move to Utah, maybe ;)
Right on the money -- even here in New Hampshire where there's always a layer of ice lurking --almost no one is on "skinny skis." If you see carving skis now you can bet it's young racers or baby boomers who also compete. On chairlifts I often find myself explaining why narrow underfoot skis work better on ice. They are almost a novelty at this point. I would bet the same ratio as in the Rockies,. And when I said Ice was lurking that was an understatement. Of courseit goes further than the ice -- recreational skiers just aren't oriented to carving. Kinda sad
Great video! Different tools for different jobs, but imo always better to lean narrower. As a kid, I used to ski powder on skinny little things and still had plenty of fun. To the contrary, I've had plenty of lackluster turns because I was on something way too wide for the conditions, when wide skis started to become very popular. Pick a ski for the conditions you're most often in, not the conditions you wish you were in. This past year I moved from Mad River Glen being my home mountain to Snowbird...and honestly, I'm sticking with the same sticks: low 80s for the firmer all mountain days, mid 90s for good snow, mid 100s for deep days, and mid 90s for touring...and honestly, I loved having a performance ski in the 60s-low 70s, but mine got stollen!
Really true -- buy the ski for the conditions you are on 85+ % of the time, not what you want to be on for an ideal powder day etc. Some of us old folks skied powder on skis with waists in the 60s (mm wise) and equally narrow tips and tails, we just sank a bit more until hauling it. I've had lots of fun on deep days (10" or more) on 88mm waisted skis -- Head Monster 88 '05 era, Elan 888 late 00s. My widest skis are 110mm waist and I don't break them out that often, and never on hardpack. They'll turn fine, they're just overwide GS skis, but the angle created by the wide waist, it puts the hurt on my knees if I need to make a small turn in a hurry.
@@BoyajianDon I put about 200 days on them before I compressed an edge and cracked a sidewall, and retired them. At that age, they'd grown a little soft but still motored through crud like nobody's business, and still quiet at crazy speeds on the groomers.
I’m team wide ski, I ride Rossignol blackops 118s nearly every day, but I completely agree with what you are saying here. lots of people choosing the wrong tool for the job especially as beginner-intermediates that still need to learn the basics
You are young and strong, and get to ski a lot, is that correct? Even great skiers age or only ski so many days each year, and find that carrying an extra half a pound or more on each foot (or shoulder) matters. Maybe it's not only about skill or learning the "basics".
@@zincfive yes I'm young active and ski a lot, a large heavy ski like I ride would kick a lot of young and fit peoples butts, they aren't for everyone. I hope you don't think I'm blindly recommending "wide" skis to everyone, my comment was more just saying many people don't know how to pick skis for their needs and I think its especially hard for beginner-intermediates. even really good skiers might not know what they want in a ski and that's why we have ski demos!
@@zincfive also for some wide ski propaganda theres a guy at my local area who must be in his late 60s who rides an armada JJ at 116 wide and I have the exact same pair as he does! we are very different skiers but we both enjoy the same ski :)
Great topic! Everyone who wants to improve their skiing should spend time on a narrow more technical ski and search out (for those of us in the West) firmer groomers and get really proficcient at skiing. Being on a Masters race ski or a great carver (under 80mm) is like a different sport with wonderful sensations. Once you can make a ski like this sing you can apply those skills to anything wider or more rockered and will typically favor a more technical precise, skiers ski.
She was spot on ! If you can only afford one ski or two then 84 to 88 is the sweet spot. We've got to come back to earth and pick a tool for what we do and not what we wish we were doing. Here on the east coast, if you have 2 skis, a true carving ski for icy days coupled with mid fat ski to handled days with destroyed pistes, chopped and crud is gonna cover 90% of our situations
Deb, always your videos are so refreshing because they are the correct time, not too long or short, precisely. And the end was marvelous, love. Thanks for this great job you do for us.
My quiver consists of a pair of Rossi E 83's, 176 length and Hero Elite ST's, 172 long and 68 underfoot with a race plate for extra turning power. I'm 73 years old and love groomers. Of course, "groomers" at my home hill consist of hard pack man-made with some grooves scratched into the surface.
I’m a Level 3 instructor in Minnesota and ski the Rossi SL race ski here (why would I need anything else here😀) Last March in Cortina, Italy I skied the Rossi Multi turn for the week ( I’m only 5’2” and it was awesome!) I head west to Grand Targhee for the rest of the winter where I pull out my Nordica Santa Ana 88’s or 93’s depending on the conditions. It’s the conditions that dictate my skis. A “girls trip” to Steamboat is scheduled for this March, can’t wait❤
I've never had skis wider than 80 millimeters in my life! Most of my skis were between 68 and 74 millimeters wide. But the fact is that I mostly ski in the Alps on groomed slopes (I enjoy the speed and fun carving). I also use narrow sporty ski boots (thin socks, size -0.5) with a flex of 100-120.
