HO Syndicate V-Type Short Review

Unfortunately, this review & my season were cut short by an injury. I rode the Ho V-Type for about 10 of the allotted 25 rides. I will tell you what I do know and what I do not know.

Overall: Before I got hurt, I strongly suspected that this ski would make my short list of personal favorites. With only half of the allotted rides, I feel that I have to be a little inconclusive, but I am telling you that this is one hell of a ski. 

As I have stated previously in other posts, I believe there is a trend toward softer flex skis. The V-Type is the first mass production ski that I am aware of with tip flex numbers in the low 130s. The flex numbers on my V-Type are 72/98/118/131. In years past soft skis were thought to be slow or finicky at the ball. The V-Type displays neither of these attributes.

Turns: Ridden aggressively or ridden with more finesse, this ski turns very consistently and creates a lot of angle. The sweet spot at shorter line lengths is maybe smaller than some other skis but not by much. I am unsure about this as I did not have enough rides. I am not sure I found the right spot to stand on this ski – 10 rides is not enough. The next thing I was going to try was to ride the ski extra neutral – equal weight on both feet and much less total body movement.

At the time of my injury I was searching for the right stance for an even better On Side. I found that I had to be careful to not fall to the inside approaching On Side. I can only speculate why but the V-Type requires a skier to be more vigilant about keeping their inside shoulder up when approaching the ball.

I also noticed that when I brought the handle slightly forward all the way from the edge change to the apex the ski turned extremely well. I assume it was simply a matter of maintaining a little extra rope tension but I am not sure. 

From the Ball to the Wakes: (I am guilty of saying this about most skis in the last year) The V-Type is best when the skier does not apply too much extra effort through the wakes. If you set your angle and just hold it you will have more than enough speed before the centerline. Past HO Skis like the A1 and A2 encouraged the skier to work harder. The V-Type is not that kind of HO.

The ski is fast and makes a lot of space in front of the ball. There are skis that may make more space but I am not sure if any ski makes more space and turns as well as the V-Type. As with most modern high end skis, the V-Type is not nearly as fast if the skier’s weight is back. 

From the Wakes to the Ball: The V-Type is stable enough from the wakes to the ball to make the skier feel comfortable moving forward approaching the apex. Simply put the ski feels comfortable before the ball.

Conclusion: Based on the 10 rides I had, the V-Type is the best HO since the A1.