Your ski might be terrible, and your settings are worse.

[Horton]

Ok the title of this thread is “click bait” but it also might be true.

 

Doing what I do - I am lucky enough to ride a LOT of skis and have super smart guys help me set them up. The fact that 99% of you have no choice but to buy a ski off the shelf and live with it for a year or two seems crazy to me. Ok so I am super freaking lucky to do what I do but that is NOT my point.

 

If my ski collection was stolen and the web site went bankrupt and I had to buy a ski and live with it I would do the following…. and this is what I think you guys should all do every spring. Have all your ski friends set their fin / bindings to bone stock and then trade skis with each other. Ride your friends ski for a whole weekend and try to make it work and then the next weekend trade with someone else. Do it for a few weekends. Feel the other skis. See what they do better or worse then your own ski. See how each ski works with the stock settings.

 

When it is all over you might be super happy or super sad when you get back to your own ski. Either way you will know what you have. Also you just might learn something unexpected.

 

[mike_mapple]

I agree with this, I know when I sell a ski I set the fin to factory, I have some people say they want X fin setting, however if they are trying a new ski, I always recommend Factory setting for at least 4-6 sets. Then start making changes. Only Exception is someone going from Goode to Radar instead of long and shallow I set them on Short and Deep.

[Deke]

A ski commune!

[skibrain]

Our ice went out just last week. Imagine if your “spring” - at best - started mid to late April (that’s crazy cold drysuit weather for a few weeks followed by merely cold weather until end of May). That gives us a stretch of 4 months here in MN, until it is sort of crazy colder weather for another month and a half before boats get winterized.

 

There is a serious urgency to get something working great ASAP - optimizing scant time on the water. I hear the “try a bunch of skis” sentiment. Cool idea if I skied in big blocks of time in an endless summer. But therein lies the beauty of BOS: helping to find best regarded gear with input on setups, if not stock, that maximize fun and time on the water. I value that.

[Clydesdale]

Experimented with several skis this winter. There is no perfect ski, but from each we learn. I get it.

[Skoot1123]

@skibrain - in that case (MN winter and short summer) come on down to Orlando during spring break! Get some lessons with Matt Rini and go to Performance Ski and Surf for gear shopping (it is a candy store). Demo some skis while you are at it! Not only will you be getting some awesome coaching but you will get top notch service at Performance ski and surf.

[WDKinley]

@Horton is out here turning ballers into ski swingers hahahahaha

[brody]

When you can’t start skiing till may, this is NOT an option. I can still drive a car on my lake. Riding a ski you purchased and playing with fin settings is also a luxury. Buy it set it and forget it. My last ski I set to factory. Didn’t like it. Set it to Rinis settings, was a disaster. Went to Rossi’s setting perfect. Never checked it again. Skied the same every year since 2@38. 14 vapor

[DaveD]

@horton On top of having 4 less months to ski, I know my issues aren't the ski. I need to correct all those bad habits like poor stack before I waste time with settings or trying other skis.

 

Besides, isn't trying other skis like cheating on your wife? :smile:

[skiboyny]

You have figured out that your very fortunate in the equipment department, but it still hasn't dawned on you what a perfect ski situation you have. It's not easy for everyone to get water time due to a whole variety of situations. It can be tough to verify fin settings let alone conduct that experiment.

[LeonL]

Like @skiboyny said..........if you struggle with different conditions every day, head/tail/cross, it's tough to to determine what you're doing. However what @Horton said has merit, IF!

[BlueSki]

I can see the benefit of this. A number of years ago I bought a used Connelly GT and a used ‘14 Vapor. A buddy of mine did the D3 demo, getting a quest and helix. We skied all four in one weekend. Even without messing with fins, it was pretty easy to figure out which ones worked for us and which ones did not. I sold the GT, kept the green Vapor, and that started a series of years of success on Vapors for me.

[dchristman]

My ski might be terrible, but the one I am getting next is going to solve all my problems :)

[Chef23]

I like your idea but I ski a 68 and my ski partners ski shorter. Nobody on my lake skis a 68.

[Dysco]

Sounds great for people who are riding the same size skis, and have almost unlimited time year around and perfect conditions. Typically trying skis and settings for that demographic of the ski world hasn't been a huge issue.

That said, I once crammed my feet into the bindings of my buddy's newest ski and fell in love. I had my own in two weeks, only 260 away on serial number. Despite identical settings (and many others) mine never felt or performed close to how his did. So. . there's even more sand in the vaseline. Ski's are often as individual as we are.

[Horton]

@Dysco I'm sure that's a true story but with many brands the ski should be very similar from ski to ski.

[DaveD]

@Dysco Maybe you need your buddies bindings too.

[kmenard]

I forgot my boot one day and jumped on my friends ski that is bigger, different brand, RFF, and Double boot.

 

Hilarity ensued.

[Dysco]

@DaveD size 11's into a 9 worked for only a very short time. But your point does have merit. Identical can't be identical unless they are...identical.

[Horton]

for those of you who just can't get yourself to take a couple of sets on a different ski... I should generate at least two or three ski reviews this year.