That's why I love ski-tests like the one in Sölden - Austria. I had the oppertunity to test 20+ skies in 4 days 🙂 From a Slalom Fisher 67 mm under foot to a Black Crows 120 mm. PS : Love the methaphore with the Hummer in the city !
This video is spot on. I'm originally from Europe, have been skiing for almost 30 years now. Primarily ski on the East Coast this days. Have 6 pairs of skis in my quiver: two pairs of FIS SL, one pair of masters GS (all three 70mm or under). Two pairs of mid-70s (168cm and 177cm for different hill sizes), and a pair of 86mm (185cm) for fresh snow, larger hills, or trips out west. The 86mm worked great in Mammoth in May, and I never ever felt l needed skis wider than that. Well, yes, if I were to ski powder in Utah, Colorado, or Mammoth on a regular basis, I would probably add a pair of wider skis for those conditions, but, realistically, almost no one needs skis wider than 90mm for the East Coast.
Great topic, Deb, as always! Even in NE here, all I see at shops are mid-fat skis with crazy rockers. I had to import from Europe to get my 66m-waist skis. No real powder skiing here in NE except for perhaps doing trees at Jay Peak or something. We need more narrower skis because they are more suited to the conditions here.
If you’re looking for a 66 mm waist ski you can easily walk into a ski shop that deals In racing skis. If I wanted that type of ski I would simply go to Rogers or Sport Toma in Lincoln, NH they both stock race skis and equipment. If you go to a ski shop near a major resort you are very likely to be able to get all the major race ski brands. Personally I prefer something like Blizzard Thunderbird 15 WB or Volkl Deacon 72 or 76. Those models are usually available as they are great front side carving skis.
@@thomasmedeiros5722 I know I could find narrow waist skis in the Northeast, but I have to travel some distance to get to those shops that have such skis. I have found I can find exactly what I want from overseas online retailers cheaper and quick. That is how I've bought two pairs of HEAD skis so far.
Thanks Deb! As someone who just turned to skiing after 30 years, this is very helpful. I'm 99% on the groomers so I went with an 80. :) If I need anything more, then I'm going to rent a demo pair.
I've grown to love that 88 or so for all around telemark skiing. I have some in the mid 90s that can be fun but the sub-90s are my go to. I am learning so much from you even though I am a freeheel skier. Thank you!
Great topic. I'm trying on 4 different ski boots right now to see if anything can replace my old ones, so far not happy. Fought the change to shaped skis, then the change to wide skis, so far I've learned I need at least 5 pairs of skis for different conditions. East coast skiing can vary from powdery snowmaking, to moguls, to ice runs, all in the same day on the same mountain. An all mtn ski in the 88 to 92mm underfoot seems ok, does everything but nothing well. it's complicated.
Great video ! So many skiers buy the wrong equipment for their level and the terrain they ski. Living in Quebec, skiing on hard packed snow or ice, my daily driver is 75mm underfoot. My wider skis, for less frequent conditions, are 86mm and 96mm.
Thank you Deb, I went out two days ago cos of watching this vid and one with you and another lady talking about ski width, so I picked up a cheap pair of what I would call beginner skis, 76mm under foot and they completely changed my day, superb!!!!!!! thank you so so much ole lady from Banff!!
Yes, great video! I live in New England and I am a L2 instructor. My daily alpine ski is a 68mm SL, my daily tele is 78mm and both handle anything I am skiing here. I have a wider alpine ski for skiing out west with my son, but don't expect to bring it out much for local skiing.
After growing up in a ski shop in Norway I think you're absolutely right. But not only are the skis too wide, but people here buy light wide touring skis with tec-bindings and light soft boots to ski 90% groomers. Skis with little sidecut that makes learning proper carving technique a lot harder. That said, I really recommend anyone who can afford it to get a two ski quiver(you can always have more) if they plan to ski both on piste and off piste. A solid full camber carver around 80mm, and a 110mm freeride ski with some rocker and taper that tackles both powder and crud. But there's also quite a few customers that are scared of wide skis, and think they should start skiing off piste on narrower skis before they "graduate" to wider skis. This is also a misconception that will make your off piste skiing a lot harder and less fun. I can't emphasize how much rockered skis did to make off piste skiing easier and more fun. I still remember being mind blown the first time I skied one back in 2009. Hail McConkey!
I so wish I had found your videos before I was encouraged to buy 92mm skis last spring. What you're saying totally makes sense. I'm a mid-50's skier who hangs out on blue groomers in CO with aspirations to incorporate black slopes, too. Thanks for the great content.
Really good and important advice Deb. Could you also talk about the impact of wide skis on knees when used on groomers? Thank you. Greetings form Europe. Your content is AMAZING.
