Is my ski to good for me?

[ErikBerghiller]

Hi!

I have been skiing for almost two years, normally I get all six at 30mph, 15 off.

 

I ski on a Radar Vapor Alloy from 2015 witch I’ve been happy with. Last week I tried a friends Radar Strada and it was so much more… I don’t really know how to describe it but…gentler. I felt like I could control the turns and I did not have to be super aware not to crash.

 

Is It possible that my ski is to good for me?

 

Would I automatically ski better whit a ski that turns slower or is this as super individually as everything else in waterskiing?

 

Any advice on how to choose a ski when skiing in my division?

 

Thanks!

 

 

 

[gregy]

Could be the setup on the Vapor. I feel like both the Vapors I've had were easier to ski than my strada. A Senate would be a little easier to ski on but the Vapor is fine assuming it's not too small.

[Jordan]

@ErikBerghiller

 

I agree with what @gregy said about your ski. It's worth investigating.

 

Try taking your ski to a good instructor to have them help you with your setup. Tell them your level and have them watch you ski. They may well be able to help you make it more user friendly.

[andjules]

Is your ski too good for you? Two alternate possibilities:

1) Too soft: your friend's Strada had the pro-level carbon graphite layup, and your Vapor Alloy does not. Is it possible that the stiffer Strada got you across the wakes faster and set up earlier for the turn, making you feel less rushed/frantic at the ball? Whereas the less-stiff Vapor Alloy made you feel like you had to rush your turn?

2) Too small: what's your weight, and how long is your Vapor Alloy and your friend's Strada? if the ski is too small for you, it'll show up in the turn feeling a bit unpredictble/unstable. The manufacturer's sizing chart for a top level ski usually assumes 36mph. At 30mph, the ski will be riding deeper—possibly too deep—in the turn.

[ErikBerghiller]

@gregy Thanks! I will let someone look at the setup, i havent changed it since ibought it. How good is the factory-setup?

 

@andjules Interesting, i think I reach the buoy at the same time with both skis. Maybe it is to small i weight 176 pounds and the ski is 67", although the Strada i tried is just 66"... :*

[Stevie Boy]

@ErikBerghiller 67" ski for your weight, smaller is not a good idea, one of the slightly wider ski,s might help a bit, something like a "Radar Senate" should do you for a fair while, you could look at a "Connelly V" also.

[ScottScott]

I don't know the 2 skis too well, but I"m guessing the strada is going to be a little more forgiving. I'm thinking the vaper may show more benefit from better position, and possibly penalize you more for bad. If you're like most of us long liners, you probably need to work on getting weight forward. I'd stay with the viper and work on COM forward.

[LeonL]

How good is factory setup? Well, I would say that you can't depend on it being what they recommend. At least verify that the fin setting is what the factory recommends and go from there. Bindings in the right place? Wing angle?

[Chef23]

You can't be sure the fin is where it should be from the factory. They try to get them close but a lot happens to a ski from when it leaves the factory until you get it wet. If you have never checked/adjusted a fin I would definitely get someone to help you verify/adjust the fin and binding position.

 

The all carbon Strada is likely faster behind the boat but I would think the 67" Vapor would be at least as stable as a 66" Strada.

[Bill22]

I have seen many post that say the '14-'15 Vapor is forgiving enough for a fifteen off skier. Last season I was on a 66" '15 Lithium, set to stock. I couldn't get consistent on the Offside. If I was a little on the tail it wouldn't turn at all. If I got just a little too far forward it would hookup and turn with more angle than I could handle. The onside was always great.

 

I cut my losses and moved on to the '16 Vapor and I am very happy with it.

 

edit: 1. I should say, very, very, very happy with my '16 Vapor 66".

2. My experience is only one data point out of hundreds.

[MBlohm]

Hi Erik,

I am swede as well. Living quite far away from you though. My previous ski was a Vapor alloy the year before yours. I'm now on Pro Build and love that ski. But to go back on topic the alloy is very forgiving and you should definetly be able to tune in the ski to be as "stable" as the strada. What brand of bindings do you use and are they in correct position. I switched bindings from vapor to a reflex late last season on my alloy and it was very sensitive for boot placement. So my advice is make sure everything is dialed in before considering to change the ski. I loved that ski but felt I wanted something more... The pro build is awesome :smile:

[aupatking]

I really don't see anything in this thread that I would say is wrong. I felt exactly what @ScottScott was saying when I went from the Strada to the 14 Vapor. The early Vapor wanted precise front foot pressure, especially offside.

That said, I wouldn't throw the baby out with the bath water. The Vapor is not a bad ski. The setup really is the first thing you should mess with though. The boot setup is the easiest, and should always be first. Make sure you get the front set to "factory" suggested distance from tail. One nice/not nice thing about Radar skis is, you've got some of the most knowledgeable guys in the world willing to give you base setup numbers. I'm being sarcastic about the "not nice" but my meaning is: I Ski the 2017 Vapor on Rossi's numbers pretty well, TFin's numbers more erratically, and Rini's numbers feel and performed perfectly, for me. I'd play with anyone like Matt Rini's or Chris Rossi's numbers before going off chasing some performance characteristic.

If none of that works, I've got a beautiful 68" 2017 Lithium Vapor I'd make you a deal on B)

[ErikBerghiller]

Thank you all for helping me! :)

 

@MBlohm Nice! Where do you live?

 

I'm posting some pictures of my settings, i dont have any one who can help me near by. So even though it would be better if you seen me ski, what do you think?

 

Radar Profile frontbinding, open rearbinding.

 

 

[MBlohm]

I live in Nykvarn 45km from sthlm. Start by measuring the position of the front boot. Factory setting on my ski was binding forward one hole compared to what you have. Start by measuring from the tail on the ski to the stitches on the heel of the binding. If you need to move it follow with the rtp.

Or just try move the bindings one hole forward and see how you like it. One hole can make a huge difference.

[Andre]

Get that ski off the gravel...please!

[gregy]

The wing doesn't have much angle on thing I see. I the 2015 lithium Vapor was one of the most forgiving skis I've had. Its very stable and has a big sweet spot. One thing that helped me on it was to spread out the boots more. I went out to about 12 3/4" from heel to heal separation.

[bassfooter]

@gregy me too. Widening the stance helped me control front foot pressure.

[Chef23]

You can't really tell anything from pictures. The binding is probably ok because it is a radar boot in the middle holes but you should measure the distance the rear boot is from the tail.

 

I would invest in some calipers and learn to use them. @SkiJay's book Fin Whispering would be a good investment to learn how to use them. There is also some instruction on D3’s website and a good Rossi video on YouTube.

[ErikBerghiller]

Thanks, i will start by spreading out the boots and see what happens! :)