Review: ON3P Vicik -- 176

[curtf]

REVIEW: 176 ON3P VICIK – BEST PNW DAILY DRIVER

Occasional lurker but I just have to spread the word about these skis and about Scott, Rowen and ON3P. Also, I haven't seen a lot of reviews of shorter skis and figured I should let folks know about these.

Me: 55 years old (God, how did that happen?); 5’6” 165 naked; Like to ski fast (too fast for my aging bones, probably). 50/50 Touring/resort; like the up as much as (well, almost as much as) the down.

Skis I’ve loved: In all honesty, none, really (before these). I’ve liked the old BD Verdict (last year with the foam core), BD Havoc (purple and green), Trab Duo Free Rando, Pontoons.

I’ve had the Viciks out about 6 days. Got them to replace my daily driver Havocs after taking a tour of the ON3P shop this fall and demoing the Wrenegades at Hood over Labor Day. While I loved the Wrens for mach stupid on the T-Line groomed, I was a little scared of what they might do to me in tight trees and steep chutes so, based largely on Rowen’s recommendation, I decided to dial it back a bit and try the Wren’s smaller sibling. I’m glad I did. First off, build quality and finish is simply top notch. As expected, based on what I had read and what I observed at the shop, they seem absolutely bomber. I have them mounted with Quiverkillers/Barons and I have to say that installing the QKs was eye-opening for me. The bamboo core is HARD and more consistent than any wood core ski I’ve ever drilled.

First day out was a mix of dust on crust and icy bumps. I have to admit to feeling a little tentative on them at first. They seemed a little hooky and didn’t seem to want to hold an edge on icy surfaces. As I skied them, however, I got more confident and started to up the speed a bit. The skis responded and started to shine. Finished the day going stoopid fast on firm groomers and arcing big GS-type turns even through bumps. The Viciks seemed to reward an aggressive driver with predictability and stability. If I was tentative and got in the back seat, it was sometimes kind of ugly but if I kept my weight forward and turned up the speed, the skis were boatloads of fun.

Since that time, I have skied these in classic PNW crud, from cut up heavy powder to soft bumps to mashed potatoes to slushy untracked. These conditions are where the Viciks absolutely shine. They charge through anything and don’t get tossed around. The early rise tips and stiff flattish tails are the perfect combination for a PNW daily driver. The early rise and tip shape lets the skis go smoothly over stuff that would have bucked me around on the Havocs. This allows you to sort of “double dip” thorough the bumps, skipping off the top where you might normally use shorter turns to follow the troughs. They also cut through anything that is at all softish and give more than adequate float and “turnability” in heavy untracked tight steeps. The stiff tails lets you sit back a bit and accelerate out of turns to charge into the next one. They are unbelievably stable at speed (especially for a ski this short – but hey, I’m a little guy…) but you can slow them down enough for tight places. When he encouraged me to pull the trigger on these, Rowen said that if he has to pick one ski to bring to the hill and he is unsure about the conditions, he takes the Vicik. I can’t agree more. They are chargers with a slightly playful side.

I plan to install QK inserts for Dynafits and use this as a touring ski but haven’t gotten around to that yet. I have other dedicated touring skis and, frankly, I’ve been having enough fun on these just riding the lifts.

[Poop~Ghost]

Scott who? I kid... Scott and ON3P are well loved and supported around these parts. Glad to hear the midget skis rip as hard as the full size.

[Sessiøn]

There is some dude at Meadows on last years 176's. I never see him without a shit eating grin on his face when we check out each others ON3P's.

[Ducky]

I have last year's 176's and ski at Meadows so........ I concur that these are fantastic PNW daily drivers for most everything that this region throws at us. No matter where you ski, if you have cut up powder, these things kill it. I've skied the Wren's and would say the Vicik's are just a bit easier to handle. There is a fair amount of overlap between the two (at least last year's models). As curtf says they charge through everything. What I find most interesting, and enjoyable, about all of the ON3P skis is that they have stiffness and are poppy at the same time.

I've tried a lot of skis in the past couple of years and nothing compares to the ON3P's I've tried. They actually changed the way I look at the mountain. Have this years 181 Caylor lites as well and that is a whole nuther story - Ridiculously FUN!