The Never-Ending Stöckli Discussion

[LindseyB]

Hey @LindseyB , any preferred Stockli demo dealers in Verbier near the Medran base/gondola area?

Store Locator | Stöckli

Stöckli – Swiss Made & Passion – Over 80 years of experience

www.stoeckli.ch

 

[LKLA]

Hey @LindseyB , any preferred Stockli demo dealers in Verbier near the Medran base/gondola area?

Try Evasion Sports - we have had a great experience every time we have visited.

 

[Paul Lutes]

Would very much like to get the background story on the WRT-ST (hybrid GS/SL) - seems like an idea that was obvious and long overdue. Am I correct in assuming that it's got Stockli FIS bones and tissue, but can't be called FIS because there's no formal race category for it's dimension??

 

[DocGKR]

As I mentioned previously in another thread, I typically consider skis under 70 mm as dedicated racers; those 70-80 mm or so are on-piste recreational sport carvers, while those in the 80-100 mm range are great all-mountain resort skis. In my quest for the perfect sport carver, I had intended to get a pair of Stockli AX’s this year, but recently ended up finding a great deal on a pair of 177 Stockli SC’s (123-72-104; 16.2m turn) which were quickly mounted on the line and promptly received a nice 1/3 tune before heading to Squaw last week.

Tahoe had a lot of thaw and re-freeze of late, so early morning runs in the shade were on the firmer side, with many people complaining of “icy” conditions. The SC has no problems arcing solid turns on these firm groomers. As the sun came out and the snow softened, then turned somewhat slushy late in the day, the SC continued to perform great. With a relatively softer flex, but firm torsionally; SC turn shape can be varied from nearly SL tight to almost GS wide. The SC is quite fun in both firm and soft moguls, although it quickly reminded me to NOT get in the back seat after I was a bit lackadaisical early one morning and was punished with a spectacular crash and slide down the side of KT22.

Turn initiation on the SC is as easy and intuitive as on my 177 Head i.Rally (136-77-115; 14.7m turn), but the SC is smoother and has a much higher speed limit than the i.Rally. In addition, the SC has a very large “sweet spot” and is equally forgiving on groomers as the less capable i.Rally. Likewise the SC offers a wider performance range than other sport carvers like the Atomic Redster, Nordica Spitfire, and others of that ilk. The SC is not quite as precise, scalpel-like, or powerful as my 180 Head i.Race (123-69-103; 16.3m turn), but the SC is much more fun and adaptable to a wider variety of conditions and terrain (I suspect the i.Race is closer to the Stockli WRT). In many ways the SC offers similar versatility and capability as my 181 Rossi Hero Elite Plus Ti (130-78-110; 15m turn), although the Rossi has a bit more pop out of turns, while the SC is more refined.

On my next day skiing, I am going to experiment with moving the mount on the SC forward a cm or so to see how that changes things.

The on-piste breadth and ease offered by the SC was a true surprise—I suspect both experts and strong intermediates will find the SC a joy carving up groomers, as well as zipping bumps.

Of course, Stockli mania will now set in for me, and if the right deal manifests, I look forward to acquiring a 182 AR and a 172 (or hopefully longer) WRT at some point in the near future....

 

[Philpug]

@LindseyB I just saw SkiEssentials video from Outdoor Retailer which had the 2021 lineup in it. Are there any major changes to the SX (and AX), or did they just get new topsheets. I picked up AR's this season and love them, looking to complete the quiver with something narrow as well and the SX is definitely a contender. I'll be in Davos next week with plenty of places to demo the entire Stöckli lineup, which ones would you suggest i'll demo?

The AR is carryover but the AX has brought over the edges (@LindseyB can explain it better and more in-depth) from the new AR and Stormriders. The AX is now about 120 grams lighter with these new edges. There is now a bit more tail rise to allow the ski to be released even easier but not at the cost of performance from a better skier. There is nothing to dislike about this ski.

 

[Noodler]

The AR is carryover but the AX has brought over the edges (@LindseyB can explain it better and more in-depth) from the new AR and Stormriders. The AX is now about 120 grams lighter with these new edges. There is now a bit more tail rise to allow the ski to be released even easier but not at the cost of performance from a better skier. There is nothing to dislike about this ski.

Just for clarification, the weight decrease for the AX is 60g per ski and this was only due to using the edges that have less metal in the anchoring pattern. No other changes were made to the layup construction to my knowledge.

