Conference bgsdev::skiing

    I had a chance to take a few runs on the Volkl Carver XT last night. 
    These were in a 184 and were set up with a Salomon demo binding.  
    
    In a nutshell I did not like them.  They were great for short, fall line
    turns but in longer radii I had a hard time getting them to engage and
    hold.  They seemed fairly stable at speed in a straight line and edge 
    changes were impressively quick but trying to lay them out to arc a long 
    turn became a chore if not downright scary in a few instances.  It may 
    have been the way they were tuned or should I say not tuned or the snow 
    conditions or the length being too short or all of the above.  
    Regardless, I did not enjoy them and could not wait to get back on my
    Dynastars.   
    
    I have yet to ski a pair of Volkls that I have enjoyed.  I know there
    are a bunch of folks that rave about them but I have yet to find a pair
    that I would actually like to own.  The person I was with seemed to
    like them quite a bit and is thinking about buying the Carvers. 
    Perhaps in a longer length.  
    
    Brian

 Brian

 The XT is the softer version of the Carver series for Volkl. It similar to the
 K2 3 and Rossi Cut 9.9 in flex. For long radius high speed turns try the Volkl
 Carver Plus or the new P30 Race Carver in the Volkl line. I think you will
 like them a little more.

 I will be testing the new Rossi line on Monday at Waterville Valley. They have
 some new stuff that looks quite interesting.
 
 Later,

 Dave
                                                                          
 BTW: I don't even notice I am wearing a Helmet anymore. But it's going to be
     hot this weekend so I'll see if it's uncomfortable in the spring skiing
     situation.

    I had a chance to try two shaped skis recently, both at Sunday River
    and both on a "difficult" condition day.  We had received 4-5" of new
    snow with a 1/4" of soft crust on top.  Nothing had been rolled out so
    it became skied out pretty quickly with clumps of snow here and there
    and ice underneath.  It was a challenging day going from clump to
    clump.  It was actually more fun to be in the woods and bumps than the
    cruisers.  
    
    The first ski I tried was the Volant Super Carve S which is a softer
    version of the Super Carve i.  This was a 183 (?) with a Marker M51SC 
    binding set at the II position.  First turns were shaky.  I found that
    I was skiing far too upright and working too hard.  We took several
    runs down Airglow which proved to have a nice corridor of firm snow but
    not ice.  It proved to be perfect for getting a feel for edge grip. 
    One of the complaints my companion had was that she was not able to get
    any snap out of the ski.  With all the soft snow, it was easy to see
    why.  We traded, she on my 203 G9s and me on her 185 Volants.  A sort
    of reverse Jack Spratt scenario :-).   
    
    The top part of the run was all cut up with crud.  I found the tips
    wandering a bit but I also hadn't really laid them out to let them
    work.  They really did not feel very stable at this point.  About 1/3
    of the way down, a nice corridor opened up along one side.  I deciced
    to really get them on edge and away from my body to see what they would
    do.  I was rewarded with a series of nice crisp medium radius turns. 
    Edge hold on the hard pack was exceptional.  These felt very stable
    underfoot with good manners.  They definitely shined in short to meduim
    turns but there was no hint of twitchiness if I let them run a little. 
    Pretty much a point and shoot ski.  They were soft though.  I did get
    some nice little rebound turns going but I think I was overpowering the
    ski a bit.  I would have liked to have taken them into the bumps but my 
    partner was not having a good time on my skis and I kind of wanted mine 
    back too so we switched back up after two runs.
    
    The verdict?  With the limited time I had on them they were fun enough
    to want to spend more time with them to see how they handled varied
    terrain.  I think a slightly longer length would have been better for
    me.  I would like to try the Super Carve i also.  I think I might have
    a tendancy to overpower the "s" version.  Several folks at the 
    Red Parka Pub race did very well on these.  Definitely worth a demo if
    you are looking for a shaped ski that can handle a wide variety of 
    missions.  Might be an okay choice if this is the only pair you own.  
    
    Brian
    

    In the same visit, I skied the K2 El Camino in a 188.  Another friend
    want to try my skis so we did a swap for a good part of the afternoon.  
    Like the Volants, I initially skied these far too upright and did not
    allow the ski to work as designed.  Eventually I relaxed and was able
    to get the skis away from my body which is where they kicked in and
    started working.  These were not as lively as the Volants and felt much
    softer.  Turn initiation was easy but you really have to be willing to
    let them get up on edge to work.  This was great in soft snow and
    hardpack.  Edge hold on ice though was not good.  It may have been the
    tune but these were not confidence inspiring when the surface turned
    slick.  
    
    I did get to take these into the bumps though.  Vortex was in pretty
    good shape with alot of new snow still evident from the week before. 
    I found the El Camino to be very easy to handle in the large soft
    bumps.  The soft flex and shorter length pretty mush allowed me to
    choose any line I wanted.  Over, around or across the bumps and they
    conformed pretty well.  There was ice lurking under some of the soft
    stuff which became a chore but overall this felt like a nice bump ski. 
    They also felt pretty light underfoot which made quick direction
    changes a little less work.  As we cruised back over towards mid
    mountain I was able to let them run a little.  As with the Volants,
    there were no bad manners displayed.  No straight line twitchiness.  
    
    Overall, they were okay.  Not as exciting to ski as the Volants were,
    slightly less lively.  It would be a good ski for someone primarily
    interested in bumps or the woods.  Not bad for an all mountain cruiser
    either.  Did not have a chance to kick up the speed at all though
    really let them run.  I would want to try them again after verifying
    the tune before I passed full judgement on how they handle ice.  I had
    a very difficult time holding these when it got icy.  It was to the
    point the I abondoned the turn I was in until I could get to a spot to
    affect a direction change.  It may have been me, the conditions or the
    ski.  I suspect it was a combination.  Bottom line was the El Camino
    was okay to ski on but I will not be rushing out to buy a pair.  It
    proved to be too soft for my tastes and too much work on ice.  
    
    Brian

    
    I demo'd a pair of Elan MBX's and a pair of Solomon Force9's while I
    was out Utah.
    
    I was not as impressed the performance of the Solomons and I was with
    the Elans.  The Solomons were good in bumps where you didn't need to
    lift your skis off the ground....but when it came to drop turns they
    slagged.  Very good for wide, high speed turns and also in bumos that
    weren't tight.
    
    The Elan MBX's were extremely impressive.  Very good in tight bumps and
    mushy snow.  Good with moderate-tight turns.  Excellent with drop
    turns.  Fantastic edge control.  Ok with fast long turns but not
    exceptional.  
    
    I've never been a big Eland freak, but these skis were rewarding.