Powder skis

[Tony Storaro]

I looked up the weight of the Soul 7, 2000 grams for the 188 cm. That's heavy for a dedicated touring ski. Mine is 1730 grams and has shifts on it. That feels plenty heavy for a long tour.

As an occasional touring ski that will also be a excellent resort soft snow / powder ski, it seems pretty ideal. I love the shifts and highly recommend them.

Thank you! Will look for lighter ski for going up then. I was tempted by the reviews of the Souls that say they were very easy for someone who is new to powder, but perhaps will look elsewhere as I cannot justify having the Souls for only 3-4 days I see powder.
Thanks also for the opinion on the Shifts, I read some very mixed reviews, some like them, some hate them-quite confusing.

 

[Ken_R]

I beg to differ. They can absolutely be skied slowly. If they can't, they're much too stiff, too long, poor boot fit, problematic tune, or lack of proficient piloting.

I am talking about skiing them in deep powder.

I would love to see someone ski them slow in those conditions. Hint, they wont get far.

 

[markojp]

I am talking about skiing them in deep powder.

I would love to see someone ski them slow in those conditions. Hint, they wont get far.

Some speed is always good and necessary in deep powder for any ski.

 

[givethepigeye]

I am not a powder guy, but from what I have seen people do, aren't the powder ski supposed to be like 105 mm wide...like...at least?

BTW, what is the general opinion of Rossi Soul 7? I can have a rather decent deal on them from one of the online stores I frequent.
My idea is to pair them with Shift binding so I can walk up the mountain, for who knows, perhaps next year we will have Covid 19 S Plus, better safe eh?

If you like your Stokli's, im pretty sure you wont love those Soul7's or the super7's. just my $0.02 and experience.

 

[Tony Storaro]

If you like your Stokli's, im pretty sure you wont love those Soul7's or the super7's. just my $0.02 and experience.

I see...

Well, OK then, it is not like I am in a hurry or gonna need powder ski any time soon.. Will save the money and direct it towards SR 95 for the next season.

 

[Ken_R]

If you like your Stokli's, im pretty sure you wont love those Soul7's or the super7's. just my $0.02 and experience.

and that is an understatement!

They are in different galaxies in the ski universe.

 

[Tony Storaro]

and that is an understatement!

They are in different galaxies in the ski universe.

I was thinking also about SR 105, but seems nobody knows anything about these. It is like, nobody ever had any experience with the 105. Everybody on 95. And the Soul 7 are very very inexpensive right now that's why I considered them.

 

[slowrider]

Soul 7 is the pinnacle of design & innovation in the ski world. ;-)

 

[Ken_R]

I was thinking also about SR 105, but seems nobody knows anything about these. It is like, nobody ever had any experience with the 105. Everybody on 95. And the Soul 7 are very very inexpensive right now that's why I considered them.

At slower speeds and good snow the Soul 7 is actually a LOT of fun and easy. Even in firmer snow if you keep speeds slow it can hold a decent edge. The soft flex makes it fun in tight trees as well even if they are bumped up a bit. Again, keep speeds well under say 20 mph and they are quite capable.

 

[AngryAnalyst]

At slower speeds and good snow the Soul 7 is actually a LOT of fun and easy. Even in firmer snow if you keep speeds slow it can hold a decent edge. The soft flex makes it fun in tight trees as well even if they are bumped up a bit. Again, keep speeds well under say 20 mph and they are quite capable.

I think the Soul 7 is a great ski! In fact I tried super hard to find one to demo for my Dad on a powder day.

It’s just not a ski i for most people who post on ski forums or write ski reviews. I think Phil’a distinction was “skiers” vs. “people who ski.” Even if you’re a skier if you’re a smaller person or someone who doesn’t ski powder at mach speeds I think they’re likely good skis.

 

[Flo]

I am not a powder guy, but from what I have seen people do, aren't the powder ski supposed to be like 105 mm wide...like...at least?

BTW, what is the general opinion of Rossi Soul 7? I can have a rather decent deal on them from one of the online stores I frequent.
My idea is to pair them with Shift binding so I can walk up the mountain, for who knows, perhaps next year we will have Covid 19 S Plus, better safe eh?

If you are a good skier and/or used to relatively stiff skis, I think that you will be disappointed by the Soul 7. I do not really understand who this ski is for. It is very soft, not stable at speed and only usable in good pow. I am not someone very picky and get use to most of the skis that I try but I really did not like this Soul 7. For me it is a beginner ski but when you are beginner do you really need a freeride only ski?

 

[Doug Briggs]

For many, Soul 7s are a jack of all trades, master of none. To some, they are the best thing since sliced bread.

 

[ski otter 2]

The soul 7s are great in soft, light pure powder, if it's not crazy deep and heavy/wet, mostly. They are relatively poor at crud, more work, not ideal response, noodles if the crud is stiff, rough or deep, and relatively a lot more work at speed in that crud. At the same time, the soul 7s are just so fun, turn so easily and well , in your basic, easy powder (for, also, powder trees and powder bumps), that many feel they are worth the trade-off, and the loss in rougher crud, etc. at speed. I do, but I don't own for that reason. I'd rather be on a ski that handles powder as well, and handles crud at speed also. Just more versatile, and well-rounded. Besides, I don't like to get tossed when I don't have to, from experience.