@michaelaronson5507 I ride a very heavy 118 wide ski with pivots most days, I personally don’t feel like there is a significantly larger strain on my legs or knees skiing a groomer than any other ski I’ve been on. In a situation where I’d be fighting a ski I could see a low mount height and wide ski being more effort and straining but personally I don’t feel that I have to fight wide skis to carve a turn on groomers or move how I want
@michaelaronson5507I work in a ski shop. We don’t carry Look binding’s because our customer base doesn’t fit the demographic that would justify stocking them. However we have lots of skiers coming in to have us mount Look Pivot bindings. They are usually younger Freeride and park oriented skiers. When I am on the slopes I notice that the Pivot is definitely the favorite binding on twin tip park style skis in NE. The Pivot bindings have become popular bindings to have. Kinda like all those people who wear Air Jordan Basketball sneakers and never step on a basketball court.
@michaelaronson5507 Hmm the pivots have a lot of elasticity so they are to me and many a great binding. I have them on all my skis that don't have a system binding. Although I haven't seen it you could in theory put pivots on a plate, and plates do help some with edge angle. But I haven't heard people complain about pivots being hard on the knees, is it just the lack of a plate that makes you say that? Or is it the ramp angle of the pivots (which is one of the lowest)?
Absolutely! The knees. Wide skis put a greater amount of lateral stress on the soft tissue of the knee, especially on hard surfaces where they act as a lever. This can not be overstated. If you want to ski for a long time take care of your knees.
Thank you so much for your content. We (the uninformed and influenced) go down the rabbit hole all the time. This content is exactly what we need. Thanks for pulling me out of that rabbit hole.
This is a good episode on a subject not talked about enough. The word ‘quiver’ was well selected. I ski the east at a small area where we have great groomers and crappy everything else, so I ski a set of drivers every day. Living out west you get the best of all the terrains so you need a quiver of skis to align with whatever you’re skiing that day. If you’re a tourist, rent for the terrain if you don’t own. Better to spend rental bucks than ruin your day and develop bad habits fighting it.
OMG it’s like old home week… super fun seeing Olin come in last minute! Keep up the great work Deb. Super stoked (and not surprised) that Pickles found a landing spot. Elevate you are lucky to have her!! Two woman super stars!!!🌟
Ladies, that was some of the best ski advice out there! I’m 62, male, 6’, 200 lbs. I haven’t skied in 30 years. I skied “straight skis”, 180s- 190s back in the day. Under foot (waist) width wasn’t a thing. Back in the 70s-80s I bought what I could afford, and I mounted my own bindings because I learned from a book. (Imagine not having youtube to learn from! Lol) All these years later, I’m watching copious amounts of RU-vid vids about skiing, and waist width (under foot) is a consideration that wasn’t a thing back in my day. As best I can tell, you’re exactly right regarding waist width. Ninety percent of skiers spend ninety percent of their time skiing groomers, and other “on piste” trails. Narrow waist skis are far more user friendly in these conditions. In fact, I’m pleasantly surprised that shorter skis are also now appreciated. So much easier to maneuver! I’d love a set of 88-170-175s to rip some groomers! Great presentation! 🤙
Deb, the pistes you film on look nothing like the steep, heavy crud where you'll find me in Tahoe (on a good day). Since I don't have a quiver, my new Mantra 102s will be the daily drivers this season. But you continue to influence me to work on technique and get better every day, still hoping to stamp out the stem-christies grandpa taught me in 1966.
Found your videos last year and fell in love with your positive vibes, clear instructions, and informative insight! I was a ski racer all 4 years of high school. I got pretty good at it and got MVP my senior year. Fast forward a couple years and I was in a tight spot financially and had no choice but to sell my slalom and giant slalom skis. All I had left were my somewhat wide all-around mountain skis. Last year I finally had enough disposable income to go skiing again for a full season. And I gotta say, they are a dream in the right conditions, but they don't have any "oomph" on the groomers!! I miss my racing skis tremendously and my goal is to save up enough money to buy a nice pair of slalom skis to have in my arsenal. I spent most of my time on the groomers and practicing moguls, and the wider skis really didn't feel good at all. Listen to Deb everyone!! She knows what she's talking about! Please start on a narrower ski!! It will make you a better skiier in the long run, and when you switch to wider skis you will learn to appreciate the skinnier ones! I miss my racing skis so, SO much and I'm so mad at myself for selling them. But it was either I sold them or I didn't get to eat 😢
I have a 68mm, 80mm, 90mm and a 110mm ski. Yes 4 pairs for 4 different conditions. My favorite skis are the 68 and 90. They have the longest turn radius and the most stable at speed.
Deb, a great topic indeed. As instructors, we need to know our students’ intentions. For example, are they going to skid, carve, or blended turns. So do we need to ask ourselves, are they on the right tool (the right width and length ski) to match their objective? I think it’s a challenge. Wishing you a great ski season! //Marshall
Appreciated the comment about: "led astray". This reminds me of other sports (bicycling & tennis) where the advancement of technology is driving consumer choices that may not be appropriate for "average" skiers. Tracey a bit diplomatic? ; ) Thanks for pushing back on the hype.
