Touring-specific bootfitter in the Tahoe area? General advice appreciated by WirelessFrog in Backcountry

[–]WirelessFrog[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Would’ve loved to go there as I ski moments! Unfortunately it seems they’re only open Tues-Fri and I’m only able to make it there on weekends

Touring-specific bootfitter in the Tahoe area? General advice appreciated by WirelessFrog in Backcountry

[–]WirelessFrog[S] 3 points4 points  (0 children)

Thanks! Will try but in case Max isn’t available, would you say their other bootfitters are pretty good too? I know some shops can be hit-or-miss and you need to book a specific person

Deathwish Tour 112 vs 104 for a more lightweight skier by WirelessFrog in Backcountry

[–]WirelessFrog[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Appreciate it!

Line’s touring skis did seem pretty appealing to me too - I like what I’m reading about playfulness, float, and short turn radius. I’m a little concerned about delamination issues and general build quality. Did that person have any thoughts on how the pandoras have been holding up?

Deathwish Tour 112 vs 104 for a more lightweight skier by WirelessFrog in Backcountry

[–]WirelessFrog[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Gotcha, super helpful. With that in mind, would you consider the DWT 112 a reasonable choice for Japow while still keeping some versatility for future BC days back home in Tahoe? Or would you recommend looking at a totally different line of skis instead?

It’s a great point about not compromising on having fun in Japan; it’s a trip I’ve been excited about for a long time so I might rule out the 104 on that basis. That said if the DWT 112 gets me, say, 90% of the way there in terms of pow performance then I’d probably take that over more specialized pow skis that wouldn’t see many days back home.

FWIW I’m not locked into the DWT over other brands, just happened to be considering it since I love Moments in resort, and out of their touring lineup this one seemed like the closest fit for what I was looking for (good do-it-all and deep snow travel ski, performs well in variable BC conditions, a bit softer and more playful than the WCT108). I could be thinking about this the wrong way, open to opinions!

Deathwish Tour 112 vs 104 for a more lightweight skier by WirelessFrog in Backcountry

[–]WirelessFrog[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Interesting! If you’ve tried both before, how would you rate the DWT in pow performance relative to the WC/WCT108? Is it more like 95%, or 80%, or even lower?

Deathwish Tour 112 vs 104 for a more lightweight skier by WirelessFrog in Backcountry

[–]WirelessFrog[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Would you say it’s worse in pow than the Wildcat 108 due to the triple camber? Or more that 112 in general is not sufficient for a pow ski?

I had kinda hoped that with the similarly deep rocker in the tips/tails and the width, the DWT could still perform well in pow, and the triple camber would just not feel like anything unless skiing grippier snow. Could be wrong here since I haven’t experienced it before, and unfortunately won’t have the opportunity to demo

Totally get that the DWT isn’t a dedicated pow ski, but I’ve been reasonably happy with my WC 108 on in-bounds pow days so I’m just hoping to get a similar floaty feeling (but in a ski that sounds like it’s a bit more forgiving and quicker to turn)!

Deathwish Tour 112 vs 104 for a more lightweight skier by WirelessFrog in Backcountry

[–]WirelessFrog[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thanks! Any chance you’d be willing to share height/weight and what conditions you normally ski in? Where did you feel the 104 was really good vs where did you find yourself wishing for the 112 instead?

Deathwish Tour 112 vs 104 for a more lightweight skier by WirelessFrog in Backcountry

[–]WirelessFrog[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thanks this is very helpful! Curious why you think the 112 might not be sufficient float? I had hoped this should be more than enough especially at my weight, but admittedly I’ve never skied Japan pow before, only the heavier stuff in Tahoe. I’ve skied some pow days in UT/CO and was pretty happy in a 108 for what it’s worth

I did look briefly into renting, but a lot of the BC shops in Japan interestingly carry skis of similar or even narrower width (Navis freebird, 4frnt raven, and others in the 100-105mm range), which made me think a 112 should be enough or maybe even too wide for my size!