J2Ski Forum Posts and Replies by Trencher

Great to hear your having fun on the skis Dean.

On the subject of snowboarding, you should of course try it, if only to have some reference base decisions on.

IMHO if you hit the slopes less than say 10 times a season, you are may be better off skiing. Unless you are a natural with, wakeboard or skateboard etc experience, the initial learning curve is steep, not to mention occasionally painful if you learn on ice.

On skis you will be able to progress much faster, but when you start hitting different terrain, moguls, ice, steeps etc, you will find you have reached the steeper part of the ski learning curve, unless you live in the mountains and have a lot of exposure to these things.

Once you have good control of a snowboard, you can get about in terrain that someone with same the amount of time on skis would struggle with.

These of course are generalisations and everyone is different.

Then there is the feel factor, that is, what feels right for you ?

My feeling is that it might be better to concentrate on one thing at a time. Feel comfortable with it and then add something new.

Trencher

Actually pavelski is the wrist band man

What I would mention is that you are looking for gloves to cover a wide temperature range, maybe 15 degrees C. You would not expect to wear the same clothes on a +10C day as on a +25C day.

If you suffer often from cold hands, then you may have to invest in more than one pair of gloves / mittens.

I have ski mittens which I wear in temps down to -25C (+windchill), that I also wear on warm days as well. Bit sweaty, not uncomfortable.

If you are determined to stick with one pair of gloves, I think your only option is the heater packs. These do work better with mittens.

I've heard that the battery heated glove liners are a pain in the neck. Not sure if anyone still makes them.

Also, if your body starts to get cold, your extremities will start to loose circulation and get colder faster.


Trencher

Another thought on this height/weight/length discussion.

If you are a tall, light weight male, you might look at women specific skis, which I think have a softer flex for a given length. I'm not sure if the bindings have a different placement, but if they do, it would be forward and therefor better for carving.

Another option for light weight men or (average women), might be junior race skis.

Trencher

As I understand it, skis can be softer flexing now days while still having good torsional flex properties. Torsional flex is the worst thing in a carving ski and in the past it was neccersary to make a very stiff ski to prevent this. The latest skis also have far better damping. These properties have made skis that hold an edge while still being soft.

I do think it is easier to learn to carve on softer skis (with a small radius sidecut), but this is obviousely relative to the skiers weight. This does mean that as a skiers carving improves, they might want to upgrade to a stiffer ski.

I have seen people trying to carve on skis that are too stiff. Thier progress was very slow because most people cannot go straight into aggressive carves and therefor don't generate the forces to decamber the stiff ski.

Trencher

I looked up the sidecut radius of both skis. Yours is 18m and the M11 is about 12m. That's a huge difference in ease of carving. Your skis will carve tighter turns, but you will need to have your hip 6" (150mm) off the snow at speed to make that happen.

It sounds like you are having trouble carving the ends of you turns. There's all sorts of reasons why that could be. If you can find an instructor that can carve well (easiest at a hill where there is a ton of racing), a lesson may pay off.

I think it is easier to learn to carve on smaller radius skis or snowboard. You might try to rent some skis like the Metrons (>12m r). Try a less steep hill and maybe try to copy what your buddy is doing (if you like the way he skis).

Nothing makes a edge loose it's grip more than a lack of inclination and nothing reduces inclination more than a lack of angulation.

Good luck

Trencher

Man made, east coast snow is the best reason to learn to carve. You will be suprised at how well the edges grip, even when the snow seems almost icey.

Skis have become quite specialised in recent years. As Max says, unless you want to go very fast, long skis are not needed for the conditions you are encountering. Side cut radius is more important. Shorter skis are easy to handle (especially when it's crowded) and shorter skis will normally have a smaller radius sidecut. This is important as this smaller radius sidecut will allow you to learn to carve at lower speeds. So rather than worry about length, I would look for skis with a 10 to 12 metre radius side cut. These will proberbly be in the 156 to 165 cm range for length. Try to find something that is soft flexing to start with (not a slalom race ski). This will be relative to your weight and I guess that's where the height comes - taller =heavier.

If you are commited to this sport, you might have to accept the fact that the best skis to learn on, are not going to be what you want in two seasons time. By then you may well want something longer and faster, but that would hinder your progress now.

Trencher

Sure you were not behind one of these guys....

http://www.rockboarding.com/index1.htm
click on skiing, menu on left.

Shoulders are the most complex joint to hurt, hope it gets better.

Trencher

bustin

Try posting your question on the forum here

http://www.newschoolers.com/web/content/main

good luck

Trencher