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Andy Mink

Everyone loves spring skiing but not in January
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Brian Finch

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Briefly - DAMN!

The bases were pretty dry when they arrived (well skied by prior tester) & I had no time to do much but a single coat of wax.

Took a few runs in trees & older pow & then pulled the bindings back some & hopped in the race course. They were simply unflappable at speed & while it was terrifying tossing a ski 2x the FIS demensions out & away to set up the next turn, I was only ~ second off the leader on a 106mm Freeride boards. :)

Otherwise they were superb on the hill.

It’s almost inappropriate to compare these to other ski is as they’re so unique. The shovels to feel light and maneuverability & there’s more tail than the 98 in term of beef.

The only place I found em unsettling was in the terrain park where larger table top landings resulted in “that carbon dooonk” sound. I’m not a fan of carbon skis & this was the only place it was noticeable.

If you only want to buy one ski, this is it.
 

ScottB

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Cyrus,

Please weigh in (pun intended) on the "real" weight of your new ski. I saw your post of 1900 ish grams per ski, but that contradicts Brian Finch's (exotic skis post?) measured weight of 1725 ish grams per ski. I don't mean to be a weight weenie here, but to me that is the difference between a ski i would use 50/50 and a ski I would use only as an alpine ski. Please explain what is going on with the weight info?

After checking I am confusing Brian Finch with Eric E. from exotic skis, but my question still stands. And to be a bit blunt, your emails on the Citadel claim it is your lightest ski in the family?
 

Eric Edelstein

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Some pics:
DSC06399.JPG


DSC06397.JPG


DSC06382.JPG
 

Brian Finch

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Cyrus,

Please weigh in (pun intended) on the "real" weight of your new ski. I saw your post of 1900 ish grams per ski, but that contradicts Brian Finch's (exotic skis post?) measured weight of 1725 ish grams per ski. I don't mean to be a weight weenie here, but to me that is the difference between a ski i would use 50/50 and a ski I would use only as an alpine ski. Please explain what is going on with the weight info?

After checking I am confusing Brian Finch with Eric E. from exotic skis, but my question still stands. And to be a bit blunt, your emails on the Citadel claim it is your lightest ski in the family?


Eric is way more handsome.
 

Brian Finch

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So @Brian Finch , I have to ask, how does the WhiteDot Ranger CarbonLite 108 compare to the V-Werks Katana, my own standard for evaluating a fatter carbon ski, if you or someone else happens to have been on both skis?

To me this fits the thread because we have to compare the Citadel to the best we know, and for me it will be, "How does this Citadel compare to the 184 & 191 Volkl V-Werks Katana 112?" (Just as for others the new DPS Alchemist Wailer 106 might be the standard.)

It sounds like those WhiteDot Carbonlites should be in the mix for others also.


Citadel > WD > VWerks > Alchemist in terms of lively feel
 

chilehed

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Given the engineering thread regarding how the HDT reacts to truly hard snow, I'm very curious to see what the Citadel does there.
Note that the idiot author of that thread later realized that much of his impressions of the 184 98's were due to them being too long for him. See post #17 in that thread.
 
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Tricia

Tricia

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Note that the idiot author of that thread later realized that much of his impressions of the 184 98's were due to them being too long for him.
Did the author do this? :doh:
 

Ken_R

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I know it's going off-topic but that's a whole other subject - best engineering doesn't always win out in consumer markets. At the moment Renoun are very small fish in the pond even if their fans are very nerdy and seriously invested in skiing. Before he is actually a threat to big boys there is the whole nightmare of retail distribution, internationalisation etc to navigate. Alternately taking $20 royalty off every pair of skis manufactured in the world might be attractive or dozens of other permutations.

Yea, making skis and SELLING skis are two way different things. You can be great at the first one but that does not guarantee success in the second one. We have all seen great products not sell well and fade out unfortunately.

I have been working for 15 years in the industry of selling things so I have seen it all, well, almost.
 

Ken_R

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correct - we're not looking to make the lightest ski out there (we clearly are already got smoked by DPS) but that's OK with us. We wanted to make a ski that's light(ish) that you can still ski hard on the way down. Slap some SHIFTS on these badboys and.....

I mean, you could venture into the Touring Ski segment. Light weight and damp/stable are an almost impossible combination to find. The New Head Kore get pretty darn close but are still on the "heavy" side compared to light touring skis but work pretty well for both resort/backcountry use. The Salomon Shift binding for sure nailed the "one binding quiver" for backcountry and resort use. I loved the feel and mechanics of it. Did not love the way it looked but worked great.
 

Andy Mink

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Yea, making skis and SELLING skis are two way different things. You can be great at the first one but that does not guarantee success in the second one. We have all seen great products not sell well and fade out unfortunately.

I have been working for 15 years in the industry of selling things so I have seen it all, well, almost.
Conversely, we've seen terrible products that sell well. It's a fine line.
 

ski otter 2

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Citadel > WD > VWerks > Alchemist in terms of lively feel

Holy Toledo. Guess I'll probably skip the WDs, for now, and focus on and follow you guys reporting on those Citadels.
(Gad, at this rate, maybe at some point I'll just have to break down and order a pair.)


The only part of that > progression I know first hand is the last part, VWerks Katana > Alchemist, for Alchemists 112 and under currently. I could add, WWerks Katana > Alchemist 106/112 > DPS Pures > Head Kores also.

(I add the Katana because other "VWerks", or the similarly constructed 100eight, to me, aren't in the same ballpark - and for me it's in overall feel, float stability and crud stability, rather than liveliness. The 100eight is certainly very lively.)
 
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