Beurteilungen und Skitests verschiedener Skimarken und Modelle (in englisch) skitest testski
Rosie: I recently went on a weekend ski trip with my wife and somehow managed to lose a piece on the front of my ancient bindings. Halfway through the day I was forced to get on a pair of rentals and decided I would try a pair of the shaped skis. The local rental shop set me up on a pair of K2s that were about 5 cm shorter than my usual skis. I'll probably be buying some shaped skis before our next trip. I loved their turning ability and felt in complete control on them. I've been skiing for about five years and can ski parallel as long as I'm not in a monstrous mogul field. Ice gives me a little trouble when I land on it coming off a jump or mogul, but with the shaped skis I hardly noticed it. I would recommend trying them to anyone who isn't in the top 5% on the hill.
Ed Grant: I have been skiing 30 years (and now approaching the horrible 1/2 century). Learned on Eastern Ice and transplanted to Western powder. I've always skied on Rossignols (ROC 550...that dates me), Comp SL, and lately Dynamic VR 27. I'm over 6' and weigh in at around 195-200 lb.
I had heard the noise about the new parabolics and decided to try them out. Rented a pair of 188 cm Kastle B52 Performance. I found that the first run felt a little weird but after that it was like I had skied them for weeks. I normally ski with a fairly "traditional" stance (feet together) and, although I had been advised that I should open up a bit I discovered that I was more comfortable without changing my stance at all.
Anyway I am sold on the concept, I just have to find the right pair...I'd like to try out the Kneissel ERGO Race and/or Atomic Beta 918. I'll definitely be purchasing a pair sooner rather than later. (I wish I had found out about parabolics sooner...maybe the shops would have had some stock...they're all sold out!). I won't get rid of my old skis, they will be kept for those very rare, hard snow days, but I'll bet they won't wear out very fast!
To all the nay-sayers I can only add "don't condemn a man (or a ski) until you've walked (or skied) a mile (or more) in his shoes (on them)". Skiing is supposed to first and foremost FUN and anything that adds to one's range of terrain, reduces one's fatigue, and manages to add to that FUN has got to be good for skiers and the industry.
Hank Talikka: I was recently out in Snowmass Colorado and tried a pair of Dynastar shaped skis. They were terrific.. what a change from my 205's. I went with a ski about 20 cm shorter and what a change.... I cut better and was more confident on the steeper hills than I have ever been. My next pair will be SHAPE!!
Jim Ross skis 5 pairs of parabolics in 4 days.
Chris Poullos: I was suspect myself about shaped skis last year. But this year I bit the bullet and bought a pair of K2 Fours. WOW!! These are da goods. They`re not intermediate skis -- they are the hottest skis I've ever skiied. So don't diss the parabolics till you've skied them.
Elacynnn: I just demo'd four types of parabolic skis this weekend and I agree with all the raves on these skis. In one day I was able to boost my skills from low-level intermediate to higher-level intermediate. I was carving and parallel skiing for the first time. It felt great to suddenly have control on the shorter parabolics, after having struggled with longer skis last season. My favorites were the Olin Kinetics and the Rossignol 10.4s. The Olin Catalysts and K2s were also good.
Ed Pauls: Save the moguls. New ski length recommendations (10 to 20 cm shorter with shaped skis) are certain to tighten up the moguls just as the short ski fad in the '70s did. Short skis promote low speed short turns and the resulting moguls are tight little verticle sided devils that no one enjoys skiing. In the '70s it got so bad that short skis were banned from good mogul runs at many areas. So...If you must ski shaped skis think high speeds and looong turns...or stay out of the damned bumps.
Philip Pan: My wife and I both tried some of the super-sidecut skis while at Park City and Deer Valley last season. My conclusions are that the softer hourglass skis are most definitely a boon for skiers who are just learning to carve, but the combination of shortness and extreme sidecut of the higher -performance models makes them inherently more of an SL only ski. I personally would prefer to work a little harder to make tight turns on a longer ski than sacrifice stability at yahoo-banzaii speeds.
M. Campy - ski instructor at Wachusett Mountain, Massachusetts (7/5/96): To any person trying the Elan SCX skis, or any of the 'shaped or parabolic' skis:
If it's a new and different feel it should be. These skis will enable you to get on the edges of your skis and carve like you have never carved before. By using these few tips you will be able to feel the sensation that a world cup skier feels at 50 mph but at much lower speeds. These skis are truly helpful to any 'plateaued intermediate' skier who seems to skid, slip or slide through their turns.
#1 mantain a wider than normal stance, hip width at least.
#2 try to focus on your feet and ankles - this is where your turns will come from.
#3 concentrate on using skills that involve edging and pressure as opposed to turning or steering the skis.
#4 try these new skis and exercises on gentle terrain to enable you to feel the subtle differences within your boots.
#5 at higher speeds don't allow the skis to remain flat and centered but keep the skis constantly turning, rolling from one edge to the next.
By the nature of these skis they will turn themselves. All the skier has to do is on a gentle slope traversing the trail, try to roll your ankles up the hill until you feel the parabolic ski grab and carve. Once you get the feel try it down the hill until you can roll and carve to both sides. Then go from carved to flat (your weight and stance are over the center of the skis) and back to carved Try not to steer the skis but allow the changes you make with your ankles to effect your turns. These skis are truly the wave of things to come. Enjoy.
David Jones (27 June '96): The comments that Dave Mellor made about the K2 Four represent a common misconception about shape and hourglass skis. The general view about these skis is that they are for beginning and intermediate skiers. Having skied all the shapes of skis that are coming out next year, I am here to tell you, as anyone in the industry can tell you, that nothing could be further from the truth.
I was at Copper Mountain at the end of the season for a Rossignol test at Club Med, and watched Piccabo Street rip a GS course on a pair of 188 Rossignol cuts. The reason Dave was not turning the ski quick enough is not the skis fault; it is his own. There is a K2 Two and Three coming out next and perhaps there would be better suited for him. It is also possible that the ski was not tuned properly or it was not set up right for him. The reason that the ski did not hold a good edge on ice is because either the ski was not tuned correctly, needed to be returned because the edges were dull, or Dave was not pressuring the edge correctly for steep ice.
In all the shape skis and the parabolic skis you get the following advantages:
1) It is skied shorter, because it is wider, so you get all the stability of a longer ski but it will maneuver like a shorter ski.
2) It will ski better in crud and powder because it is wider and will "float" over it.
3) It takes much less effort to put the ski into a turn. At the end of the day you are not as tired and you have more fun.
I am 23 and have been skiing for 20 years, and always ski fast and aggressively. I have been working in ski shops for the last five, so I see all the new technology come and go. I skied the Elan SCX monoblock for 1 hour at a demo day , and bought it off the rep right there. There are now five pairs of race skis sitting in my closet collecting dust. There is a shape or parabolic ski that is right for you. Go talk to your favorite shop or find a place to demo them. The future of skiing is shape skis. Get on a set that is right for you and you will see.
The final point I would like to make is that when you go into the ski shop or to a demo day tell the truth about how you ski. Many times I have sold a ski to someone based on how a person describes their skiing and then see them on the slopes and it is way too much ski. This is a big problem with men! The better a ski is matched for your skiing ability the more fun you will have.