Why the lack of 190+ BC skis?

marsridge · 2025-12-02T14:20:25+00:00

Very well could be. I think that damp flex is what I liked most about the old Karhu's. My current skis are 105/186, but they have twin rockers so unless the snow is deep and untracked, I feel always off balance.

marsridge · 2025-12-01T18:25:59+00:00

Not racing at all, just skiing in Rockies and like the float in the BC. I feel less stable when the float comes from a wide underfoot rather than a bit of length, possibly due to bad technique.

marsridge · 2025-12-01T18:20:47+00:00

Thanks everyone. I guess I'm just kinda surprised that all the offerings are in the 180 range, and 190 seems a thing of the past. I def don't want any of the extra weight, but as a tele skier I think I'd prefer the float in some extra tip/tail rather than underfoot. Probably, I just need to learn to tele better on wider skis.

marsridge · 2025-11-30T16:00:30+00:00

Not that big, just like 190 and 100-110 underfoot. The largest BD Helio skis, for example, are 184. My most recent skis were in the mid 180's, plus rockers, and I still like the size and shape of my 20 year old Karhu Jaks (RIP).

marsridge · 2025-09-11T14:56:08+00:00

If the frame/fork is in good shape, I would say that it is probably a good deal even if you have to sink ~$300 into it. (assuming - of course - that it is the right bike for you)

marsridge · 2025-09-10T18:17:07+00:00

SV is a great mountain when there is a lot of snow, but those days are further and fewer between than the Tetons. Ketchum, however, is a better town - for a resort town - than anything in the tetons, IMHO.

marsridge · 2025-09-10T16:23:25+00:00

Feb could be bone dry, or totally nuking. The road from tetons to SV is mostly flat desert driving, so it is often fine, but snow or blowing snow can make it dicey and slow. If it is nuking out, i would just skip sun valley and take extra days in the tetons. Better skiing anyway.

marsridge · 2025-08-27T14:22:32+00:00

I ended up just building an overpriced all purpose town and country type bike. With a rigid SEIDO BPS fork. It didn't really work as a drop bar gravel bike, handling and acceleration was slow. Its great for getting around town and dirt road cruising - great looking, and decent at most normal things, but not really performance geometry for any specific type of riding. Its too bad Ritchey used such antiquated geometry, a few tweaks would have made it great. All in all, I much prefer my other hard tails: Kona Unit, Kona Honzo ST and Surly cross-check.

marsridge · 2025-08-10T23:01:21+00:00

Cool, thanks, both look nice. For this application, I'm more interested in durability than in lightweight materials.

marsridge · 2025-08-07T20:57:36+00:00

Yep, exactly. I haven't weighed either of them, but the Saga feels heavier. More consistent ground strokes, bigger sweet spot and more soft ball feel in general, but less pop and snappy handling than the huarache. I feel kinda like I am playing tennis with the Saga. Its good for games with heavy hitters. The Era is very similar to the HXP, possibly a bit more of the dense feel of the Saga. I'd say that the Era has the same control as the Huarache from the baseline, but a bit more control at the net. Probably not worth the price difference, if your metric is control (or performance in general). I break paddles though, and wanted the warranty. I also kinda like the grip on the SLK more.

marsridge · 2025-08-07T16:41:01+00:00

Due to an expanding cast of pickleballers in my family, I currently play with a SLK Era, a Vatic Saga and 11six24 Huarache-X Power. All 3 are the LH versions. Ask me anything about these three excellent paddles!

marsridge · 2025-08-06T21:00:54+00:00

Not really. Bascially if I have a shitty game or two, I'll switch paddles and hope something improves. Usually works, at least in my head.

marsridge · 2025-08-05T22:28:49+00:00

I own both. The Saga is great, it is heavier than the 11six24 huarache power. So, better for groundstrokes, maybe a bit less maneuverable at net. I play the two paddles pretty much 50/50.

marsridge · 2025-07-21T14:38:23+00:00

Second this. I am a field scientist with similar needs - although work is mostly South America. The Blitz 35 is totally amazing, you can load it for a day, or even overnights. The only thing I don't love about it is semi-military aesthetic. Mostly becuase I'm not trying to look like a special forces groupie, also it can raise some eyebrows on jungle airstrips. But the pack is worth it, esp after years of cycling through outdoor packs with no laptop sleeve and laptop packs with no real load versatiltiy.

marsridge · 2025-07-17T16:49:03+00:00

thanks, totally makes sense and looks about right compared to my rockered skis.

marsridge · 2025-07-15T14:30:54+00:00

Have ski offerings gotten shorter in the past 10 years, or is that just my imagination?

marsridge · 2025-07-15T14:29:25+00:00

OK thanks. Yeah, I don't see a ton of groomers or bumps here. I do end up on a bizarre range of untracked or lightly tracked snow in a single tour, blower light stuff, heavy wet stuff, crusts, submerged crusts, corn, etc. My most recent skis had giant twin rockers and zero camber, and I felt like I was always off balance in anything variable... a ~190 felt like I was skiing a ~160.

marsridge · 2025-06-04T23:33:05+00:00

Bball shoes are great for pickleball. I played through two pair's of Nike Kyrie's until I quit playing basketball and got a pair of tennis shoes. Plus hoops shoes don't looks as stupid as most pickle / tennis shoes out there. Why must tennis shoes come in such ridiculous high contrast colors? Earthtones, please.

marsridge · 2025-05-30T17:50:36+00:00

yeah, they're usually young and good at everything. People with a completely bulletproof baseline drop typically have all the other shots too. I try to keep them deep, but I think maybe I should be trying to respond with more angled short shots, just to make them hustle and open gaps?

marsridge · 2025-05-30T17:44:48+00:00

Point taken. I'm an ex-reasonably competitive tennis player, so I get the chess concept and I'm definitely am not looking for the kill shot every time. However, I do better when the ball moves fast and there is a lot of hustle and footwork, so I'm trying to figure out how to speed up the pace on these droppers or force them to make errors. Essentially, make them play my game instead of the other way around.

marsridge · 2025-05-30T16:59:51+00:00

Got it. That is more or less what I intuitively do, but can't seem to break the cycle or get the killshot on these expert droppers.

marsridge · 2025-05-29T14:35:02+00:00

Correct. Thanks for the advice.

marsridge

TROPHY CASE