The Long Overdue Review: Moment Garbones 192

[IrieRon]

Let's get this out of the way first: Admit it. You're wondering, "Are these too much ski for me?" Too stiff? Too burly? Too long? Too Sexy? Well, are you a whiny little bitch who frequently flails around in the back seat and then blames your equipment?

I am. And I have found my new bff.

Height: 6'2"
Weight: 195 lbs
Age: Perfectly situated to alternately pick up your mother or your sister, depending upon the venue.

Skier style:


Skis I own:
195 Praxis Powder
190 Volkl CMH Explosiv
190 Black Diamond Verdicts with Fritschi Freerides
191 Volkl 7/24 Pros
195 Salomon AK Rockets Which are now for sale for crazy cheap.

Favorite skis ever:
190 Igneous Fat Fall Lines of undetermined massive flex
210 Volkl RS P20

Skis I didn't like:
Pocket Rockets

Conditions:
Mank, slop, cheese grater, boilerplate, ice, corduroy, corn and regurgitated oatmeal.

Bindings: Salomon 914's mounted 9 cm back from true center

When I first picked these up from the ski shop, I thought, "Either I've over-medicated on my glaucoma prescription, or else those things are mounted backwards. They looked like they had a shitload of tail.

After skiing these all day and looking at the photo below, however, it was a temporary optical illusion. If I had to do it over again, I would perhaps mount an inch back, as I never ski switch on purpose. But really no complaints.





The first thing you notice about the Garbones is that they are beefy. Here they are base to base with a Volkl CMH Explosiv:




The second thing you notice is that they are stiff. When I dropped them off at the local shop to be mounted, ShopGuy involuntarily flexed them and said, simply, "Dude."

Now on to the skiing: They ball. Obviously they like to go fast. Real fast. But you already knew that. You already guessed that they are incredibly stable and with slightly rockered tips they quite calmly blast through the crappiest of the crap, of which I had a multitude to sample today.

All day long I kept repeating in my head, "Forward, Forward, Forward." These skis reward hard driving, and discourage backseat flailing. Anytime I wasn't forward, I could kind of feel the tails pushing back in disapproval. Kind of like the part in Talladega Nights when Ricky Bobby was driving with the live cougar. Show fear and the Garbones will maul you.






What surprised me was how well they handled short radius turns. I took them for a few laps in the Chutes and through the trees and they very willingly swung around, as long as I was on top of them. The rockered tip was not too noticeable on the hard stuff, the Garbones still grip like a whore with her hands down your briefcase.

In short, they are exactly what I hoped they'd be: a bad-ass mid-fat that will do anything I ask, except chatter. I've always tried to buy the burliest ski out there and try and raise my level to meet it, rather than buy some noodle that caters to and covers up my weaknesses. I want forgiveness in a deputy sheriff, not in my skis.

I haven't had a chance to ski them in pow, but to be honest in any serious dump I'll be on my 195 Praxis Powders. I need these to fill my crucial quiver slot of everyday driver, blasting the chop and bombing the groomers. They remind me of when I first skied my Igneous FFL's back in the day.

I was immediately like, "Oh hell yes."

[bennettc14]

Great to hear buddy, exactly what I figured but never seen a review. Would really love a pair for the EC to compliment my Lhasas. So the rocker is small enough where the rocker doesn't take too much off the effective edge?

[summer_teeth]

Nice review, I must admit I was feeling a little unworthy of the ski but now I want to try em out. There's a lot to be said for forcing ones self into a ski that will improve ones skills, plus they're straight up fuckin sexy.

[Kirby]

I nominate this for Review of Year...

...and yes it was long overdue.

[AKA]

Great to hear buddy, exactly what I figured but never seen a review. Would really love a pair for the EC to compliment my Lhasas. So the rocker is small enough where the rocker doesn't take too much off the effective edge?

how do these compliment lhasa? they are both big rockered skis they do the same thing.

[bennettc14]

^ Something longer stiffer and narrower for harder days, seems like the rocker isn't too big. Looking for something to replace my squads.

[squirrelmurphy]

how do these compliment lhasa? they are both big rockered skis they do the same thing.

They don't really do the same thing. Lhasas are a sick soft snow and pow ski, and one of the best BC skis around. Garbones are hard and soft snow monsters that will eat your children and win your comps. I think 196 lhasa/192 garbones might be the ultimate two ski quiver.

[D(C)]

Would you say they ski like a true 192 or does the rockered tip and small twin make them ski a bit shorter?

[toiletduck]

"You have to stay on the front of these" is something I've read a lot lately, here and on Lhasa reviews. Do you guys mean centred, or actually in the front seat?

[squirrelmurphy]

I felt like i needed to be very centered and balanced on the m1 (probably the same for garbones, no?), and definitely need to drive the tips of the 196 lhasas. Part of that could be that I skied the m1s w/ p18s and the lhasa's have dukes (no ramp angle).

