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Talk to me about Skis + Bindings

Sherbert

In the parking lot (formerly "At the base lodge")
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A couple of years ago I returned to skiing after a break of around 20 years (I skied avidly as a teenager and now, in my late 30s, I found myself living a few hours drive from Tahoe and want to take advantage).

I want to invest in a good pair of skis but have really no idea where to start. I would say I am an advanced intermediate skier (I can handle diamond/double diamonds fine but I have no interest in skiing back country/off piste).
 

dbostedo

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Don't even think about skis until you get boots. Find a good bootfitter (several around Tahoe - I'm sure others can give good recommendations) and make an appointment. Plan to spend a couple of hours and get properly fitting boots.

Then come back and ask about skis.
 
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Sherbert

In the parking lot (formerly "At the base lodge")
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Jul 15, 2018
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:doh: Of course I have boots (Nordica Hell & Back).
 

dbostedo

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Ah... I assumed you must have been renting for the past couple of years, since you were asking about new skis.

In that case, tell us a bit more about what you like to ski and how you ski.... You said you don't have interest in off-piste, but what about moguls? Bumps? Powder?
Do you ski fast and agressive and carve a lot?
 
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Sherbert

In the parking lot (formerly "At the base lodge")
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Jul 15, 2018
Posts
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Yes, I've been renting skis because I was overwhelmed with the options/choice and wanted to do research before buying (but still overwhelmed). After the first trip in rental boots I went out and bought my own and have been very happy with them. I rented demo skis once (only because the shop didn't have my size in the regular rentals and the difference it made to my trip was huge: sadly I was in a hurry when I dropped the skis off and forgot to make note of the brand/model :/).

So, this is where I run into problems when people ask what kind of skier I am. I seriously don't know. I taught myself to ski aged 7 on a dry ski slope (common in non-snowy climes, like skiing on a very coarse scrubbing brush) watching my older brother, progressed to real snow aged 12 and then took some lessons and skied regularly for a further 6 years. Then I stopped for 20 years and started again three years ago and found, like riding a bike, you never forget. Took a 2 hour private lesson and refined some stuff last year.

I like moguls, don't mind bumps, not really much into powder (but perhaps because I've been using crappy rental skis for the past couple of years and it was tough to ski the fresh stuff), hit the odd (very) small jump if I'm heading past a terrain park! I ski fast, but not aggressively and I suppose I prefer to work on my technique as I go down instead of speed. Skiing through trees scares me (probably shouldn't have watched the video on tree wells).
 
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Philpug

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Sherbert, we have a good start here. Where in Tahoe are you skiing and not so much which resort but where at the resort are you skiing and what terrain do you want to ski that you feel the gear is holding you back.
 

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