As far as using Monster 83s in powder, yeah, you (and I) can, but bet if I put you on a more appropriate powder ski it just might open new horizons. You never know.

 

[François Pugh]

The Ripstick would be better, but it would still suck. Yes you can ski either, but so many skis do so much better. It's like you paid for a track day and are asking which Harley cruizer to take to the track instead of what supersport bike, or asking what low ground clearence all wheel drive sports car you should use on the Rubicon Trail.

 

[givethepigeye]

I really wasnt disparaging the ski or the people that like them. To get a little more granular the Soul7 and say the SR105, they are at two ends of the spectrum (stiffness, dampness, etc). If you love one, you likely won’t love the other. i owned the Super7.

@Tony Storaro - I would have been fine with 105’s - I just demoed the 95 and it was great. So I stopped looking.

 

[ski otter 2]

I have skied with a friend who for years was on Soul 7s as his one ski quiver. Then he got a pair of Nordica Experience 93s. For the past two years, he finds he rarely takes out his Soul 7s anymore, and is looking for a pair of powder skis to add for next year.

I was thinking also about SR 105, but seems nobody knows anything about these. It is like, nobody ever had any experience with the 105. Everybody on 95. And the Soul 7 are very very inexpensive right now that's why I considered them.

Okay, another friend I ski with a lot is on just the Stockli SR 105s. For the past three years or so. We ski together especially in the spring, once most areas have closed.
(I have demoed a pair for some runs, once.) For him (ex racer), the 105 is a one ski quiver, day in, day out, 120+ days a season. It is a bit like the latest SR 95 in that it carves through almost anything, tracks amazingly. The SR 105 even more is a stable platform for whatever you want to do, in any conditions, here in Colorado: groomer, slush, off piste, powder, crud, ruts, some ice, you name it. He has put the latest high tech telemark bindings on them, "to handicap myself," he often says. He skis them fast and steady, keep up if you can.

To me, the SR 105 is not a playful ski, not 3D floating and drifting, for example. It carves. Unflappably. Through anything, any speed. More so even than the SR 95, which does not do as well once the snow gets deeper, seems to me. That SR 105 is not built for lift so much, but with that extra width, it can, just a bit, lift and not catch; to become unflappable through anything, whereas when things get deeper and deeper, at some point the SR 95 goes deeper and deeper, heavier and heavier, even though it still turns so well, almost like a submarine. The 105 does not become a submarine, at least until things get deeper than once in a coon's age. It stays a carving and stable platform, at almost any speed, at least in the 18X length for my friend (and, mostly, for me).

To me, the SR 105 is a lot like the old Rossignol Sickle 111, in that it is stiff enough to ski under the new snow, not on it, on a powder day, and carves there without effort, really stable, no problem, no hooking, at least when tuned to carve instead of pivot. Ditto in crud.

 

[Superbman]

I'm still chuckling at the Thread title-simply 'Powder Skis' and then upon popping in and reading, Imagine my surprise to see it's a comparison request between the Ripstick 86 and the monster 83. (with the second sentence being 'I'm not a big fan of powder..')

If you're truly torn between the two, for powder, Phil's advice on the Ripstick 86 is, of course, the way to go.

Though, from the sounds of it-I bet you'd like that Fancy Fischer 86 GT One a whole lot more-in and out of powder.

 

[Marin]

I meant what do you define as good handling for a carving ski in 10 - 12 inches of powder?

I mean they handle almost same as on groomer, meaning I can carve same as I am on groomer run. They just float thru the snow.

 

[Marin]

I'm still chuckling at the Thread title-simply 'Powder Skis' and then upon popping in and reading, Imagine my surprise to see it's a comparison request between the Ripstick 86 and the monster 83. (with the second sentence being 'I'm not a big fan of powder..')

If you're truly torn between the two, for powder, Phil's advice on the Ripstick 86 is, of course, the way to go.

Though, from the sounds of it-I bet you'd like that Fancy Fischer 86 GT One a whole lot more-in and out of powder.

Are you saying Fischer 86 GT One is better choice then Elan Ripstick for what I am looking for ?

 

[liv2ski]

If you are a really good powder skier, I am pretty sure either of those will work for you, but not me. With so little time on the mountain to ski powder conditions, I need all the help I can get. In retrospect, my best powder skis were a pair of Praxis Powder boards in 191 or was it 196? Reverse/ reverse camber/side cut. The most fun EVAR skiing in 12+ inches of pow, but tough to use in a resort that gets packed down near a lift. My Atomic Automatics were fun with the 117 waist and a few years ago I upgraded to 191 Praxis Lasha Pows (Thanks Keith and Splat). Sexiest ski on the mountain. Maybe someday I will be able to do them justice, now that I am retired and can chase storms.