REVIEW: K2 obSETHed 189 2008/2009

[iscariot]

09 K2 obSETHed 189 REVIEW
Background:
5'11" 185# 33 years old (26 years skiing)
X-Racer, X-Coach.
Aggressive skier in all conditions and in all terrain.
When I ski I look for air into powder, if there is no air I look for powder, if there is no powder I look for air, if there is no air or powder I go fast and/or jib.
My skiing style is fast and poppy/playful and agressive. I like turning natural features into stuff to play on.

Current quiver:
180 Rossignol Scratch (rock ski/park ski)
179 K2 Seth mounted at +2 (everyday ripper) SOLD
179 K2 AK Enemy mounted at +2 (AT setup with FR+)
189 K2 Hellbent mounted Core Center (floating, hucking, switch-jibbery)
193 4frnt EHP mounted on the line (big-mountain fast-skiing, hucking, open-bowl big-turns; basically a big pow ski with XXL type properties)
189 K2 obSETHed mounted +3 (everyday ripper to replace the 2007 179 Seth Vicious burgundy colour with MC Escher inspired graphics)



Review Setup:
obSETHed 189 (+3 mount with PX 14)
I know that K2 changed the mounting points on the obSETHed when compared to the Vicious. I was also going from 179 to 189.

Boots: Lange Freeride 120's

Site and Situation:
Lake Louise and Sunshine Village

LL had lots of snow but visibility was low due to wind and fog.
Conditions: Knee deep turns down Whitehorn.

SSV skied out with very little snow
Conditions: Hard pack, groomed, ice, crust, ankle to boot deep pow out side door.

Hand Flex:
Med to med-soft tip with soft tails, medium under foot.

Mounting:
Vicious 179 was mounted at +2 which I loved for railing groomers and hard pack. I liked the feel of the ski at this point when going fast. The lacking factors were that the ski didn’t have enough tail to land airs confidently with out falling out the back door when off balance. The skis were horrible for skiing switch at this mounting point. Powder was good on these skis but, again I wanted more tail to feel a better balance. Because of the +2 mount, the tips would float and the tails would sink, but almost too much.

I took some time deliberating where to mount the 189 obSETHed. I measured the ski and compared with my 179 Vicious. It turns out that if I mounted the obSETHed at K2 recommended +3, the length of the 189 obSETHed from the binding toe piece to the ski tip was exactly the same as the 179 Vicious mounted at +2. Basically I was adding 10cm of tail to the 179 by stepping up to the 189.

Review Proper:
Boy am I glad I mounted at +3. The ski feels almost exactly the same on groomers and hard pack, as my 179. Turn initiation is effortless. Throw them out and they rail back around. Feel like my Vicious but with a LOT more pop off of the tail. Turns of any size/radius were available with just a thought.

Versatility. Stable under foot, I pushed the speed limit and got not noticeable tip or tail flutter. Edge hold on ice was excellent. Not noticeable heavy. The extra length/swing/weight took a bit of getting used to when throwing spins, but I adjusted quickly. Big air was landed with WAY more confidence than the 179’s. The tails are soft to flex by hand, but I had no qualms, no wheelies, and felt like I had found exactly what I was missing from the 179’s.

Powder was easy. Floated well, the slight rocker makes the ski plane much earlier than the traditional camber of the Vicious. More balanced fore and aft than the 179, likely due to the extra 10cm in the tail. You could carve the ski in powder or slarve it and play. Switch skiing is vastly improved. I’m no park rat but I like landing switch and I like making a few turns switch (maybe 5% – 10% of the day). The extra tail length really made skiing and landing switch way easier. I didn’t get to ski them switch in powder.

Confident on crud and I had no sign of tail hangup on steeps or in crud. Navigated glades and trees with ease. Jibbing, nose press, tail press, buttering were all easy; I think the rocker makes it a bit easier than on the traditional camber vicious 179's.

Downfalls: None that I can think of for a daily driver.

Conclusion:
These are the most versatile skis I have encountered. Typically this means jack of all trades, master of none. Not in this case. No discernible downsides.

I'd like the opportunity to ski them fast in deep snow and open bowls or chutes to figure out the straight-line stability characteristics. I'd also like to see how they behave in some deeper powder as far as float and sub-marining the tips.

If I had to choose, this ski would be my quiver of one…