[toiletduck]

Just asking since my mission all season has been to get off the fronts of my boots (at all times) as it's how the CSIA wants me to ski - I know a lot of people view instructor type stuff as for weenies but I'm never sure how to interpret it when people talk about "staying in front" in reviews. I always thought of driving the tips as aggressively steering, rather than weighting the front of the ski. I own 196 Lhasas but given getting too far forward is my bad habit to fix anyway it's tough to tell if I'm skiing them centred or not - I know exactly where it's coming from in the sense that if you do get backseat on them at all they kick your ass though.

[MTT]

Couple things, I liked them but I need to think about how mich I really liked them.

I was on Demo's So?? well yea lots of Tail. + a worn in 1&1 tune. Right away I new mine would be sharp @ 1&2

Like I said I skied my 1st 5 runs today on 194 Legend Pro's. Then got on on the Garbones for the Chutes opening. Very easy to run in the chutes @ Speed. Kinda neatral float in the deeper stuff. You can slash and burn speed very easy. I think they might have slashed to the side when I did not realy want them to a couple times.

More later

[skier666]

Your Igneous comment is spot on....

[IrieRon]

So the rocker is small enough where the rocker doesn't take too much off the effective edge?

Yeah, I felt like the rocker was not so pronounced as to render the tips ineffective on the hardpack. According to Moment the effective edge is 1650 for the Garbones 192, if that helps.

Would you say they ski like a true 192 or does the rockered tip and small twin make them ski a bit shorter?

They didn't feel like they skied short.

Couple things, I liked them but I need to think about how mich I really liked them.

I was on Demo's So?? well yea lots of Tail. + a worn in 1&1 tune. Right away I new mine would be sharp @ 1&2

Like I said I skied my 1st 5 runs today on 194 Legend Pro's. Then got on on the Garbones for the Chutes opening. Very easy to run in the chutes @ Speed. Kinda neatral float in the deeper stuff. You can slash and burn speed very easy. I think they might have slashed to the side when I did not realy want them to a couple times.

Yeah, it's crazy how quickly things can change in the Sierra. With a foot and a half of fresh overnight since my review, I didn't even take the Garbones out today. In the Moment lineup, it was a day definitely better suited to the Comi-Kazi or Donner Party (I rode my Praxis Powder 195s & loved it).

[Pierre LeCouloir]

I've got two days on my Garbones (mounted with PX15s), and I feel pretty similarly about them. I was surprised that they did not ski short, because (in my opinion) the tip rocker is very pronounced. I don't think they're quite as versatile as the 188 Bro, but no complaints. They destroy everything in their path.

[ManInBlack]

Have to agree with Review of the Year...one of the funniest reviews I have read!

[LCConMyMind]

So, IrieRon, are you suggesting a mount point of 3.75" behind true center? I also am not likely to ride switch.

Anyone else have suggestions?

[Pierre LeCouloir]

I'm not exactly a switch riding machine, but I kind of like the more centered mount for these skis. I think the result for me is to encourage bigger, faster, locked in turns, since the tail doesn't really like to smear.

[IrieRon]

So, IrieRon, are you suggesting a mount point of 3.75" behind true center? I also am not likely to ride switch.

Anyone else have suggestions?

After skiing a couple more days on these monsters, if I were to do it over again I would probably mount them at 10.5 or 11 cm back from true center (1.5 - 2 cm's back from the suggested mount point).

However, I'm probably not going to take the trouble of moving the bindings. They're pretty fricken' money as is.

[pappag]

With skis relaxed, I measured the effective edge at almost 50" or 127cm:






Rocker profile:

[Shu Shu]

I've always tried to buy the burliest ski out there and try and raise my level to meet it, rather than buy some noodle that caters to and covers up my weaknesses. I want forgiveness in a deputy sheriff, not in my skis.

I was wondering if IrieRon or anybody could elaborate on this point. I was hoping to better understand never having ridden a truly stiff ski, how learning to ride one makes you a better skier? So aside from staying forward and not riding your tails, which is a shitty way to ski on any flex of ski, what other types of things will riding a really stiff ski like the Garbones, help you improve at?

[justAskier]

When you are skiing on a soft ski you can turn by just rolling your ankles a little bit whereas a stiff ski will require much more input and up to aggressive unweighting. You'll lear how to drive a ski if you ski on truly stiff planks.
One more thing is that a stiff ski requires quite a bit speed to come up to live. Thus you'll be skiing much faster and you'll have to learn to do this and improve your fitness and athleticism.
My 0.02$.

[DHogg]

Great review, really good read. I know these are stiff, but but how stiff are we talking? Squad stiff?

[Shu Shu]

When you are skiing on a soft ski you can turn by just rolling your ankles a little bit whereas a stiff ski will require much more input and up to aggressive unweighting. You'll lear how to drive a ski if you ski on truly stiff planks.
One more thing is that a stiff ski requires quite a bit speed to come up to live. Thus you'll be skiing much faster and you'll have to learn to do this and improve your fitness and athleticism.
My 0.02$.

Cool thanks, and it sounds sort of cyclical as well, In that the better shape you are in the easier it is to drive a stiff ski, the faster you will go, the stiffer the ski you will want...not sure If I wrote that correctly but you know what I mean

[cooks]

Great review, really good read. I know these are stiff, but but how stiff are we talking? Squad stiff?

I have the M1 and they are stiffer than the 189 squads. Idk about the 194.