 

[Noodler]

As I mentioned previously in another thread, I typically consider skis under 70 mm as dedicated racers; those 70-80 mm or so are on-piste recreational sport carvers, while those in the 80-100 mm range are great all-mountain resort skis. In my quest for the perfect sport carver, I had intended to get a pair of Stockli AX’s this year, but recently ended up finding a great deal on a pair of 177 Stockli SC’s (123-72-104; 16.2m turn) which were quickly mounted on the line and promptly received a nice 1/3 tune before heading to Squaw last week.

Tahoe had a lot of thaw and re-freeze of late, so early morning runs in the shade were on the firmer side, with many people complaining of “icy” conditions. The SC has no problems arcing solid turns on these firm groomers. As the sun came out and the snow softened, then turned somewhat slushy late in the day, the SC continued to perform great. With a relatively softer flex, but firm torsionally; SC turn shape can be varied from nearly SL tight to almost GS wide. The SC is quite fun in both firm and soft moguls, although it quickly reminded me to NOT get in the back seat after I was a bit lackadaisical early one morning and was punished with a spectacular crash and slide down the side of KT22.

Turn initiation on the SC is as easy and intuitive as on my 177 Head i.Rally (136-77-115; 14.7m turn), but the SC is smoother and has a much higher speed limit than the i.Rally. In addition, the SC has a very large “sweet spot” and is equally forgiving on groomers as the less capable i.Rally. Likewise the SC offers a wider performance range than other sport carvers like the Atomic Redster, Nordica Spitfire, and others of that ilk. The SC is not quite as precise, scalpel-like, or powerful as my 180 Head i.Race (123-69-103; 16.3m turn), but the SC is much more fun and adaptable to a wider variety of conditions and terrain (I suspect the i.Race is closer to the Stockli WRT). In many ways the SC offers similar versatility and capability as my 181 Rossi Hero Elite Plus Ti (130-78-110; 15m turn), although the Rossi has a bit more pop out of turns, while the SC is more refined.

On my next day skiing, I am going to experiment with moving the mount on the SC forward a cm or so to see how that changes things.

The on-piste breadth and ease offered by the SC was a true surprise—I suspect both experts and strong intermediates will find the SC a joy carving up groomers, as well as zipping bumps.

Of course, Stockli mania will now set in for me, and if the right deal manifests, I look forward to acquiring a 182 AR and a 172 (or hopefully longer) WRT at some point in the near future....

Nice review. I have to agree that the SC is a very "accessible" ski for more skier levels/types than I would have expected. Although softer flexing than it's other Laser brethren, it still has fantastic grip in spades. Of course it likes living "on the edge" as most deeper sidecut skis do. It doesn't have a ton of pop out of the turns which I actually like some days as it takes more energy to control and respond to a ski that gives a lot back at the end of every turn. I think the AX actually has more pop than the SC (which some might find surprising) and the current CX has much more rebound energy than both.

 

[Noodler]

Would very much like to get the background story on the WRT-ST (hybrid GS/SL) - seems like an idea that was obvious and long overdue. Am I correct in assuming that it's got Stockli FIS bones and tissue, but can't be called FIS because there's no formal race category for it's dimension??

It's a real deal race stock ski that just happens to have dimensions that are a hybrid between an SL and a GS ski. I've never been on a ski that felt soooooo solid and smooth. On a day where the snow conditions had many skis practically chattering the fillings out of my teeth, the WRT ST made the slopes feel smooth as glass. This WRT ST is something special.

 

[Peter P]

I have skied the 2021 WRT ST

The ski itself is almost identical to the current one. The only difference is that there is a carbon strip that minimizes distortion in reverse flexing meaning less chatter at high speeds. This has been a hidden tech used on a bunch of our World Cup skiers skis for the past few years.

It is likely that he tested it in a different binding set up.

When in Andermatt we tested the same ski models with multiple bindings and it is crazy how different the performance characteristics are between the plate/binding set ups.

The ski is offered with both the SRT and WRT binding. The SRT is much more forgiving and the ski is very different. Not nearly as precise or powerful, but much more playful and well behaved. With the WRT binding the ski is almost exactly the same, the difference would not be noticeable unless someone knew what they were looking for. View attachment 91144

Where I can pre-order one of these? And which binding and plate should I go with for Naster and Master's? Is the WRT too extreme?

