How many pros ski on production skis?

[ozski]

Any thoughts on this question? My guess is that in the top 10 the answer is probably none buts its a guess, I wonder how far down the rankings you would have to go to find production skis being used. I've seen Nate run -41 on a Quest right out of the box but I've heard that these days he's on a "factory" ski. Maybe its different for the men and women?

[JordanOz]

I also heard a rumour that he's actually on a blue Arc, but with the yellow graphics because it shows up better in photos.

[Stevie Boy]

I do not think it really matters, I do not think many of us, are going to give them a run for their money any time soon, the only thing I disagree with, is somebody who skis on a brand of ski that has graphics of a different brand and then openly advertise for that brand whilst receiving sponsorship, fortunately I don't think many do, I know of one, but that situation may have changed by now.

[bishop8950]

I know several that are on stock production skis. Many are riding what will become the next production ski as they are testing. There may be some riding a highly custom skis but I don't believe it's the majority and it seems less common than back in the 80s and perhaps the 90s where I think a lot of skiers were riding highly custom skis.

[jjackkrash]

The new skis seem pretty bad ass. How much better can they get?

[RazorRoss3]

I would imagine a ski can always be fine tuned for a specific skier but 99.999% of us can achieve that with the right length ski + fin placement + binding placement. If a pro is skiing on a slightly altered or R&D version of ski X with ski X graphics I don't have an issue there. If they are skiing a legitimate different model or model year with ski X graphics that's a bit of a bummer since it could be misleading to the public and likely could go down as false advertising. I have absolutely no idea what the prevalence of either of those scenarios is and will choose not to speculate on it. But just you wait, when this 5'8 skier goes pro I'll be sure to let you know exactly what I'm riding on... still working on how to pull that off while maintaining a full time job though ;)

[MickeyThompson]

@RazorRoss3 Regina does it.

[RazorRoss3]

Edit

 

Misunderstood previous comment making my original comment off topic.

[Glock]

@RazorRoss3, I think @MickeyThompson was implying that Regina is a full time pharmacist and elite pro skier. Jeff Rogers comes to mind too. He owns a drilling company I think, and obviously an elite pro.

 

There is hope for you as a pro too. We'll be rooting for you!!

[MattP]

@Glock skiing at a pro level while having a job and never skied at an elite level is a different story is what @razoross3 was inferring to.

[MickeyThompson]

@RazorRoss3 Sorry I did not make myself clear with my short post. I did not disagree with anything. I was referring to how amazing Regina skis and works a full time job.

[Horton]

I think you would find that most Pros actually are on production skis. The couple of guys that do R&D are often on some version of next year ski. There really is not some secret ski that one skier has that nobody else can get.

 

 

 

 

[MrJones]

It's not the ski.

[6balls]

with @RazorRoss3's build...we shoulda groomed him as a jumper!

[AdamCord]

@Horton is right. At least from personal experience the few guys who are actively involved in R&D might be on something different, but the majority of pros ride stock skis, or possibly a ski with a different flex. And I would argue that the guys riding R&D skis can be at a disadvantage because 1) they are trying a lot of new things when they ought to be focusing on peak performance and 2) newer isn't always better.

 

When I pass out skis to pros they are usually just getting cosmetic blems. I save the best skis for the people who pay for them ;)

 

That being said...I've heard tons of stories from the 80s/90s about pros riding completely custom skis or skis from other companies with a faked graphic, but that doesn't happen nearly as much as it used to.

[Ralph Lee]

In the Will Asher flow point interview, Will clearly says Andy's ski was far beyond the stock ski he was riding.

[RazorRoss3]

@MickeyThompson @glock, ha, now I feel like an ass. Definitely read that the wrong way and apologize for the direction I took my response.

 

Thank you very much for the encouragement, I suppose there is certainly a slim chance a short guy like me can pull it off. If the Wilson bros and the lady skiers can get it done despite the height disadvantage why can't I?

 

And to @6balls comment, yes, I should have been a jumper. By weight and height I'm a near perfect match to Ryan Dodd.

[ozski]

I've been on a couple of skis that are / were pre production. One was amazing and the other one was the opposite of amazing. (both from the same pro) To the naked eye not a lot of difference between the two but on the water they were very different.

 

[swc5150]

I always wondered this about waterskis as well. When I alpine ski raced, my skis were far from the ski shop version. The top cosmetics were the current year, but the core and base could have major variations.

[ozski]

I think @AdamCord nailed it when he mentioned flex, I would assume a skier that spends a lot of time at -39 / 41 has different preferences to your average -28 / 32 skier.

[Stevie Boy]

I think there is video of the GOAT showing and explaining the filing and sanding of bevels to change a skis characteristics, he clearly had great knowledge, I wouldn,t think that there are too many Pros that get the supply of skis to play with, unless they are involved with R&D in a big way.

[LLUSA]

As @AdamCord said the 90's were a different time, I watched Andy's skis being built and they were different than any stock ski out there, I had my on mold and had the opportunity to watch Jared at O'Brien R&D lay several of Andy's skis up, with that said the ability to duplicate skis was very difficult.

[Horton]

Something to keep in mind.... If a ski company has something that they think will make you ski better ( sell more skis ) they will NOT keep it a secret.

[swc5150]

@Horton makes a good point. I'll just add that, in my alpine skiing example, stock race skis were all the same flex patterns (obviously differing by event models; GS, SG, SL). I preferred a stiffer core for icy conditions, and softer for real (mountain) snow. The manufacturer would accommodate that, which is pretty much what assumed a waterski company would do for their sponsored skiers as well. My skis we certainly not a high-tech secret available only to me.