So true, but tough to parse what wide means if you grew up with 65 mm skis. I remember when I got my first wide 84mm skis and what a difference they made in terms of being able to handle inconsistent soft snow. I still keep a pair of 63mm slalom skis sharp, and they get a lot of use when the base is firm, but the 64mm GS skis have largely been replaced by my 91mm all mountain skis. The combination of similar stability (if not edge bite) and a user-friendly 17m turn radius make for a fine groomer ski when I get tired from making 150+ turns per run. They also do better as the frozen base melts out in the afternoon, as often happens in much of New England. I'm sure there's a place for a 80mm carver in the quiver, but with a touring ski and a floatier, driftier ski for deep days and the woods, it just hasn't made its way up the priority list, even if I probably would ski it most often of all. The math works out after all: one 63 mm ski until lunch + a 91 mm ski in the afternoon / 2 skis = one 77mm daily driver.
I ski Midwestern slopes. Haven't missed a season since I started in 1976/77. Recently I went from 73 underfoot to 80. Next time I will probably go narrower again. I just find 80s a bit slow edge to edge. They are probably a bit better in soft and cut up snow but I don't get much chance to ski that stuff.
I ski an Armada 92ti, but only ski west coast and mainly Whitefish MT. An all mountain ski that can sit on powder as well as ski the groomers is perfect for me.
Great conversation. Very illuminating! I was never clear on the ski width issue, but now I get the thinking that goes into it with pros like the two of you.
I had gotten a pair of Atomic XT 3.0's (65 mm) several years ago which were great on groomers, ice, etc. I couldn't ski them in soft snow, crud, etc. so I added a pair of Atomic Vantage 90's for the soft stuff which they handled very well. This past season I got a pair of Atomic Q9.8's (85 mm) which IMO do it all very well. Unless I am able to ski in true powder, the Q9.8's are a great one ski quiver.
Love this video. I just bought a pair of Line Pandora 94 skis at the end of last season and am anxious to try them out when I go to Sun Peaks, B.C this season (last year I demoed a pair for half a day). My previous skis were 84s but I wanted to try a little wider to see if it helped me float a bit on the crud that develops as the runs get skied out. I will still be taking my 84s for the days that are a little icier as the Pandoras are fairly light and I am not sure how they will do on a groomed icy run. I have only been back skiing for the past few years and only do it while on vacation (usually a month a season), so am slowly learning what works for me and the level I am at, but there are still days where I think, hey, I could do that and then have to come back to reality, lol. Love your videos Deb!
The Pandoras are an interesting example here. They are wide by European standards,moderately wide by Eastern standards, and a fine everyday width by Western standards. However, because they are so light weight, they don't have the best suspension for inconsistent snow, so they can struggle in the late day crud. They are amazing in the woods and bumps, because you can get them to make just about any turn even when the snow is packed. On-piste, they carve short turns fairly well for a midfat, but they do have a speed limit above which they get squirrelly. The lightness and deep sidecut alleviate many of the issues with wider skis but they introduce other issues. It's always a trade-off. That's a great ski to have in your quiver. There will be days you long for something skinnier and sturdier, but it sounds like you already have that ski.
@@phrides Thanks for sharing your take. This is what I have right now but I'm in the market for something narrower while I'm still building the fundamental skills. I'm glad to keep them for when I'm more confident to ski more variety of terrain.
I got some big fat powder skis this season, and had the chance to try them out already. It sure is different! I can definitely feel the benefits while I was in the powder, but it's going to take some work to figure out exactly how to turn them. Not like my 68s that's for sure. Felt like I was using some different muscles. Thanks Deb!
Hey Deb! I love your channel. We already have good comditions in New England in early December! Hitting Stowe (or maybe Okemo) tomorrow! Let's have a stellar season! Im definitely hitting some rocky mountain skiing this year for sure! Thanks for all you do for us!
@@DebArmstrongSkiStrong I think Im going to move to Tahoe. I love New England. But I LOVE skiing. Im 48, this is 3rd season, and I want to spend as much time with the sport in the years I have remaining as possible. Im from the deep south. I never knew something as wonderful as skiing existed. You get all the blood-stirring benefits of violent/full-contact sports without the violence. Lol. I woulda dropped football like a hot potato had I known about skiing!
@@DebArmstrongSkiStrong I kinda like the rough stuff, tbh. I like facing down the danger and fear of unpredictable situations and beating them. I saw a dude in his late 70s yesterday crushing Hayride like he was 18. (Hayride is a double black untouched by any machines). Dude had a beard down to his bellybutton. He is my new hero. It's an incredible sight to see people ski in their 80s with that kind of spring in their knees and spirit for LIFE! Skiing is a spiritual sport if there ever was such thing. The mountain punishes those with no respect for it and an impious attitude towards Nature. Oh! Read the Rime of The Ancient Mariner. I reread it the other day. But think of the Mariner as an arrogant captain of finance...the types who foul our mountains with the stain of avarice and arrogance. They always leave with injuries. We always make it to apres safe, sound & blessed. I can already tell...this is going to be s special season!
