Ok, now that we’ve beaten the “width” horse truly to the death and beyond (https://www.pugski.com/threads/why-so-wide.15351/). Here’s a promising demo list of 75-80mm skis for me to take to some man-made WROD next fall. 
— Stockli Laser AX 78/Motion 85
— Nordica Navigator 80
— Liberty VMT76/78/(w)
— Volkl Kanjo
(There’re still one or two late suggestions, some DPS’s that I haven’t got around to look into yet)
Here’s the background that led to the list, summarized from the other thread:
Skier: 5’4, 120lb, advanced “all mountain” skier. Not young, but still fit and fairly athletic.
I put “all-mountain” in quote because this is a strictly eastern 1-ski quiver. So no consideration for 18” bottomless blower powder.
Requirements short version: skis will be used in anything from flash freeze groomer to spring thaw bumps, add a lot of trees.
That said, here’s the emphasis (requirement long version):
Basically, trying to strike a balance between decent edge grip (stiffer) and bump-friendliness (softer). Bonus point for skis that are torsionally strong underfoot but with soft tip/tail.
I like to say I only use groomer to get to the trees. But in the east, the trees are quite often just unskiable toboggan runs. Realistically, it’s 50/50 groomer vs bumps/trees.
Again, keeping it under 84mm in the waist and 160 in length (162 if there’s tip “riser/rocker”), for reason outlined in the original thread.
— Stockli Laser AX 78/Motion 85
— Nordica Navigator 80
— Liberty VMT76/78/(w)
— Volkl Kanjo
(There’re still one or two late suggestions, some DPS’s that I haven’t got around to look into yet)
Here’s the background that led to the list, summarized from the other thread:
Skier: 5’4, 120lb, advanced “all mountain” skier. Not young, but still fit and fairly athletic.
I put “all-mountain” in quote because this is a strictly eastern 1-ski quiver. So no consideration for 18” bottomless blower powder.
Requirements short version: skis will be used in anything from flash freeze groomer to spring thaw bumps, add a lot of trees.
That said, here’s the emphasis (requirement long version):
- I don’t ski at mach speed. And with my (lack of) weight, stiff groomer carvers are OFF the table.
- That said, it should still carve. I turn a lot. I can fit 5 turns where others make one. I just don’t rail it at high speed.
- I don’t purposely ski refrozen groomer. But if I calculate wrong and found myself on one, it should still grip on hard pack, at least at moderate speed.
- Trees and bumps, A LOT.But only when they’re soft. I ski the “roundabout” line in the bumps, ie the slow line. And I don’t even ski them slow line fast. But I do strive to ski them smoothly and fluidly. (I would classify myself as a technical finesse skier)
Basically, trying to strike a balance between decent edge grip (stiffer) and bump-friendliness (softer). Bonus point for skis that are torsionally strong underfoot but with soft tip/tail.
I like to say I only use groomer to get to the trees. But in the east, the trees are quite often just unskiable toboggan runs. Realistically, it’s 50/50 groomer vs bumps/trees.
Again, keeping it under 84mm in the waist and 160 in length (162 if there’s tip “riser/rocker”), for reason outlined in the original thread.
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