 

[Peter P]

I have skied the 2021 WRT ST

The ski itself is almost identical to the current one. The only difference is that there is a carbon strip that minimizes distortion in reverse flexing meaning less chatter at high speeds. This has been a hidden tech used on a bunch of our World Cup skiers skis for the past few years.

It is likely that he tested it in a different binding set up.

When in Andermatt we tested the same ski models with multiple bindings and it is crazy how different the performance characteristics are between the plate/binding set ups.

The ski is offered with both the SRT and WRT binding. The SRT is much more forgiving and the ski is very different. Not nearly as precise or powerful, but much more playful and well behaved. With the WRT binding the ski is almost exactly the same, the difference would not be noticeable unless someone knew what they were looking for. View attachment 91144

Check out this website!!! Not sure which country this is but they have the 2021!

Narty STOCKLI Laser WRT ST WRT R-Speed D40 + WRT 12 FF 2021 - sklep narciarski www.nartywarszawa.pl

WRT: Worldcup Racing Team - to samo w sobie mówi wszystko. Ta narta łączy w sobie dynamit narty slalomowej ze stabilnością narty gigantowej.

www.nartywarszawa.pl

 

[Jim McDonald]

Polish website

 

[smv]

Polish website

This is still the current model, must have been an error on their page or not allowed to disclose the 2021 pics until official release early March. Here is a look of the 2021 model with the new logo... https://www.sciaremag.it/attrezzaturasci/abbiamo-assaggiato-i-nuovi-stockli-ecco-le-novita/

 

[DocGKR]

OK--I am officially intrigued. If you look closely at the photo of the 2021 Stockli WRT, it clearly shows "180" which would be a new length, as the previous model only went up to 172 cm. Does anyone know how the 180 WRT skis? Turn radius?

 

[Peter P]

Damn ... I wish Stockli came to Park City with a demo set-up like that ... looks like heaven on earth.

 

[Peter P]

Which plate would everyone opt for? WRT D20, SRT Carbon D2, or SRT Speed D20
Which binding? WRT 16, WRT 12, SRT 12

 

[Noodler]

Which plate would everyone opt for? WRT D20, SRT Carbon D2, or SRT Speed D20
Which binding? WRT 16, WRT 12, SRT 12

I'm fairly sure I skied the Carbon D2 on the WRT ST I skied. I have nothing to directly compare it to on that ski, other than to say it was an utterly fantastic setup and I wouldn't hesitate to buy that setup without further testing.

 

[vilu]

I'm fairly sure I skied the Carbon D2 on the WRT ST I skied. I have nothing to directly compare it to on that ski, other than to say it was an utterly fantastic setup and I wouldn't hesitate to buy that setup without further testing.

Do you have a comparison to the Laser SL FIS? I have the Laser SL with SRT D20, the FIS would be too demanding. Is the WRT ST with SRT plate something in between?

 

[Noodler]

Do you have a comparison to the Laser SL FIS? I have the Laser SL with SRT D20, the FIS would be too demanding. Is the WRT ST with SRT plate something in between?

The WRT ST is a different beast from my Stockli FIS SL skis. My FIS SL skis are from quite a few years ago and I have them mounted with a Tyrolia race plate. Those skis have so much power and rebound that must be dealt with on every turn. No relaxing on those puppies. I didn't feel that way at all on the WRT ST. It has the same solid feeling, but with more "composure" and was definitely more "accessible" without requiring so much effort to control the power. Basically, for me it had all the pluses of my FIS SL skis without the minuses. So yeah, I think it's more of a blend of the attributes... as you stated "something in between".

 

[MasterHero]

OK--I am officially intrigued. If you look closely at the photo of the 2021 Stockli WRT, it clearly shows "180" which would be a new length, as the previous model only went up to 172 cm. Does anyone know how the 180 WRT skis? Turn radius?

View attachment 93061

Wrt 180 cm Radius 16.3 Mt

 

[MasterHero]

Which plate would everyone opt for? WRT D20, SRT Carbon D2, or SRT Speed D20
Which binding? WRT 16, WRT 12, SRT 12

I have a 2020 Wrt with a particular setup (recommended by Stockli Promoter Ex World
Cup Competitor)
plate: Wrt DH D40 + bindings WRT 12
and setup works perfectly . . .