@@DebArmstrongSkiStrong I want to schedule a few lessons with you in like feb/march when I trek out west. Not sure what you charge, but we'll make it work. Domt go easy on me. Yell at me. Train these terrible posture habits our of me. I played football and wrestled. They taught us to stay low snd wide stance. I cant seem to get it out of my balance instincts. Also, I wanna learn to jump. What happened to your tip jar?
Thanks Deb and Tracy! (I corrected the name, must have been a flashback to the Kelly Timmons discussion about boot fitting) I bought my last pair of boots when Tracy was still at Sturtevants in the old location in Bellevue WA. I have a pair of 72mm Dynastars (shaped skis with demo bindings more than 10 years old) that I might put some newer bindings on. My current skis are Volkl Kanjos that are 84mm under foot that have camber under foot and tip and tail rocker and I have enjoyed them a lot. They replaced my Volkl AC50’s with demo bindings I got during Sturtevants progressive sale. It’s hard to find narrow skis in a lot of shops I go to in Seattle.
So true! I went to a shop in Seattle specifically because of the reputation of the boot fitter. End of season and they were selling me on a great low low price for boots, bindings and skis. I was inclined to go with a waist in the 80s but they were insisting we don't need to go under 90 in the PNW, and the deal was too good to pass up I thought. After one season, I'm now looking for something in the mid or low 80s, because I think that really meets me where I am in my skill development. But for sure, I'm glad to have the 94s for way it's dumping right now in the Cascades! It's not a true powder ski, but I'll keep it in the quiver for the time being.
Decent advice but totally dependent on region. Washington gets a LOT of dense snow. Wider helps so much. I moved here with my 75mm east coast ski. I did not have fun my first pow day. Went to 98, way better. Got a 106 daily day. I think I miss the agility of the 98 but my 118 pow ski is so much fun. Part of the issue is the ski most people buy is their daily driver one ski quiver so they overcorrect for the promise of pow days because everyone wants to have a good time when the conditions are legendary and are ok sacrificing a little performance on the average day to do so
Totally agree. I ski 98mm Blizzard Bonafides as my daily in the Pacific North West (PNW). I think that's a very versatile width for average conditions on-piste and for a little off-piste. I like 5mm to 10mm wider for off-piste. My 88mm and narrower skis are strictly for groomer days and they are not as enjoyable in any fresh snow or off-piste. I don't totally agree that the industry is at fault. People buy what their influencer ski and that's not necessarily a bad thing.
@@CanadianTrackstotally agree. I’m here in Bend, Hero Elites Ti, 78, for the groomer days and Bonifides for the pow and tracked days. I view and ski the Bonifides as a fun GS ski and is great throughout the backside and tracked out pow. All I’ve needed, 70. And a huge fan of Deb. “let it snow” still waiting opening day here. Cheers
This is year 69 on skis for me. I ski here in New Hampshire, and most of the time on hard snow conditions and ice. In the 60's I would ski powder with skis 65 or 67 under foot. I can see the fat ski as a better alternative in powder conditions of over 6", but question how a fat ski's performance is helpful on piste under hard snow conditions,.with their considerable rocker both fore and aft. I guess for some, the technical ability of the skier is not there so they really don't know and feel the difference. ( The fat ski on hard snow would also seem to be more challenging on the knees over time. ) Thanks Deb for sharing the same burning question that I have had for a long time
I own three types and the narrows are great especially for cali! Obviously terrain is part of it. Backcountry skiing is usually deeper so pow it out. Just talk to other skiers. Thanks for talking about this.
I picked up a pair of Dynastar SkiCross 66's (heavy skis!) on a fire sale at a sports retailer in E. Canada, still in the plastic. (I used to have Dynastar FPS Equipe, (with a pair of Koflach SXL's) that I found far too soft. My boss advised me on these (ski retail.)) The SkiCross were super on challenging and in tame glades, but woe to me on a blue groomer. Mtn Equipment COOP sold me a pair of Rossignol Experience 80's. Very comfortable on the groomers and light to carry around. A circuit skier sold me his Nordica Dobermann GS, which just shone on icy steeps. They just gobbled up that ice. I'm a solid 200lb male, I've been skiing since the early seventies. I really enjoy watching your postings. Thank-you.
I was buying Atomic Cloud Skis, full camber and debated between 68 mm and 75mm. The 75mm is labelled Atomic Cloud 75 WB (Wide Body). I went for that and it is great, however I learned on "long skinny skis" when I was younger. The 75 WB is great for most terrain and mainly on piste although if I buy a new pair of skis in future, might go to 68.
Love my Volkl Yumis in the Midwest. It’s so important to spend a couple of days demoing. Doesn’t cut it 100% out west, but is almost perfect for me there too. Waiting until the snow is good here to demo for something a little spicier. Good info!
My go to ski for the east is a Hart Fusion (177 I believe) and it is 65mm under foot. I have a couple of wider skis (6 pairs total) for deeper snow and crud, but almost always take the Harts.
