Mini-Reviews: Big skis tested quickly in variable storm conditions

[Vitamin I]

7 skis tested back-to-back-to-back at Squaw on a storm day 3/31/2012 with base surface conditions that varied from bulletproof refrozen tracks at the top, to slush at the bottom. Add variable precip to that variable base (first no precip, then very wet snowfall, then cold/dry snowfall). Many different terrain types and surface conditions on KT22 laps, hit ~12ft drops, some cat-track airs, etc. but did not hit really high speeds in non-ideal visibility.

6’2”, 185 lbs, mostly brute force strong style with very few finesse moves. I've been skiing mostly rock skis all season (191 Shoots, 190 Pow+, 192 Thugs), 183 m103 on a few of the most bulletproof days, then 191 Caylors recently after the snow arrived.

In the sequence I skied them:

2013 195cm Armada AK JJ, 120mm waist
Fun turny ski, decent stiffness underfoot
Loved it for a pivoty ski. 195 was easy to manage due to a somewhat forward mount and short runningLength. Surprisingly stiff enough underfoot, and the tail skied with a long enough feel and was substantial enough for backseat landings (not too “wheelie-y”), etc. Widest part of tip felt a little bit “sharp-cornered” and catchy, but that’s being picky here---I would get accustomed to that tip very quickly if I owned this ski. Does not require strenuous input to ski. At the time, I thought women might really dig this ski in the shorter lengths---not sure what that says about this men’s model, but a fun ski.

2013 190cm Rossi Squad7, 120mm waist
Great power-surfing ski, smooth with decent power in all conditions
The graphics claimed “188”, but rep said it will be marketed as a 190cm and will say “190” on the new graphic. Looser tail for better pivoting/smearing than the 195 AK JJ, felt more powerful and felt like more surface area to push/spray more deep snow than the 195 AK JJ, and edges can smear/skid on bulletproof without catching unexpectedly. More stable and smooth in all conditions for more confidence, leading to faster speeds in open terrain and also leads to eating up turny/tree terrain more aggressively. A really great ski, but did not strike me as special enough to improve my 10-ski quiver (e.g. I still prefer Shoots, Caylors, Lotus138, etc.). For me, if Rossi makes one 5-10cm longer for a bit more power, then maybe I’ll take a 2nd look.

2013 189cm K2 Side Seth, 118mm waist
Powerful directional charger ski, great in almost all situations, felt a bit planky or somehow slightly “off” in a few situations (or maybe I should have just taken a few more runs to get accustomed to it)
Great power, great ski, nothing bad about it, but something strange or foreign or maybe even “off” about it in a few situations. Felt reasonably light when picking up feet, yet heavy or planky in a few other situations. Not sure how to describe the weird moments---I would surely get accustomed to it if I skied it more. Felt like its tail would handle high top speeds better than any of the other skis I tried this day (although I did not take any skis to top speed on this storm day, with non-ideal visibility). Still, after trying the 181 Darkside a while ago (too short for me, but impressive in all conditions including bulletproof), I’m pretty sure I’d prefer the 188 Darkside to this 189 Side Seth.

2013 193cm Blizzard Cochise, 108mm waist
Not floaty/smeary enough to surf well, and not powerful enough to charge well
Way more “raily” than previous skis demoed, likely due to its narrow 108 waist. It tended to get confined to its own trenches in these conditions (whether riding the edges or bases) and not be very willing to release and smear, which was an unpleasant surprise for a rocker tip & tail design. The widest part of the tip seemed too catchy, which is also surprising for a rocker tip. Maybe I just have too many smeary habits---also perhaps one could reduce this catchiness by detuning edges at that widest point of the tip. When locking in the edge or even straightlining, these skis were way less powerful than I expected. For these not-so-floaty dimensions, I prefer less rocker (or none) and the higher radii of the more traditional chargers like LP XXL, Pow+, etc. (E.g. The newer generation rockered Gotamas disappointed me, just like the Cochise). The Cochise also seemed mounted too far forward for a ski that I consider as having charger ski dimensions. According to magazines, most people love this ski, but not me. I don’t know…maybe after skiing Shoots, a lot of other skis feel watered down to me now.

