2019 Volkl Kendo, Stockli SR 95, Kastle fx95hp

[Swede]

Arl, I liked the monster 88 in a 177 last year.

thx Josh,

whmts, thx for the thought. I do believe skis are really good right now, but I"ve been testing for shops for 20 plus years, and still really only bond w/ "germanic" skis. I haven't found a french ski I have liked. Stockli, kastle, head, volkl, fisher, blizzard, nordica, all solid imo. Dynastar, rossi, solomon, never felt right to me. Maybe a little nationalistic, but I may have picked that up in the early 90's when I taught a season in austria and the other instructors would only ski on skis from their home country. I was skiing a Authier Pirmin Zurbriggen ski, and as an american, they are couldn't believe I didn't ski K2... funny world.

Cheers!
W

So whatabout the French ones that are made in Austria

 

[ski otter 2]

I don't want to derail this thread on the comparison of these skis, but you cannot compare FIS race skis from certain brands to anything else they produce for the recreational skier. FIS race skis all follow a similar basic formula for their construction layups. Those designs have little to do with what they produce in their recreational line-ups, EXCEPT for Stockli. Stockli provides "accessible" world cup construction for their consumer skis (although somewhat "relaxed" from their full-on race ready brethren).

So basically I disagree with your assertion that all the top skis from different manufacturers, feel and ski the same. That has not been my experience at all.

I have to agree with this last paragraph, heartily; and yet find exceptions to the first paragraph, with most brands I've tried. To me, each brand these days has an excellence, and a dialed in quality, but also surprising and characteristic distinct brand feel, even in their race skis, and right on down their line-up, as near as I can tell.

Stockli Laser line has carryover from race skis, but not sure all the Stormriders do, other than they are also good carving skis. The SRs are very lightweight these days, and lack the bomb-proof dampness/stability of the Lasers and race skis, pretty much. (The Lasers are mostly "cheater" or "relaxed" spec skis, much carryover from their race line.)

Also, many other brands have race ski carryover (and construction elements?) that is similar to their race line, as near as I can tell; for instance, Head, with Rebel W.C. iSpeeds Pro and non-Pro. One can feel the characteristic Head race ski lineage (To me it's a characteristic Head edgehold/carve super neutral feel that is deceptively fast.) One can notice this same Head "neutral" feel in the other iSpeeds, Supershapes, Monsters, etc. There must be design and materials carryovers, as well as preference/intent, to get such consistent carryover, I'd guess.

Similarly, Volkl has the Deacons, with the, to me, characteristic rounded, full-carve feel of their G.S. skis. ( I haven't skied enough of the rest of their line recently to know if that feel/construction(?) still carries over into their all mountain and powder lines or not; but it used to.)

And the Atomic also, whose almost whole line retains the "work the carve flex but stivot/jam easily" feel of their race skis, G.S. and SL. (Some feel like that characteristic Atomic feel is skittery/not damp enough, but to me it's purpose is to make both flex-carving and staight-line cutting off the turn effectively possible very easily - very fast and fun.)

The Fischer Curve, I'm told, retains the same fast, damp, stable feel of their race skis, but that's second hand.

 

[WadeHoliday]

Has it? Is the new Kendo different from last years?

I don't think any change this year, just a good ski that I'm enjoying in early season snow and enjoys a more traditional turn as well.

Volkl says they are going to change it and use what they did in the new mantra next year, we'll see if that's good or bad...

My gut is that once my MX 74 comes back from warranty, it will once again become my "on the snow" as opposed to "in the snow" ski, but I'm greatly enjoying this Volkl for early season "on the snow" skiing right now!

Cheers!
W

 

[Alexzn]

@Alexzn have you ever skied a Head Monster? Its much more Damp than anything Kastle or Stockli make.

I have. And no, it's not, at least in a way that combines dampness with feedback and user friendliness. My FIS GS ski is damper than any freeride ski but it's a handful in any terrain outside of a groomed course. But I hear what you are saying.

 

[ski otter 2]

I hadn't tried the Kendo in two or three years. So it's changed since then, apparently. If I got a ski like that it would probably be the Black Crows Orb, for on/off piste and bumps. But the MX 74 is a favorite of mine also. Hard to beat, except for the price and availability (at cheaper prices).