My skis at 188 114 wide handle most terrain very well. And I’m 5’8” tight trees somewhat difficult if your a good skier you can ski most things in any ski well
Following that video and you recent videos on boot fitting, I would love to hear your thoughts on what I think might be an other mistake made by quite a few skiers ( including me maybe) : getting boots that are too stiff. I see a lot of skiers who get the best ski boots offered by a manufacturer without having all of the skills required to get the most out of them. How can you tell when your ski boots are too stiff for you ? How will that affect a skier ? I'm an advanced/expert skier who has improved a lot over the last couple of seasons. A big part of that improvement has been the result of finding a great ski boot for me. I have skied with a 120 flex ski boot the last 3 years. a couple instructors and coaches have suggested that I try a 130 flex. I have bought the same ski boot in a 130 flex and will be trying them very shortly. What should i be looking for to find out if the flex is right or too stiff ? I have kept my previous boots just in case. Thank for your amazing content. Always interesting.
My quiver of skis in their widths. 65,65,65,78,78,88,100,116. Rarely pull out anything over 78, even for powder. Proper use of ski design in a turn is a wondrous thing!
I completely agree Deb, especially about the "blind leading the blind", the number of beginner skiers on social media (often by "influencers") I see being recommended buy 100mm wide powder skis, when they're going to spend 99% of their time on groomed snow, and barely know how to ski yet is absolutely ridiculous. The hummer in the city analogy is brilliant. I get people are aspirational and want to be those big mountain skiers they see in amazing edits, but rental shops and stores need to be more responsible and recommend them skis that are actually suited to their skiing, and that are going to help them improve so they can actually achieve their aspirations. Increasingly as well I'm seeing this insane influencer narrative that good ski technique, particularly derived from racing (e.g. carving) will stifle skiers creativity, and they shouldn't bother with it, as if the best freeriders didn't all have racing backgrounds! At best this advice is irresponsible, at worst it's downright dangerous. I watched your previous video on ski selection before buying my 70mm Rossi Hero Master LT's, which being someone who like to ski fast and carve big turns on hard packed snow are absolutely perfect for me! Before that all the advice I was seeing was telling me to get an "all mountain ski", but as a world cup ski tech a friend put me in touch with said, "all mountain ski is just a marketing term for a ski that isn't particularly good at anything".
This year i bought a pair of skis that were geared towards the intermediate skiier that does groomers. I didnt go for a twin-tip with a massive rocker, because i had to be honest about 100% of my skiing is resort/lesiure with a focus on not getting hurt xD
After watching some Deb videos, bought a pair of Blizzard 76s. Nice to feel a real carve sensation but they were incredibly catchy. Tore my ACL after a simple fall and the binding failing to release until the very end. Wish I were on a more forgiving pair of my all mountain skis that day.
For me it all comes down to how many skis you are willing to own, that is, the size of your quiver. I have three pairs of different widths: 88, 94, 117. The 88s are great on hard pack groomers; the 94s are a lot of fun when playing around on tracked out snow and crud; the 117s are heaven when the snow is knee deep or more. Sure, you can make a narrow ski work in deep snow, but why struggle when a fatty works so much better? Anyway, if you are shooting for a one ski quiver, go for the narrow ski. If you have the luxury of picking from multiple skis, mix it up.
The question is ‘are you strong enough to get the ski (width) on edge?’ If you already are sliding a lot and wish you could carve like Ted Ligety wide skis aren’t going to help you.
Yes, yeah, and yup. You guys nailed it. I teach alpine and telemark in Vermont. New tele skiers show up with rentals far too wide (98 +) for learn to lessons. Not in any way ideal. I ski mostly on 88 or narrower. If 10” plus then i go to my 102’s. Hey , it’s Vermont.
Thank you. I've been skiing for 59 years. I ski hard, fast all day. I've raced. I like and have always skied on a narrow waist. My favorite ski is 110/71/97, 187. I can ski on any snow, any condition. I wouldn't ever go wider than a 88 waist and ONLY in a deep powder ski. I will admit My family is from Austria and I ski that style. I began as soon as I could walk. Imagine the Austrian or Swiss Interski demo team. It's a distinct style. But I can ski the deepest of powder or the hardest pack, The best in a cut I've come to love. I learned on wood skis, with bear trap bindings and segmented edges, lace up leather boots and wool socks. I remember duct taping cardboard to my forearms and shins, before plastic was used to attack gates. If you can ski a black diamond you can ski anything. Parabolic skis for me felt like power steering, and allowed me to ski longer each day since I wasn't pushing to make the straight edge ski arc. I wish more people would ski thinner skis. Its easier to shift from edge to edge. And yeah, a thinner waist is more European.
I have a quiver (mostly narrow) and was on a pair of Atomic G9 Redster FIS skis with (red) Redster bindings one day and this guy came up to me at the lodge at the end of the day convinced he needed skis like mine. I had seen him ski and actually met him briefly during the day. Very much a novice. You wanna know why he thought he needed such an aggressive ski? They looked cool! I learned a lot about ski choice from that guy.
