Denali C65 Review

[Horton]

The stated goal of BallOfSpray ski reviews has been to describe more than to judge each ski. The reader is left decipher to the comments and decide if a ski might fit their skiing or not. The Denali is an unusual ski so this will be an unusual review. It may read as disjointed, disorganized, contradictory and schizophrenic so let’s clear the air: the Denali C65 is one of the best skis ever reviewed on BallOfSpray.

http://www.ballofspray.com/images/2017/Thomas_Lenard_Image_CalProAM.jpg

General Feel
Traditionally skis are either described as fast or slow. Skis described as slow typically require more physical work and more technical skills to get wide but turn more dependably at the ball. Fast skis are less work and get wide more automatically but often require more skills and finesse at apex. World records have been set and pro events have been won on both fast and slow skis.

In the last few years, a few skis have blurred the lines by being both fast across the course and turning automatically at the ball. The Denali C65 resets the bar as far as what possible in terms of fast and slow. The C65 is as fast as any “fast ski” from the ball to the wakes, and it bleeds speed as quickly as any “slow ski” from the wakes the ball. This ski is the best example of the merging of these two paradigms. One of the results of these attributes is that the skier will rarely get slack at the ball.

When a skier is at their best, the C65 is as smooth as any ski reviewed previously. On a more normal day when a skier makes typical mistakes, the C65 allows the skier to throw caution to the wind, pull hard, and then crank turns to get a score.

http://www.ballofspray.com/images/2017/c65.jpg

Off Side
The skier can ride this ski with neutral or forward weight distribution. The C65 is dependable to neither under or over turn. It seems to just take the right amount of angle. The ski requires minimal effort to arc in at apex. If a skier is overzealous and pushes, it is almost impossible to blow out the tail.

On Side
On side turns on the C65 are extremely dependable and are not technically demanding. Perhaps the most outstanding attribute of the on side turn is that it maintains speed even when the skier makes a panic turn.

Wakes to the Ball
The ski decelerates at a rapid rate providing the skier with a tight line all the way to the apex, and the confidence to turn hard if needed. With the settings used for this review, the ski created enough width and space. The settings can be tweaked to carry more speed and a wider path or to slow down faster. Finding the right settings is critical.

For the smoothest skiing, the skier should strive to keep their head level and inside shoulder high. Skiers who tend to lean into the course too much may experience radical turns.

http://www.ballofspray.com/images/2017/c65-2.jpg

Ball to the Wakes
The ski carries a surprising amount of speed back through the turn. The result is that the hookup is never harsh or punishing. The ski then creates substantial speed back to the wakes with minimal effort.

Tuning for the On side turn
Denali uses a unique fin block that allows for a different fin depth on each side of the fin. The result is much improved On Side.

Quirks
Skiers who are not proficient measuring and adjusting fins and bindings should not consider this ski. If the settings are not right, the ski may feel insanely fast or insanely slow. The C65 may not work on a skier’s first few rides. The needed adjustments are unusual, but the team at Denali offers personalize counseling for each skier on the ski.

Some skiers may find that they need to adjust their weight distribution back slightly to keep the ski from seeking an edge at gate turn in. This was my one frustration for much of the review.

There are skis on the market that make it easy to ski at the same level every day no matter how the skier is feeling (focused or distracted - strong or weak). The C65 is radically forgiving when you are in sync with it, but when you are not, it becomes much less friendly

Conclusion
The C65 is not for every skier. The C65 is not for skier who is unwilling to spend a number of rides finding the right settings. For the skier who has the time to dial a ski in, the C65 is a new level of performance.

Of the 30 or so skis I have reviewed in the last 7 years there are only a few that I wish I could ride for a whole season, and the C65 is unquestionably one of those skis.

http://www.ballofspray.com/images/2017/c65-3.jpg

Final Note: The above review was based on the best known settings as of mid August 2017. The team at Denali continues to refine the settings. It would be fair to expect that the latest settings are superior to the ones used in this review.

[jayski]

Pretty spot on there @Horton, good review I can't say my first two weeks have been much different.

 

What truly needs to be emphasized is the skis ability to "settle in" coming into the ball. There is NO TOP END SKI out there that can match this skis ability to settle in before the buoy and instill confidence in the skier to make a turn. I have had some large crazy speeds across course, the kind that on any other ski you blow right by the buoy as the ski feels like it is barely touching the water BUT on the C-65 it will settle right in and give you the ability to make a turn, this is IMMENSELY helpful on ones offside turn.

 

On another note I cannot stress enough how impressed and thankful I am to @AdamCord for the dozens and dozens of texts back and forth to get the ski set up, his commitment to helping the skier is well beyond what any other company provides and as Horton said there is some tuning needed to dial it in and not using the conventional fin tuning rational.

