Tweener Ski rec.

[Idahosnow]

My son is in need of skis for the coming season. He is about 5'3 and only 85 pounds. He is a fantastic skier, easily skiing double blacks. He loves to jump and spin, preferring twin tip skis but still carves arcs. I am thinking he needs around a 155-160mm ski which sits between short adult skis and long kid skis. I assume adult skis might be too stiff for his weight.

I am hoping for some options to look for. I will be looking for used skis which brings another question. His current boots are Nordica GPX 70. I believe they are a junior boot so I'm not sure if I can use an adult binding. Some skis at that size have jr bindings while some have adult. I'm hoping not to spend too much as it will probably be a 1-year ski for him.

Thank in advance!

 

[Kyle]

That is a tough weight to figure--probably the first place to look is a park ski (which tend to designed with lighter people in mind). The Armada ARV series is a nice starting place. A women's ski like a Blizzard Black Pearl would probably work as well if you can get away with that.

 

[Analisa]

Faction Candide or Prodigy would be perfect. They do a 0.5 that’s a true kids ski. Then for the 1.0 & 2.0, they folded their junior line and women’s line into their main offerings, made shorter lengths & adjusted the flex to the smaller sizes. The “x” versions are just an alternative topsheet, usually a touch more feminine, but neither particularly gendered.

 

[Idahosnow]

Thanks for the suggestions. That will help as I hit the ski swaps.

 

[Idahosnow]

I've been hearing good things about the Smash7. It looks promising, but it also seems to be listed as more of a beginner/intermediate ski. It's a twin, a bit wider, and affordable. Would an advanced 85lb skier reach their limits quickly?

 

[Eric267]

Came across these recently looking for skis for my nephew. You could probably hook up a 10 din (or demo) and be all in for around $400. Possibly pull 2 seasons out of them and still get $150+ on the back end. Looks like they are only on sale for another 24hr


https://www.evo.com/outlet/skis/bli..._funnel&utm_content=300x250&utm_term=10229473

 

[AmyPJ]

Nordica has a new youth line this season, the Enforcer S/Santa Ana S. 78-80 mm under foot depending on length, full wood core. Same shape as Enforcer/Santa Ana. I just picked up a pair for my 12yo daughter.

 

[Idahosnow]

Those look nice. They seem to really be upping the Junior ski game these days. Unfortunately, he is fully into twin tips. Lots of switch skiing and landing. It is amazing how few, quality all-mountain twin tips there are especially in junior sizes. Most of what I found are primarily park or piste focused. I have found a few decent options. Just can't seem to pull the trigger yet.

 

[Dwight]

Jski Allplay
Head The Show
4Frnt maybe
Icelandic, lighter skis
Rossi Sprayer

@dean_spirito might be able to help out on recommendations too.

 

[Wilhelmson]

My kid is a little heavier and an inch shorter. I don't think you need a women's ski and you'll just end up paying more for anything decent. If you're not committed to camber you could look at the Mantra Jr in the largest or next largest length.

 

[Ken_R]

My son is in need of skis for the coming season. He is about 5'3 and only 85 pounds. He is a fantastic skier, easily skiing double blacks. He loves to jump and spin, preferring twin tip skis but still carves arcs. I am thinking he needs around a 155-160mm ski which sits between short adult skis and long kid skis. I assume adult skis might be too stiff for his weight.

I am hoping for some options to look for. I will be looking for used skis which brings another question. His current boots are Nordica GPX 70. I believe they are a junior boot so I'm not sure if I can use an adult binding. Some skis at that size have jr bindings while some have adult. I'm hoping not to spend too much as it will probably be a 1-year ski for him.

Thank in advance!

Maybe these:

in 155cm

 

[Dwight]

Let's not forget the OP is looking for twin tip, park skis.

 

[Dwight]

@Idahosnow

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Rossignol-...3411ba7f4b:m:m8lW10wB_Yberj-hOmKPD5A&LH_BIN=1

I was going to send you to Liquidation Sports, but they might be out of business or need a new web admin.

Lots of used gear sites out there though.

 

[Idahosnow]

If you're not committed to camber you could look at the Mantra Jr in the largest or next largest length.

Wilhemson.....Does your son have the Mantra Jr? If so, how does it ski with the full rocker? I love Volkl skis and they are very popular where we ski due to the long dry spells.

 

[AmyPJ]

Blizzard Rustler Junior? They're a twin tip.

We almost picked up some Mantra Jr instead of the Santa Ana. I had my trusty ski expert along, and he loved the flex of them for a tweener like my daughter and said she'd have a blast on them with the full rocker, although Volkl I believe says they do have some camber, but we sure couldn't see it when looking at the skis.

 

[Wilhelmson]

Wilhemson.....Does your son have the Mantra Jr? If so, how does it ski with the full rocker? I love Volkl skis and they are very popular where we ski due to the long dry spells.

He's on his second set and they ski well. There's a school of thought that kids (and apparently everybody else) should ski narrower cambered skis to develop their skills.

This past winter my wife broke her skis so used his mantra jr (adult demo bindings) and I bough him some used soul rider jr which are more of a classic ski. Between skiing ice, powder, and everything in between that week, he didn't even notice a difference although he seemed a little quicker on the soul riders which are much lighter with kids bindings. My wife found the mantra jr to be better on ice than her black pearl 88s.

 

[Idahosnow]

Thanks for all the suggestions, everyone. I will update once we get him on a new ski. In the meantime, my wife came home with a barely used pair of 156 2012 Kenjas (bamboo looking design) she found for $20 at the thrift store. They are in great shape and the Markers seem to put his boot barely behind the mount mark. I know they are not what he is looking for (twin), but I am excited for him to give them a go and see if he can bend them. If so, I think he will be surprised how fun that type of ski can be. If not, my wife will use them. At same shop, she got me 2012 177 Kendos in great shape for $20. Pretty stoked. I have always loved Kendos during demo days. Some couple must have gotten new skis.

 

[Pequenita]

I'm interested in whether his skill makes up for his size and how well he bends the Kenjas. Over the years, a number of smaller women have skied this iteration and length of that ski and had mixed results. In any case $20 is a steal!

 

[Idahosnow]

I'm interested in whether his skill makes up for his size and how well he bends the Kenjas. Over the years, a number of smaller women have skied this iteration and length of that ski and had mixed results. In any case $20 is a steal!

Yes, it will be interesting to see. I think he'll carve them. He's an aggressive skier. It is strange. My wife has the 2011 Kenjas (silver pink blue clouds) in 156 and hers are quite a bit longer than these ones. Seems odd.

We just found a pair of 149 k2 MissDemeanors with adjustable bindings in great shape at a garage sale for $40. He is very excited about these and the graphic is cool. Should be a good size for the year. All a sudden he has a quiver to pick from. A family of 4 each having 2-3 skis means a lot of waxing and tuning in my future.

 

[Idahosnow]

I'm interested in whether his skill makes up for his size and how well he bends the Kenjas. Over the years, a number of smaller women have skied this iteration and length of that ski and had mixed results. In any case $20 is a steal!

He skied the Kenjas today for the first time. We got 6 inches of new snow. He loved them and was able to bend them in turns. They were better than his close to center-mounted twin tips in the fresh snow and handled a lot of bumps and tree skiing today. Only negative he had was that they are not as good for jumping. I'm glad he has another option