Hi.
I've been skiing for the last 5 years & have always hired skis, but I have a female friend selling some Salomon Crossmax 07 skis that she was sold as womens skis. I've tried Crossmax before & they're a good ski. My question is what is the difference between the mens version & the womens? Is there a difference or would it be ok to buy & use these skis?
Thanks in advance, Andy :)
Mens & womens skis.
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In the past it's mostly been pink paint for women and that's been the difference, recently the companies have been fairly candid about their past sins to promote new properly designed women skis.
Having a lower centre of gravity for women has some interesting effects on turning a ski, it's actually slightly easier for a women and some skis are designed with this built-in . Taking any ski off the shelf then a women would tend to do better on a softer ski with the bindings a bit further forward while at an expert level that's less true.
Mostly the same construction is used for men and women skis and for a lot of recreational skis that's a foam core which will not perform well over time, if you overuse or overpower any foam core ski it's going to degrade and it's not any particular issue for women skis.
So, a womens version of the crossmax is likely to be a softer version of the mens skis with the bindings a bit further forward which probably won't work for you.
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Started by Bullfinch in Ski Hardware 30-Jan-2009 - 2 Replies
Bullfinch posted Jan-2009
Pavelski
reply to 'Mens & womens skis.' posted Jan-2009
Bullfinch,
Excellent question that many skiers never ask,,,,,but wonder!
Three factors make a great difference!
The first is very unimportant since it relates to top skin or look of ski! You know those nice flowers, shades of pink, swirls that go well with suit! That is a personal preference!
The second is the flex pattern of the ski!
That is how does ski bend at; tip, center and tails! This had major impact of ski dynamics!
Clearly a softer flexed ski is "easier" for most women!
There are many combinations of flex that a ski may have,,however to answers your question men's skis tend to be more "stiff" than women's and as you go up performance levels men's skis tend to be stiffer at tails!
The very critical parameter in this comparison is the "torsion" of the ski! What is torsion index?
It is the amount of force you must exert on a ski edge near tip to twist ski!
So if you place tail in a vice and then take vice grips and place them at tip. You can turn vice grips laterally until ski will "twists"! The distance that tip moves is called torsion index!
What does this have to do with skiing and women's skiing?
Well Bullfinch,,the softer the ski is (in terms of torsion) the easier to turn and bit into snow! In skiing terms, "it is a forgiving" ski! Easy to ski with! It allows skier to make "mistakes". It flexes like a snake moving on surface!
The negative part of this type of ski (since nothing is free) is that is is not as responsive,,not has "sharp" as a stiffer ski! It gives more so is not as "tight" on fast hard terrain!
Men are supposed to be "stronger" than women,,so most men's skis are stiffer (in terms of torsion) thus require more muscle to place that ski on edge and hold it!
In my opinion a man should NEVER ski on a women's ski (regardless of price) since in two to three years the ski will be "dead"! Flat and feel like a noodle!
There are many other issues about differences between women and men's skis ,,but those three will give you an good overall picture!
Do not assume that since top graphics indicate same ski (ie model XYZ) that in fact it is same skis! Some smart companies are now making husban/wife,,girlfriend/boyfriend skis for those couples that want to stay united,,,even during skiing!
No comment!
May I make a personal comment about issue!
If you are a women and are in the "expert" level( that is mastered to effective way to ski with modern skis),,,,then get a high performace ski! Skis do not have any gender! They will sing,,if you know how to play them!
The last thing to look at is top layer! It is what is in the middle that is vital!
Hope this helps you Bullfinch!
Respectfully,
Pavel
Excellent question that many skiers never ask,,,,,but wonder!
Three factors make a great difference!
The first is very unimportant since it relates to top skin or look of ski! You know those nice flowers, shades of pink, swirls that go well with suit! That is a personal preference!
The second is the flex pattern of the ski!
That is how does ski bend at; tip, center and tails! This had major impact of ski dynamics!
Clearly a softer flexed ski is "easier" for most women!
There are many combinations of flex that a ski may have,,however to answers your question men's skis tend to be more "stiff" than women's and as you go up performance levels men's skis tend to be stiffer at tails!
The very critical parameter in this comparison is the "torsion" of the ski! What is torsion index?
It is the amount of force you must exert on a ski edge near tip to twist ski!
So if you place tail in a vice and then take vice grips and place them at tip. You can turn vice grips laterally until ski will "twists"! The distance that tip moves is called torsion index!
What does this have to do with skiing and women's skiing?
Well Bullfinch,,the softer the ski is (in terms of torsion) the easier to turn and bit into snow! In skiing terms, "it is a forgiving" ski! Easy to ski with! It allows skier to make "mistakes". It flexes like a snake moving on surface!
The negative part of this type of ski (since nothing is free) is that is is not as responsive,,not has "sharp" as a stiffer ski! It gives more so is not as "tight" on fast hard terrain!
Men are supposed to be "stronger" than women,,so most men's skis are stiffer (in terms of torsion) thus require more muscle to place that ski on edge and hold it!
In my opinion a man should NEVER ski on a women's ski (regardless of price) since in two to three years the ski will be "dead"! Flat and feel like a noodle!
There are many other issues about differences between women and men's skis ,,but those three will give you an good overall picture!
Do not assume that since top graphics indicate same ski (ie model XYZ) that in fact it is same skis! Some smart companies are now making husban/wife,,girlfriend/boyfriend skis for those couples that want to stay united,,,even during skiing!
No comment!
May I make a personal comment about issue!
If you are a women and are in the "expert" level( that is mastered to effective way to ski with modern skis),,,,then get a high performace ski! Skis do not have any gender! They will sing,,if you know how to play them!
The last thing to look at is top layer! It is what is in the middle that is vital!
Hope this helps you Bullfinch!
Respectfully,
Pavel
Ise
reply to 'Mens & womens skis.' posted Jan-2009
Bullfinch wrote:Hi.
I've been skiing for the last 5 years & have always hired skis, but I have a female friend selling some Salomon Crossmax 07 skis that she was sold as womens skis. I've tried Crossmax before & they're a good ski. My question is what is the difference between the mens version & the womens? Is there a difference or would it be ok to buy & use these skis?
Thanks in advance, Andy :)
In the past it's mostly been pink paint for women and that's been the difference, recently the companies have been fairly candid about their past sins to promote new properly designed women skis.
Having a lower centre of gravity for women has some interesting effects on turning a ski, it's actually slightly easier for a women and some skis are designed with this built-in . Taking any ski off the shelf then a women would tend to do better on a softer ski with the bindings a bit further forward while at an expert level that's less true.
Mostly the same construction is used for men and women skis and for a lot of recreational skis that's a foam core which will not perform well over time, if you overuse or overpower any foam core ski it's going to degrade and it's not any particular issue for women skis.
So, a womens version of the crossmax is likely to be a softer version of the mens skis with the bindings a bit further forward which probably won't work for you.
Topic last updated on 31-January-2009 at 13:47