Advice regarding powder skis

[Lostmyboards]

I’m an accomplished old school mogul/steeps skier raised at A-Basin and spend most of my turns in the air. While I’ve learned to carve and keep my tips down and edges on the snow, I like snap and camber and power. I depend on the tails when I get over aggressive, screw up, or have grabbed too much. I’m moving to Mt Bachelor and need some new style and equipment for this new terrain. Right now I’m skiing old Dynastar Legends with Full Tilt Bumblebee boots and enjoy them in moguls and crud. I did Silverton during good powder in the first gen K2 Darksides and absolutely loved them. I did Crystal in Blizzard Bonafides and hated them, even in the lift line. I’m not a techie, I don’t think about my skiing, I just do it. I have been reviewing skis and am interested in Mr. Pollard's Opus. Their description as long edged, evenly flexed, moderately cambered, non plowing shovel, playful, versatile, and switch appeals to me, I think. I have a hard time interpreting reviews because, I don't know what I do, I just do it, mostly. I need big fat powder skis and want to roll and fly the wind lips and dance with trees. Do you think these may be good choice for me? if not, what might you recommend?

[ACH]

I’m an accomplished old school mogul/steeps skier raised at A-Basin and spend most of my turns in the air. While I’ve learned to carve and keep my tips down and edges on the snow, I like snap and camber and power. I depend on the tails when I get over aggressive, screw up, or have grabbed too much. I’m moving to Mt Bachelor and need some new style and equipment for this new terrain. Right now I’m skiing old Dynastar Legends with Full Tilt Bumblebee boots and enjoy them in moguls and crud. I did Silverton during good powder in the first gen K2 Darksides and absolutely loved them. I did Crystal in Blizzard Bonafides and hated them, even in the lift line. I’m not a techie, I don’t think about my skiing, I just do it. I have been reviewing skis and am interested in Mr. Pollard's Opus. Their description as long edged, evenly flexed, moderately cambered, non plowing shovel, playful, versatile, and switch appeals to me, I think. I have a hard time interpreting reviews because, I don't know what I do, I just do it, mostly. I need big fat powder skis and want to roll and fly the wind lips and dance with trees. Do you think these may be good choice for me? if not, what might you recommend?

Welcome to this place and congrats on posting in right forum...
This is pretty subjective, generally speaking I would say demo as many things as you can and pick the one you like best.
If you are living in the Bend area there should be plenty of access to demos at the variety of shops in town.

You and I share some things in common.
A-basin, flexon's (OK Full Tilts if you must) and skis with camber and metal.
You probably know how to bend a ski...

On that note, here's what has worked well for me.
For powder, I personally like a ski that is flat or near flat in camber (but still has pop) and a long turn radius with a flat tail that delivers when needed.
I also like something that isn't overly wide (anything past 122) and I like an early rise tip that isn't too "clown shoe".
The DPS Lotus 120 has fit the bill for me for a long time, so did the PM Gear Lhasa.

The Down skis look really interesting to me as well (check out the thread below):
http://www.tetongravity.com/forums/s...wn-114-Request

Good luck

Edited to add a few notes:
I live and ski in the PNW, a high percentage of the time at Alpental with semi frequent trips to Crystal, Steven's and Bachelor.

[oftpiste]

ACH, thanks for trying to sell another pair of the Downs..... Hope to see ya soon.

[XXX-er]

Get the red ones is the smart-ass answer

The lotus hybrid 120 are so great I have 2 pair AND

They are red

[The SnowShow]

ON3P Billy Goats

[galibier_numero_un]

Welcome! There are a lot of great skis I've never been on, and you'll get lots of good advice about them here.

I want to put the theme of bullet-proof skis out there for your consideration - in order to help you shorten what will become a long list.

There's lots of justified (IMHO) love for the small guys here - Praxis (from Reno), ON3P (near your new home), and Down (Swiss), and you can't go wrong with any of them. flowing alpy will chant the Praxis Rx mantra (NTTAWWT).

All things being equal (which they never are), the above three companies make bullet-proof skis. No doubt, some larger companies fit into this category, but as I mentioned, my experience with them is limited. Don't take their omission by me as anything but a reflection of my lack of experience with them.

About bulletproof ...

Last year, I snagged a particularly nasty shark in Montezuma Bowl - hitting it so hard, that I thought I sprained my ankle. You know that sound a ski makes when you hit a shark. I inspected the base (can't remember if they were my Praxis GPO's or ON3P Billy Goats) and found only a faint impression. You'll find recurring comments about these three brands to this effect. If this were my Atomic Automatics, it would have easily been a core shot.

Cheers,
Thom

[bigdude2468]

Read the Blister Gear reviews(s) of Moments Bibby Pro, I think its awesome. FWIW I have a pair of Bonifdes that I use for strictly groomers / hard pack conditions. Like it there, do not like it in pow or soft snow.

[undertow2]

First off, no way is the Opus what you are looking for... I am 6'4" and have the 192 Opus for when I am kicking it with the kids and just lazy fun skiing... The ski is fun as shit and does well in most condition and is by far one of my favorite skis for tree skiing due to the mount point and turn radius... However, it sucks in crud and is horrible in manky heavy PNW cement which no doubt you will experience in Bend/Bachelor...

I do not live in Bend, but I have been traveling there for the past 7 years and to date my go to ski has been the Praxis GPO... Jack of all trades... And as stated above the other ski that would hit the nail on the head (better at switch skiing than the GPO) would be the ON3P Billygoat... Both skis handle both POW (edge to Billy) and the heavy wet shit snow you will get there and both skis are an absolute blast in the trees... And while you are looking at the Billygoat from ON3P you will probably want to take a look at the Kartel 116... I have yet to ski mine, but it is another ski that would fit your bill, but just a bit more jibby if that is what you are looking for...