You cant go wrong with 2 sets of Skis. I use Atomic Redster S9 for my daily ski and a Kaestle FX95HP for days I want to be off the side a lot when it is chucking it down. In general Id rather have a skinny ski on icy runs here in Scotland
Great stuff. Just picked up a pair of Mindbender 85s for my mom, great to hear that is in the ideal width range! I'll keep skiing my SideSeth 116s though, they're great for that PNW hippy pow ;)
Good advice here overall. I don't know that I'd agree 88-98 is a good starting point for men. 98 is still pretty wide for what most skiers actually do, but that's just my opinion. I love, love, love, the idea of getting some video of yourself and bringing it into the store. I have 66 underfoot (Stockli laser SL) for mid-west groomers and also use these on groomer days out west. And Rossi Sender 94 for all the other big mountain conditions. I don't currently have anything in the 80-90mm range, but maybe next season. So many factors go into picking a ski with the diversity of skis today. Waist width is just one of them. (length, sidecut, rocker/camber, stiffness/flex, etc...) Impossible to cover all of that in one video though. I have never had a ski wider that 98 at the waist, but then I don't live near the mountains.
I felt she was adressing this as if someone was to have only one ski. And I agree, an 88 is really versatile. But I'm more like you. Got racing skis, enforcer 94, twintips, powder skis... its a disease! 😂
I ended up going with a black crows camox freebird with Salomon shift mnc bindings for backcountry. My thought was to have a variable condition ski but I’ve found it’s too lightweight and not stiff enough for the east coast ice and low snow conditions. 96mm waist. Back to the quiver of arrows and a car full of different pairs for me.
Wide skis are good if you want to throw money away trying to ski off piste. The problem is wide skis are a one trick pony that have little response to efficient skiing movements you can only learn on groomed runs. Learning is what makes our sport fun and you must keep on track with good technical advice. Expecting equipment to substitute for technique will result in bad results getting in over your head with snow, terrain conditions you can't handle. You could be injured. No substitute for the technique you learn on carving skis which work just fine off piste once your skills allow consistent early weight transfere you will be bomb proof in all conditions.
Hello Debbie, Love your videos. It's a trip to see Lefler as an older dude. I guess that means I'm now old too. Yep... I grew up a Steamboat local through the 80s. I was a teen competitive skier. A career choice took me out of the mountains and skiing and later I returned to skiing much older and after skis had major tech changes. I later moved to WA and skied weekly Alpental, (many runs down "Debby's Gold," et al) Soqualamie or Crystal. I had never experienced snow like in WA, including the regular 3 ft of mashed potato snow. Like in Jaws 1, when the main character first sees the shark, my first big snow storm in WA I said to myself, "I need a bigger boat," trying to keep the sticks afloat. And through those years skiing in WA, with its plethora of funky conditions I learned a lot more about skis than was ever an issue growing up in CO where a normal exceptional pow day is less than a foot of fluff. Through experimentation and relearning the trade in a different region I ended up with a quiver. These last couple years I'm back in Colorado. One thing no-one talks about is how hard it is physically to hold an edge on firmer snow with a wide ski than a narrow. It is purely physics. As you and most better, yet albeit lesser than Olympic skiers like myself know, wrenching over a fat ski and holding it on edge takes a helluva a lot more muscle than a narrow ski. I see tons of Colorado skiers skiing the normal packed conditions on fatter skis, fighting chatter and having to skid J-turn. And then there is skiing bump runs... Fat skis just suck in skied-out bumps. And IMO, the things are not only exhausting in the wrong conditions, they are dangerous on the knees. Especially for older skiers. They just aren't the right tool for everyday use. When the conditions warrant, oh hell yeah I'll take a 115 underfoot, or even a 95, etc, they are amazing fun in the right situations, but for the 99% most days on terrain accessible via lift, an "ALL MOUNTAIN" 85 underfoot is more than a bigger boat. When I ski with my niece and nephew who live at the base of Shawnee Peak in Maine, I'm even wishing for less. But it isn't just the influence crowd selling the big mountain skis, its the industry. The industry sells that once in a blue moon, (and that's if your local), dream knee to waist deep pow day. Thanks for posting this vid that IMO a lot of folks would be well-advised to see.
Ive been skiing for almost 50 years. I've tried wider. Tried skinnier. For certain runs I absolutely love the wider. But for the whole day, I like skinnier. 85 mm underfoot or a little less. 88mm max. I like to use length to get the float rather than the width. I ski moguls, trees, steeps, pow, and then groomers to the bottom. So I prefer something easy to turn, relatively light, length for stability at speed (I'm heavy, 250). So balsa, poplar, aspen, and some metal in the core. Technique allows for powder days. I always have a good day😊
In early/late season in the East the grommer will be shredded within first hour into slushy crud. You will really need something wider. I like mid 90s. There are many good wide carvers out there.
