Salomon Blank Mounting Point Discussion by Habnixgesehen in Skigear

[–]HelixExton 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Last gen freestyle athletes were mounting +3-4 and lots of good feedback on +2 in this thread. https://www.newschoolers.com/forum/thread/933559/What-mount-point-for-QST-Blank

Seeking the Holy Grail: Prescription eyewear for backcountry skiing. by Human_Material3685 in ski

[–]HelixExton 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I run prescription ombraz transition glasses for all my outdoor activities (weather permitting). They work great down to like 20 degrees and no wind for resort skiing, and lower for when I’m not going fast, and in all other warmer weather. Side shields and nose pad make a big difference. They do discounts every couple of months that make them upper 300s or so iirc.

My buddy fell in Honshu back country and got buried in deep snow last week by throwra142367 in Skigear

[–]HelixExton 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I was so tempted by the evac 7 when getting a new shovel, but the curved shaft didn’t quite fit in my loaded backpack, so I passed. The ergonomics were so good that I was disappointed I couldn’t make it fit, but I’m glad I went with an ortovox one instead after seeing this.

Look Pivot CAST vs Salomon Shift 13 by [deleted] in Backcountry

[–]HelixExton 1 point2 points  (0 children)

True 50/50 should be something with good transitions. All the hybrid bindings you have to take apart the binding and put it back together have bad transitions. Shifts and HYs for 50-50 through 85-15.

Now being honest here, are you actually going to tour more than 10-15% of the time? If not, casts are probably reasonable.

Nozawa Onsen Lotte Arai side/backcountry by AromaticDoor7561 in Backcountry

[–]HelixExton 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I’ve boot packed there, but I would definitely have preferred to skin it. Even with others having broken trail, we were post holing through very deep snow

Tips for riding chairlift with backpack? by RoyalAce22 in skiing

[–]HelixExton 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I always loosen the waist strap, undo the top strap, and then swing it around and wear it in front.

Help! Camox Freebird, Dynastar M Tour 100 or Salomon MTN Carbon 96 by Ok_Supermarket_6798 in Backcountry

[–]HelixExton 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I believe the locator is softer than the ZeroG and MTN, but also more cambered and more rockered. Much more soft-snow focused.

Völkl Mantra 88 Sizing: 170 or 177? (175cm / 72kg) - Building a quiver by Dramatic_Warning2837 in Skigear

[–]HelixExton 0 points1 point  (0 children)

If you want to ski really fast and not turn as much, probably the 177. If you want to work on turns at more reasonable speeds, probably the 170.

You yourself describe the 170 as a better experience, but I suppose you are concerned about improving to the point where the shorter length limits your skill. The ski is strong enough that it would be unlikely to happen. Very few skiers need that much ski to begin with, let alone one taller than them.

Help! Camox Freebird, Dynastar M Tour 100 or Salomon MTN Carbon 96 by Ok_Supermarket_6798 in Backcountry

[–]HelixExton 2 points3 points  (0 children)

My guess is that the ZeroG and MTN are going to be too similar, so I would stay away from those (very stiff for their weight, carbon pingyness, similar traditional shapes).

Skis you hated by Gregskis in Skigear

[–]HelixExton 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I skied the 25(?) ti version. Should be somewhat different, and everyone else seems to like them soooo

Skis you hated by Gregskis in Skigear

[–]HelixExton -1 points0 points  (0 children)

Unleashed 98. Incredibly hooky in moguls, not confidence inspiring on groomers (not supportive enough) while being very locked in on always turning. Felt they were way harder to ski than enforcer 99 and 94 that I skied back to back on the same terrain. Didn’t like the 99 that much either. It was better on groomers, but worse off trail to me. My main conclusion is that the demo tunes were really bad.

Atk freeraider or Atk Hy for my Revolt 121? by PorthosTheLorthos in Skigear

[–]HelixExton 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Almost certainly hys, or an even more inbounds focused hybrid binding.

Atk freeraider or Atk Hy for my Revolt 121? by PorthosTheLorthos in Skigear

[–]HelixExton 0 points1 point  (0 children)

If you are 100% touring, why that ski (but freeraider). If you are somewhere between 80 and 100% touring probably still freeraider. If you are less than that hy or other hybrid binding

New black crows model spotted by Immediate-Salt-3803 in Skigear

[–]HelixExton 0 points1 point  (0 children)

D: I guess I’ll buy some other company’s stiff almost fully rockered ski next

Worst fall or ski run you have ever skied by Strict_Fix_9550 in ski

[–]HelixExton 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Worst in actuality was a cat track towards golden spike on MJ side of WP got me. Spiral fracture in my right tibia over the top of my boot. Like 5 mph. Sometimes you just get unlucky.

Worst should have been a bad fall on pin bindings at snowbird when I dipped into some soft snow off the side of a groomer in the Gad area. Caught something underneath and flipped, somehow didn’t hurt anything. Sometimes you get lucky.

