Kids
Whenever I find myself riding up a chairlift with a ski instructor, the first thing I do is ask what age range they teach. And if they say ‘kids’, I get a bit of a glint in my eye and I start asking a whole bunch of questions. That’s how I learned about the Edgie-Wedgie, (more...)...
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Gear
Rossignol’s new Pursuit HP replaces the popular Avenger Ti, taking over the maker’s high-end frontside carver niche—non-race edition. Think of the wood/titanium-core Pursuit not so much as a race-stock relative but rather as a pedal-to-the-metal crowd-pleaser. The ski showcases Rossignol’s mastery of next-generation Frontside design, with an 81mm waist and a very slightly rockered tip (more...)...
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Gear
Nordica’s Fire Arrow 80 Pro was one of the most popular skis at this year’s SIA demo. I waited diligently for a chance to ride the updated Fire Arrow, and I’m glad I did. This is a significantly improved ski, taking last year’s Fire Arrow 80 and giving it a much-needed jolt of energy. For (more...)...
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Kids
Forgive me for sounding dramatic, but the use of a leash turns out to be something of a two-edged sword. When it comes to teaching your kids to ski, it’s worth taking a moment to contemplate the good and the bad of the leash so that you can use it to best effect (if you (more...)...
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Gear
Of all the skis I tried at this year’s SIA show, the Blizzard Cochise was easily the biggest surprise. The Cochise didn’t just win best of show—it changed how I look at rocker. Let’s call the Cochise a rocker evolution: the maturing and perhaps finally the true realization of rocker’s full potential. To really understand (more...)...
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Gear
Salomon’s Enduro XT800 is another one of those carving-oriented All-Mountain skis that finds itself reclassified by today’s standards as strictly a frontside carver. Yes, the ski employs some tricks to improve floatation and soft snow performance, but a 79mm waist may as well be a needle these days, so let’s just call the Enduro XT (more...)...
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Gear
Atomic’s Smoke Ti is a frontside carver that makes shop owners and skiers happy alike—it sells well, and it delivers a lot of ski for the money. Probably Atomic wouldn’t exactly push this as an economy-class ski, but you can’t help noticing that the Smoke Ti trades at a noticeable discount compared to everything else (more...)...
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Kids
‘Everyone has fun; no one gets hurt’ has become my motto when I’m skiing with my kids. As a mission statement it is simple, concise, and appropriately catchy, but before you nod your head in agreement and then move on to something more interesting, let me first take a moment to try to convince you (more...)...
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Video
Really there’s no better motivator than having a little brother who’s faster than you in the gates. I spent damn near my entire young adulthood chasing him, and, well…it looks like I’m still trying to catch him. Hard to say who’d be faster if we jumped into a course today, though I do like my (more...)...
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Gear
Volkl’s RTM 84 has been highly regarded in print reviews, topping many a frontside-carver list. Oddly enough, however, during my own on-snow testing at Winter Park, the RTM 84 proved to be one of my least favorite hard-snow skis. The RTM (“Ride the Mountain”) is what we might call a ‘modern’ frontside ski: extra girth (more...)...
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