2013 192cm Atomic Bent Chetler, 123mm waist
Smoothest surfer, stiff enough for some decent charging, very impressed
My favorite ski of the day. Such a smooth ride in every condition and in every type of turn or smear or skid I threw at it, which confirms the smooth gradual look of its curves (no hooky “sharp corners” that you see on the AK JJ, etc.). Tail felt long with the forward mount, but I loved it, with a great balanced stance during big powder sprays, and the tail felt stiff enough and landed airs better than I expected from most rocker tails. The smoothness at speed inspires confidence to ski faster and know you can better absorb any unexpected impacts. I might need to own this ski one day. Rep said the carbon stringers are new in the 2012-13 edition. I am surprised how good the Bentchetler is, and I regret I did not give the “new Atomic” a chance earlier---makes me wonder if the 192 Atlas would surprise me too (never tried it).

2013 179cm K2 Pettitor, 120mm waist
No comment
Invalid test, because I way overpowered it and should have been testing the 189 instead (not available that day). I could say I felt it would have performed better in those conditions without the high, stiff camber underfoot---but I should just reserve judgment and try the 189 someday.

mid-2011/12 188cm Armada Bubba, 132mm waist
Smooth ride, sprays lots of pow, decent supportive tail, but weird edges
Loved the ride of the shape, length, flex profile, etc. for a ski this wide. Great ski for every type of turn/smear I threw at it, and was decent for landings. Was also good while scraping on bulletproof, but one thing seemed a little weird---it seemed “edgy” in most conditions. The edges skied “sharper” and bit in more than I am accustomed to, and the edge construction just looks fragile to me. It is a cap construction with the edges sticking WAY out away from the rest of the supporting material (which explains why the edges bite into the snow), and looks like the edges are not reinforced by any strong material near them. Did not have a catchy/hooky tip (good, unlike the 195 AK JJ, which was slightly catchy). If these came with a vertical sidewall construction or a more traditional cap construction without the edges sticking out so far, then I suspect I’d like them almost (but not quite) as much as the 192 Bent Chetler. ASIDE: The rep mentioned Armada is working on a “Tanner Model” JJ-type ski next year with more running length and shorter tip/tail off the snow than regular JJ.

My past reviews are at:
http://www.tetongravity.com/forums/s...iewed-for-2011
http://www.tetongravity.com/forums/s...-in-nasty-snow
http://www.tetongravity.com/forums/s...reviewed-again

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[Bandit Man]

Appreciate the reviews. Also nice to hear that our thoughts are in line on both the Cochise and Squad. Cochise was a bit of a let down after all the hype. And glad that I'm not the only one to think that the Squad 7 needs to be a little longer to live up the billing of being from the Squad lineage. The 188/190 was fun in the trees and tight spaces of the PNW, but when I let it run, I felt like I wanted a tad more length. When I told the WA rep that upon returning the skis, he looked at me like I was crazy.

I passed up skiing the Bentchetler at our local demo day since I thought there were no changes. The addition of carbon stringers sounds interesting...

[Stowelen]

I noticed those qualites in the Cochise, but figured I was the only one since everyone seems to love it. Just never seemed to click. Seemed like more work than it should be.

[Bird Blaster]

thanks for the one-off's. Fun to hear about the new gear

[verbier61]

interesting, thanks... albeit I believe that comparing in a storm day the 108 cochise with other sticks that are 120-130 in the middle will never generate high marks for the cochise

[gregL]

I'm 5'8" and 165, and skied the 181 SideSeth in a variety of conditions - my feeling is that it's a ski in search of an identity. K2 wants to position this ski as a contender in the wide touring class, but dropping the weight has caused it to lose power IMO. It didn't float well in 15" in very heavy fresh and was very sensitive to weight distribution - if you weighted one ski heavily it wanted to drag and go under in a hurry. The ski feels imprecise - the tips often trying to decide which way to go and not being able to arrive at a conclusion.

OTOH, I loved the 179 Pettitor. Felt full of life and really "connected" to the snow. Wants to be driven from a balanced, ball-of-foot stance but will carve or pivot on a dime and arc longer turns as well.

Agree that the 2013 Bent Chetler is a tremendous ski - not that much differerent than before but still a winner, as were the 186 Automatic and the 186 Atlas (probably my favorite). Atlas still runs like a truck but is a little more forgiving and easier to pivot than before - the Tracker bindings they were mounted with also skied great.