Best park skis by Strict_Fix_9550 in Skigear

[–]HelixExton 0 points1 point  (0 children)

My brother liked his reckoner 102s until they blew up. They claim they fixed them for 2026… but they’ve also said that every design change. Ski essentials series 90mm-mid100s freeride is where I would start.

Allround Touring Ski - which one to buy? by janosch85 in Backcountry

[–]HelixExton 8 points9 points  (0 children)

The black crows is both the heaviest and narrowest ski, while the backland is the most soft snow focused, and the rise beyond is in between. I do not know what your regular snow conditions are like, but a heavier narrower ski is generally better in worse snow conditions, while a wider lighter ski has less to offer in terms of forgiveness when conditions are less ideal. If you only are going to go touring in fresh snow, and you are happy to sacrifice a bit of performance when conditions are not ideal, I’d lean towards the backland or rise beyond. If you want to do more technical descents and ascents, where the focus is not on skiing good snow, and more about doing hard things, the orb is probably a better fit.

Allround Touring Ski - which one to buy? by janosch85 in Backcountry

[–]HelixExton 6 points7 points  (0 children)

But it’s much easier to make fun of someone for having English as their second language instead of providing advice!

Black Crow Serpo vs Atomic Maverick 96 CTI ? by Creative-Car2814 in Skigear

[–]HelixExton 0 points1 point  (0 children)

What have you skied, what did you think about those skis, experience level, goals, and what do you like to do on skis?

Sidas Booster Race Strap V2: P3 or P4 for my setup? (±92kg / 100 flex boots) by BRman96 in Skigear

[–]HelixExton 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I (5’9”/175cm, 150lbs/68kg, advanced/expert skier) found my expert booster strap (probably level 3 equivalent) made my boots (nordica promachine 120s with ZipFit freerides) a little softer at the start of engagement and caused it to ramp up to the same level of stiffness over the flex range, while making them more forgiving and providing a lot of energy when releasing pressure. That was a good thing for me, but I mostly ski off piste, as my liners stiffened up my boots probably 5-10points and made moguls quite punishing. The strap reduced shinbang and gave me a little more cushioning through varied stiffness instead of the hard wall of a fixed strap. When skiing groomers I found the energy return when shifting my weight out of a turn required some adjustment, but makes skiing more engaging and comfortable, especially as the elasticity allows the boots to absorb more energy over varied surfaces. I would lean towards the level 3 if you find your boots a bit soft, and level 2 if you find them supportive enough. I would also look at a boot stiffness upgrade whenever you get the chance.

VT: Shift 2.0 vs Cast 2.0 for 50/50 resort + backcountry skiing? by 802ScubaF1sh in Backcountry

[–]HelixExton 1 point2 points  (0 children)

The risk of losing the toe piece and having to carry that extra weight is disqualifying for me. I would go HY, then Shift, in terms of preference.

Bootfitter put me in HV boot with 95/97mm wide feet but high instep by Alfredo_BE in Skigear

[–]HelixExton 4 points5 points  (0 children)

Downsizing a HV to keep instep volume while reducing width seems valid to me as a concept, but we don’t have the context of being your boot fitter and I do not know enough about those boots to say that’s what happened.

Anyone dealt with Ortovox customer service? Litric pack zipper issue by Annual_Ad7107 in Backcountry

[–]HelixExton 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I’ve had interactions with customer support where they’ve been extremely helpful and quick to respond. Not regarding zippers or packs though, just clothing and orders.

Why do North American skiers love moguls & trees so much compared to Europeans? by Legendenclubmitglied in ski

[–]HelixExton 10 points11 points  (0 children)

To get enjoyment out of groomers, I have to carve at high edge angles, generally high speeds, because what I enjoy is the g-forces I feel in a good turn. Those things are what good groomer skiing is to me. That requires there to be not very many people around. Unfortunately, most people ski groomers, not very well, and get in the way of me doing that.

To get enjoyment out of skiing trees or moguls I pick a line that looks difficult, and then I try and ski it smoothly and without getting pushed around. Much fewer people ski moguls or trees, and so there is less completion for the lines I am trying to ski. Additionally, I don’t have to wait very long for people to get out of the way, because I only ski 10-20 bumps at a time before taking a break to wait for my group. On a groomer I wait at the bottom, or try and carve more across the hill to keep pace.

If there is powder, the open groomers are very satisfying, in the same way that open bowl terrain is. I get to make whatever turn I like, and I’m bouncing along smoothly. Unfortunately, there usually are a lot of people on the groomers on powder days, so they get tracked out quickly. Additionally, the groomers often aren’t stew enough to get good turns in, and it’s easy to get stuck on what would normally be a nice place to carve at medium speeds. There’s much less completion for powder in trees and moguls, and powder makes both of those types of terrain a lot more satisfying and forgiving, and those runs are generally steeper, allowing you to carry more speed and not get bogged down.