 

Great job on the review @Horton and great work on the C-65 @AdamCord @adamhcaldwell

[Razorskier1]

Agreed. Requires some adjustment on the front end but confidence at the buoy is high. In my testing I never overturned, never took a slack hit, and the ski never stalled coming out of the buoy. I wish I had more season left to tinker.

[roberto]

@Horton . That last picture is a proper BOS!

 

Great review, thank you very informative. All credit to @cord and @caldwell for breaking the 'mold' and creating a product that is fast and slow, to quote. "This ski is the best example of the merging of these two paradigms. Unique and maybe unicorns exist?

 

Dam, I need that uncomfortable conversation with Mrs P about my ski for next year.

[B_S]

@roberto I just told my wife I was buying myself a new ski as a 50th b-day present to myself, but I didn't tell her how much it was! She thought it was a great idea, as she is a skier and understands a bit how it is. A couple weeks later, she asked how much. Me: you don't want to know. Her: a couple hundred? Me: uh, add a 0. Her eyes got kinda big, but she let it go at that point. Probably because we had just finished a beautiful morning session and were still in the boat.

 

Back to the Denali, it's worth every penny. Like the others mentioned, it took a couple of rides to acclimate, but by ride 3 I was smiling, and by ride 4 I may have actually been giggling and yelling Weee at the completion of turns!

[6balls]

Looking forward to spring after some more rehab on my leg...by then @razorskier1 should have that baby dialed and I can steal it.

[DW]

@B_S : Are you sure your boating session is about skiing? Also, smiling, yelling and 'weee' on the Denali may simply create jealousy. BTW - happy 50th.

[Dano]

@Horton Hard shells in these pics, testing? or have you moved away from the Vapors?

 

[B_S]

@DW ;)

[Than_Bogan]

Ok, it's a little cheesy for me to bump this review, but at last weekend's tournament at least three different people asked me when the review was going to be posted on BallOfSpray, so obviously a lot of people missed it.

[Fehlindra]

5.93 and 165 ib here but prob end up with 175 with heavy wetsuits can i go 67" ? 34mph 22off

[AdamCord]

@Fehlindra 66

[Horton]

@Dano Yes I've been running some form of Reflex/HO/EDGE for the last year or two

[Wish]

So disappointed. No sets here on the c-65 with water being over all the docks. Needs to drop a foot and that's gonna be a while. Only 3 rides and each a diff setting. May not get another set in before tourny in Jacksonville if they still have it.

[gregy]

@wish I'd be going crazy. That's a bummer.

[ktm300]

@Horton What setup #s? Thanks

[Horton]

30.25

10° ish

2.440

2.490

6.800

.745

 

Last I heard the Denali boys had something new that they thought was better than these numbers

[skinut]

@Horton What length of ski?

[Horton]

67

@AdamCord correct?

[slow]

A lot of wood in the water

[AdamCord]

@Horton your ski is a 67

 

@Fehlindra you could go either way. Normally I would put you on a 66 but if you know you like bigger skis then the 67 can work too. I'm 175-180 and I ride a 67 at 36mph because I prefer to ride a bigger ski.

[jipster43]

It's ironic that this flyweight can't get the C-65 in a 65"!

[BG1]

@AdamCord How tall are you?

[AdamCord]

@BG1 6'1"

[BG1]

@AdamCord Thanks!

[Horton]

I am trying to get acclimated to my C-65. I ran three 32s and five 35s today. I was reminded how freaking totally different this ski is. If you try one of these things please do not expect it to feel like any other ski the first ride.

 

I love this ski but it is not like any other ski.

[Wish]

...and that's truly the beauty of it.

[gavski]

@Horton, are you on a different set of numbers to the ones you reviewed the ski with?

[Horton]

@gavski I've got one ride on some new settings that I wanted to try and then 1 ride back on my preferred setting.

 

My real point is the ski is different enough than every other ski I ride. The first couple of rides are going to be wacky. If I was a consumer who had bought this thing and didn't know for sure how much I loved it I might be leery of it.

 

I'm sure it happens but I just can't imagine somebody skiing on it for the first time and thinking it's awesome. That's a shame because once you get your head around it- it IS super freaking awesome.

[gavski]

last month i got to watch and talk to new Denali skier at a comp in fl...he loved it from the moment he jumped on it - and confirmed that it was nothing like any ski he had ever tried ...but i think he may have had a close link with the adams...

 

so, apart from the above example, how would you navigate through the 'waters of uncertainty' to unlock it's freaking awesomeness?

[Chef23]

@gavski Denali has a trial program. It is a little more expensive than some due to the small size of the company. The trial program has access to the Adams to help you tune the ski properly and gives you some time to ski on it to see if it is a fit. Given what I have heard about the ski I think that is the only way to figure out if it is a fit for you commit a couple of weeks and at least 10-20 sets to seeing if it works for you.