There are other skis from other companies, but as Thom said above you will def be hitting plenty of lava rock at Bach and both Praxis and ON3P have some bad ass bases that are tuff as shit... And as always there were be plenty of skis you will have access to and demo...!

[johnnyg82]

Read the Blister Gear reviews(s) of Moments Bibby Pro, I think its awesome. FWIW I have a pair of Bonifdes that I use for strictly groomers / hard pack conditions. Like it there, do not like it in pow or soft snow.

I'll save you the search, here's the review: http://blistergearreview.com/gear-re...nt-blister-pro

[nyskirat]

Skied the Opus, definitely won't handle the sierra cement well.

[NW_SKIER]

Kopi_red has some opus he's willing to sell. Minty fresh too.

[ACH]

Likewise Oft!

[XavierD]

I've skied almost all the 115-120 skis that don't completely suck. Save time, get a pair of Billy Goats, stay forward, and don't expect miracles on firm snow.

I too liked the L120 P3, Blizzard Bodacious, Volkl Confession, Rossi Squad7, LP115, etc. didn't fall in love with the GPO. The Billy Goat is better than the sum of all of the others when it comes to skiing fast through a variety of soft snow conditions in resorts. If you're not looking to ski fast it doesn't matter.

[nickwm21]

If you want a pure powder resort ski, it is pretty hard to beat the Praxis Protest.

If you want a powder ski that will be great a few days after the storm, get a GPO, Bibby, or Billygoat.

[Lostmyboards]

I do love that my FT Bumble Bees are the Old School of the New Wave, first gen of the FT brand. I had no idea what they were when I got them, I just told Dave at the ski shop, that I wanted something with all the freedom and flexibility of the used rental boots I had grown up on, but with less pain. He did me good, on clearance! I love them so deeply. I carry them on the plane with me. I'd wear them as shoes if I had to.

My brother agrees, red is the fastest. He has also pointed me toward the Lotus. He is a techie.

Thanks everyone for the great advice. I see a clear consensus here. I am very excited about the Billygoats, but sadly could not find any used demos on the web, which speaks very well for them. If I'm going to have to pay retail I will have to demo them first, I guess. I will keep this thread as reference. I appreciate your help. Well, maybe I won't be able to help myself, and buy them now,...control.

[auvgeek]

I’m an accomplished old school mogul/steeps skier raised at A-Basin and spend most of my turns in the air.

Wait, are you Lindahl's dad?

If I'm going to have to pay retail I will have to demo them first, I guess.

ON3P is made in Portland. If you really want to demo, I'd bet it'd be easy to make that happen. But the Billy Goat does happen to be my very favorite ski of all time.

[galibier_numero_un]

Praxis Rx

I was beginning to worry ;-)

[ACH]

that's funny

Haha, thought the same...
Horrible!

[TBS]

^^^let me add my guffaws to this. He's obviously not skied at Mt Hood, Crustal or Alpental

OP, you need two sets of skis for MtB. The Billygoats will handle the storm and dump days well. That's about 25% of the time. You also need something with camber and edge hold for the Long periods between storms. Depending on model, your Legends may fit the bill.

[Lostmyboards]

It's good to see everyone showed up and fulfilled their roles. No, I left the Basin in 1987. Damn, old...... I have been back and it feels good. Gauthier was my favorite, I also love East Drain at Telluride because I bring the walls into the dance. I love hanging in the air as I rotate above my planted pole. I have been on the East Coast since, but you never know where you will be when one of those magical days happen. I can think of a few in the lowliest of Pocono areas. I've spent a little time in the PNW, but as correctly surmised, not much. I love my Legends for everything. When you compare them to powering down Montezuma Bowl in a pair of foam core The Skis, these perform like magic. I will continue to depend on them for my crustbusters and bumpers. But I need surfboards now too and am glad to have so much great advice.

[MagnificentUnicorn]

It's good to see everyone showed up and fulfilled their roles. No, I left the Basin in 1987. Damn, old...... I have been back and it feels good. Gauthier was my favorite, I also love East Drain at Telluride because I bring the walls into the dance. I love hanging in the air as I rotate above my planted pole. I have been on the East Coast since, but you never know where you will be when one of those magical days happen. I can think of a few in the lowliest of Pocono areas. I've spent a little time in the PNW, but as correctly surmised, not much. I love my Legends for everything. When you compare them to powering down Montezuma Bowl in a pair of foam core The Skis, these perform like magic. I will continue to depend on them for my crustbusters and bumpers. But I need surfboards now too and am glad to have so much great advice.

Which Legends? That is kinda vague. The Legend range had skis from 78 to 115 mm under foot.

[Lostmyboards]

2009 Dynastar Legend 8000 184 116/79/102 My favorite thing about them is that I can smash into anything and they will stay solid.

[MagnificentUnicorn]

2009 Dynastar Legend 8000 184 116/79/102 My favorite thing about them is that I can smash into anything and they will stay solid.

I had a pair of those, some special edition Val d' Isere version. They were a nice all mountain ski for days when it hadn't snowed in a week or so. If you want something like that but fatter for the powder, I think you might like the reissue of the Legend Pro 105 or something like the Armada Invictus 108ti.

[tuco]

ON3P has 183 C&D demos available on the website

[Lostmyboards]

Very interesting. I found a set of barely used Legend Pro 115 with the Marker Duke bindings I want. At this price the skis come free with the bindings. I want to explore new shapes in my powder boards, but it seems I will have a hard time passing this deal and I can explore other shapes later. What do you think of these skis?