Comparing an XCD ski and a skinny downhill ski of similar width with leather boots on firm groomed snow.
Posted: Sun Dec 03, 2023 12:36 am
Last season I completely gave up on plastic and switched to leather. The results in comfort and touring performance were great. I find it easier to get in the telemark position and shift my weight around in leathers than the T2's I used my first season. I'm still new to telemark skiing and I'm finally getting to a point where I can link turns, but not super well yet.
Last season I was skiing on my merrel ultra leather boots and my s-bound 98s with voile traverse cable bindings. While the s-bound 98s are great for soft backcountry snow or resort skiing on powder days, they struggle on firm resort groomers. They chatter and vibrate a lot, struggle to hold and edge, which I think is a characteristic of any nordic camber ski - the springiness that gives them good kick and glide characteristics makes them noodley on firm snow.
I enjoy both backcountry and resort skiing. This season I started searching for a better ski that would work well with my leather boots on resort groomers. A lot of posts on here suggest using very skinny skis, like 55mm underfoot, for firm snow in leathers. Other posters mention skiing leathers on wider (like 75-85mm) downhill oriented skis and that their superior torsional rigidity makes them manageable on firm snow.
I was unable to find any 55-60mm underfoot downhill oriented skis on the used market, but I did find a pair of K2 shes piste skis (110-70-95). I was skeptical that a ski this wide would be good on groomers, but I decided to give it a try. These come pre-installed with threaded inserts in a 4-hole mounting pattern (voile or G3) and I put some voile 3-pin hardwire bindings on them.
I took them out for the first time a few days ago to a local resort with very firm groomed runs and the results were great. They turn super easily and I can edge them with a lot more confidence. My turns feel smoother and if I need to make a quick, hard turn so that my skis are parallel to the fall line, I can control my downslope slide to a full stop without feeling like I'm about to lose control. With these skis I was really able to focus on improving my technique. They are a huge improvement over my s-bound 98s for resort skiing. I'm betting they will also be great for firm backcountry snow. The voile 3-pin bindings helped quite a bit too. The extra resistance in the hardwire cartridges helped me pressure the rear ski into the firm snow and the rigid construction of the hardwires made them feel more laterally stable.
There have been a few threads on here about resort skiing in leather boots. If you can find one of these old school k2 tele skis at your local thrift store or used gear shop, I highly recommend snagging them unless you don't like skis with a lot of sidecut. I would still like to try a downhill oriented ski with a 55-60mm waist, but it's hard to tell what's an old nordic ski vs an old skinny downhill ski and many of them look so old that I wonder how they perform compared to newer ski technology.
Last season I was skiing on my merrel ultra leather boots and my s-bound 98s with voile traverse cable bindings. While the s-bound 98s are great for soft backcountry snow or resort skiing on powder days, they struggle on firm resort groomers. They chatter and vibrate a lot, struggle to hold and edge, which I think is a characteristic of any nordic camber ski - the springiness that gives them good kick and glide characteristics makes them noodley on firm snow.
I enjoy both backcountry and resort skiing. This season I started searching for a better ski that would work well with my leather boots on resort groomers. A lot of posts on here suggest using very skinny skis, like 55mm underfoot, for firm snow in leathers. Other posters mention skiing leathers on wider (like 75-85mm) downhill oriented skis and that their superior torsional rigidity makes them manageable on firm snow.
I was unable to find any 55-60mm underfoot downhill oriented skis on the used market, but I did find a pair of K2 shes piste skis (110-70-95). I was skeptical that a ski this wide would be good on groomers, but I decided to give it a try. These come pre-installed with threaded inserts in a 4-hole mounting pattern (voile or G3) and I put some voile 3-pin hardwire bindings on them.
I took them out for the first time a few days ago to a local resort with very firm groomed runs and the results were great. They turn super easily and I can edge them with a lot more confidence. My turns feel smoother and if I need to make a quick, hard turn so that my skis are parallel to the fall line, I can control my downslope slide to a full stop without feeling like I'm about to lose control. With these skis I was really able to focus on improving my technique. They are a huge improvement over my s-bound 98s for resort skiing. I'm betting they will also be great for firm backcountry snow. The voile 3-pin bindings helped quite a bit too. The extra resistance in the hardwire cartridges helped me pressure the rear ski into the firm snow and the rigid construction of the hardwires made them feel more laterally stable.
There have been a few threads on here about resort skiing in leather boots. If you can find one of these old school k2 tele skis at your local thrift store or used gear shop, I highly recommend snagging them unless you don't like skis with a lot of sidecut. I would still like to try a downhill oriented ski with a 55-60mm waist, but it's hard to tell what's an old nordic ski vs an old skinny downhill ski and many of them look so old that I wonder how they perform compared to newer ski technology.