[AdamCord]

@gavski we are still small enough that we work directly with every customer who buys a ski. Most people ski very well within a few sets, some people take longer. It's just a different cadence than other skis (faster into the wakes, slower into the buoy) so it can take a few sets to wrap your mind around. Once you get used to it though it just feels normal. Now when I jump back on to a "normal" ski I feel like I'm working my ass off into the wakes and that I'm flying way too fast/narrow into the buoys.

 

There may or may not be some top secret tech coming that helps make this rock right out of the box.... ;)

[Cam]

I am on my second Denali, this one is taking a bit longer to tune in but I can feel it's potential and I am sticking with it as the customer service and tuning advice is second to none.

Where else would you get a set up change based on your feelings from a set at 11am and ski with the new settings at 2pm after a quick email, not to mention I am in the UK and probably caught Adam before his first cup of coffee

[VONMAN]

To those of you that just bought or are thinking about buying a C-65, let me help you out.

The ski is amazing and way different then any ski you used. My first two days on it was pure hell on my 67 year old body. So I set the fin to the 15,22,28 settings, swapped out the S-wing for a regular wing set at 9 degrees and front boot at 30.125. Much better. My first goal was to find boot placement. 30.25, 30.50, 30.75, 31.0 and 31.358! 31.0" was the magic for me. Next step was the wing. I even went to extremes to make a S-wing with less flair and ran it at 9 degrees. Next was using the S-wing at 8 degrees and settled for 6 degrees.

At this point I had a ski that was better than anything in my quiver of skis. Started playing with my fin to fine tune it. What a ski!! It feels like its on rails. Turns are butter smooth and automatic. The tip of the ski never drops and stalls. The line stays tight in tail, cross, and headwinds. Cross course speed and angle are there, and stay on the handle as wide as you want, the S-wing is there to bleed the speed for a perfect stack and boat pickup.

I'm telling you this so you can get used to what I've been felling without beating yourself up. The good news is the more/better you will love it. This is the real deal, Just like I remember skiing a 9100 many years ago.

67" ski, right foot forward, 190 lbs, 34.2mph

My Settings so far

 

2.484

No Screw Jack

 

6.850 tips

 

.759 slot

.764 head

 

6 or 7 degrees S-wing

 

31.0" front boot

 

The ski is easy to get up from a deep water start. And a little edgy prior to the gate roll in but after a while you get over it. The more you ride it the better it gets. And in 12 days of skiing on it I only fell once.

[Wish]

And if you're thinking of getting one, this should help....a lot. Black Friday killer deal.

 

https://www.denaliskis.com/

[Ed_Johnson]

Anyone skied the 68" yet ??? Feelings and comments ???

[Horton]

I stated a few days back that I was back on my C65 to test the new fin. It honestly took me 5 sets and a few tweaks until KaBoom! it works. My point is if you try one of these skis do not expect to judge it in the first ride and be willing to talk to the Adams about set up AND do what they say.

[jipster43]

@AdamCord @adamhcaldwell Any chance y'all will be producing a 65" ski? If not do you think a 66" would be fine for someone 5'5" and 130lbs skiing into 32' off - on a good day!

 

Gracias!

[Horton]

I hopped back on my c-65 today in a tournament. In retrospect a few practice rides might have been wise.

[Horton]

Second round. Almost missed 28. Almost missed 32. Almost missed 35. 5 at 38.

[AdamCord]

@Horton that's how you know your ski is dialed for shortline ;)

[paul413ski]

@Horton you are legend - new old ski without practice straight into a tourney ????

[Horton]

@paul413ski not really legendary. I flubbed a number of rounds before I adjusted.

[keithh2oskier]

resurrecting this. I am 5'3" and at 160. thinking about picking up a 66" C65 second hand. Is that size okay especially if I am trying to loose weight to get down to 145/150#?

[RichardDoane]

@keithh2oskier what’s a good used C65 worth ?

[keithh2oskier]

@RichardDoane not 100% sure. Just saw one on SIA and have always wanted to try one.

[RichardDoane]

I just looked on sia. $625. So about 1/2 price. Does that mean you only get 1/2 the help from the @adams ?

[Wish]

@RichardDoane Yes,...Yes you do. But I think you get to pick which one.

[LOTW]

What's the deal with the C65 vs. C75 regarding sizing? I get that the 75 is the same length with different widths for S, M, L but is that different for the 65? Does the 65 use the same sizing as other manufactures like 66", 67" 68"?

 

[keithh2oskier]

@LOTW from what I gathered searching for older posts yesterday you are correct. C65 had traditional sizing (66,67,68) and c75 is one size with adjusting widths.