Hi Deb. I thoroughly enjoy your videos. I have learned so much. I noticed you were questioning your ski pole length during your video on mogul skiing. What are your thoughts about using adjustable- length poles? I have been considering the Play Snowsports poles out of Australia. I learned about them from a video with Paul Gellie discussing pole length with Paul Lorenz, the owner of Play Snowsports.
I love my wide skis in the morning when all the powder is fresh and switch afternoon to my all mountain K2s in afternoon when powder gets beaten up and i switch to more groomers.. I ski Anthony Lakes where we have alot of fresh powder everyday its open. Powder this week was 2-3 feet. Wide ski is a must on our mountain to ski the ungroomed powder. I do love my K2 all mountains for groomers and not so deep powder. I am intermediate advanced skier and can do black diamonds. I am female mid 50s pretty athletic and wider skis for me are for more floating runs they are not quick carvers. I love having two skis for two different types of snow its worth the money.
I am a 66 year old skier who has been skiing since age 7 and lean toward a more slalom cut ski, I ski in new england and west I recently bought a new pair of 88 width skis after demoing about 10 others and am having a blast on them . I did try a pair 76 width stockli ax's , and the ride was just amazing , telepathic, but probable were not going to do the job in deeper snow so I opted for the 88's. I agree the ski choice should be based on region and ski style/level , anything over 88 would probably not work great in the east since the conditions are so variable and ice , icy hardpack and granular are pretty normal conditions..
The development in ski-construction is tremendous and also in Europe we have more and more skiers who prefer wider skis for all circumstances you may have over a day or week of skiing. The „one for anything ski“. Maybe not 86mm +, but wider than in the last years. I bought the Atomic Redster Q9.8 with 182 cm, 85 mm in the middle, but a radius of 15 m. And this thing is so much fun - also in icy conditions. As well as the Völkl Deacon 84. So, we still don‘t buy that much Pickups, but also wider skis 😉😂
Sometimes theres a lot of focus on width under foot being the definition of what type of ski it is. I own a pair of Rossignol Soul 7's (that I paid for myself, not sponsored or anything) and they are 136mm at the tip, 106mm under foot and 126mm at the tails. These skis make amazing what I would call All mountain skis because, despite their width under foot, they are fantastic on the piste because they are thin and flexible. I wouldn't say they are any good for beginners but for intermediate skiers (can carve and make parallel turns confidently) these skis are great for everything outside of competition. I use the 186cm length (I am about 185cm and 85Kg) but the effective piste edge is closer to 170cm. For me, I don't want to take a quiver of skis on holiday, I just want 1 pair and these fit the bill on hard pack icy pistes and out in the powder. The key really is to try skis and see how they work for you but these just work on everything and have got me out of trouble where on a piste ski I would have got caught out and these are situations both on and off the piste. If you want to become a world cup racer, they're no goo0d but as a playful, go anywhere ski any snow type ski, I think they are fantastic!
In Québec and I start the day on a 78mm Carving ski with metal and later move to a 82mm rockered and softer ski. I would like to get a 90+ mm eventually, but there's not much days for those here.
I'm a Korean American skier who mainly skied in Korea my whole life. Since Korea has very icy snow conditions, we only have groomers and most of the skiers are centered towards more slalom / gs skis, also influenced by our skiing trends that we pursue more techniques than freeriding. Along the same context, skiers tend to wear ski outfits that are more fitted or that are for resort conditions than freeriding (Onyone, Decent, Goldwin over Arcteryx or Haley Hansen or so). There are barely any people who use skis that are wider than a 70 underfoot. As I have experience skiing in a few places in Hokkaido Japan, Whistler, Zermatt, and Tahoe, based on my petty knowledge (I might be wrong), I would say that most of the skiers choose the right skis based on their snow conditions or their purpose of skiing, if they pass a certain level. I personally used a slalom ski back in Korea, but a 84 and a 100 in Tahoe based on the day's condition.
I think that applies here in Australia too, although I foolishly telemark so I always find I need a notch narrower in every condition - but great video again DebArmstrong
Glen used to shred moguls on DH boards! That says it all! Every ‘debutant `wants to master off piste, carving, short radius, long radius…. Learn how a ski works and drive it accordingly! There are sports cars, 4x4’s, tractors…All have a purpose but they all move you forward. You can change your tools but if you don’t have the skills they won’t work! Go to the hire shop and try them all….😁
Heading out to Breck in January and want to go narrower this year. I want more performance on turns! Moving from intermediate to advanced skier. 5'8" 155 lb male. Recommendations? Usually go 155-158 length.
An eastern male skier who went from a Volkl 81 for years and wanted a bit more veratility and landed with a K2 Mindbender 89 . SO much of the info on websites is from WESTERN skiers but that is not where i ski and the 89 gets me enough versatility for most of my skiing. I guess if I went out west I would just rent according to the conditions and if I hit one of those big powder days I would grab a set of 100 cm powder skis.
Skiing Slalom Carver 170 (13r) 68mm under foot as it allows me to to perfect my technique and they are just really fun. Will rent fat ski on a pow day, but have not yet felt the need. Greetings from Europe.
