Asnes Mountain Race 48 SKIN

[Johnny]

Åsnes Mountain Race 48 SKIN
A Super-light BC ski with integrated skin

Schhhhoooom…! These skis are FAST! I know, every single Asnes ski review could start with the word FAST, they really are the fastest in town. And the MR48S is no exception. Mountain. Race. They couldn’t have picked a better name for this series of 6 different ski models. Anrothar already wrote a nice review of the MR48 last year, but I thought I would add a few words for the SKIN version.

I bought the 210cm MR to replace my Fischer Superlite, which I liked but were way too short for me at 192cm. The original Mountain Race has a waxable base. But for people like myself, who don’t like to carry cans and cans of wax and corks in our pockets, the brand new 2019 MR48 also comes in a skin-based version. Skin skis have been quite popular in the last few years, think Atomic Skintec and Madshus Intelligrip. And there is a good reason for it. Unlike waxless fishscales skis, skis with integrated skins work in every single snow condition you can possibly encounter. Icy or frozen snow? The skin-based skis will provide perfect grip. Fresh powder? Wet snow? Tracks? Groomers? Perfect grip without the use of any chemicals, no complex wax formulas and no sticky fingers. Better than waxless bases!

The MR48 SKIN is a real cross-country ski with true double camber. Very high and very springy, it will get you anywhere faster than you have ever been. Although it is quite supportive, it has a very smooth and round flex, exactly what I was looking for. (Even better actually!) Compared to the Gamme 54, it is much smoother. The Gamme has a different ski construction, which is a lot stiffer than the Mountain Race (and also much heavier!)

Yes, they are fast. And also SUPER LIGHT! They are not the lightest of the lightest skis you can find on the planet, but the difference is hardly noticeable for skis you would pay twice the price to save a few grams. The MR48 SKIN is really amazing at only 775g per ski at 200cm! (25% lighter than the Gamme!) Remember this is a wood core ski with ¾ steel edges, not a cheap Chinese noodle. To keep weight at the minimum, I mounted them with Xcelerators (91g) and NIS plates (62g). So that makes a stunning 3.45 lbs per feet, including skis, bindings AND BOOTS! WOOOAAAaaaahhh…! Without a doubt the lightest setup I have ever had. They also have a very nice Nordic Rocker, but not as important as other Asnes BC skis. And bonus, the graphics are really, really nice. That 1984 neon look and feel is absolutely beautiful!

The Pomoca skin offers a really, really good grip. But the real magic is on the glide, you can barely feel the skin when gliding. *Almost* no drag under any condition. I wasn't sure before trying them, but I am totally sold to this concept now. The choice of Pomoca’s Climb 2.0 skin sounded like a strange one to me, but it actually works really good. Not sure if this is due to the skin density, size or placement, but they offer much better kick and much better glide than waxless skis, and better glide than regular narrow X-Skins. It really makes me wish all my XC skis were built this way. And it also makes me want to try all the MR series skis. (I have already ordered the MR51 WL but they were not yet in production when I placed my order… ) They also come with X-Skin inserts if you need more traction, which come in 7 different flavors to customize grip and glide according to your taste.

As Anrothar noted, they also make great skating skis, although the drag is slightly noticeable while on skating mode. And the ¾ metal edges are SUPER-fun for skating on icy or refrozen snow fields or going downhill! I have used the MR48 Skin on frozen lakes, hard snow, slush and fluffy powder… Not thinking for a second about grip, glide or wax. I am having so much fun on them! I wish all the Asnes XC skis could come in an integrated skin version… (While I still pray every night for fishscale versions of their wider touring skis…) Integrated skins for Nordic skis, scales for powder and touring skis. This is my personal ideal vision of modern Cross-Country Downhill skis.

"An increasing number of skiers are seeking high-speed trips in the mountains with light equipment, but this should not come at the expense of safety. Åsnes has therefore developed the Mountain Race 48 SKIN. MR48 SKIN is equipped with a markedly wax pocket, moderate side cut, 3/4 steel edges and a integrated climbing skin. It’s strong enough to handle rough terrain and hard conditions. This light weight model is produced with a wood core of Paulownia to keep the strength and reduce weight."

Asnes Mountain Race SKIN Ski
Retail: 420$ USD
Cross-Country: 95/100
Downhill: 30/100

[bgregoire]

J,

They look awesome. Neat, well balanced skin insert concept for a BC ski!

When you try them on tracks, please let us know if you get good grip and what you body weight is (if that is public material of course). I'm guessing you got them longer than recommended for your weight.

[Johnny]

I'm guessing you got them longer than recommended for your weight.

What? Me? Following recommendations?!?
You must take me for somebody else, or have gone clean out of your senses...

I have very, very specific tastes when it comes to skis, mounting location, size, length, uses, colors and flavors...

[Cannatonic]

beautiful skis! The Mountain Race and Tour skis are awesome, so light in weight, well cambered, excellent build quality, graphics. Now it's almost like they declared war on Fischer by introducing all these waxless models! no-holds-barred now that Fischer has moved in on Asnes' kicker skin domain maybe? The integrated skins have been popular with skaters and XC racers for years now.

I'm dying to replace my fischscale quiver with Asnes - currently 2 pairs of E99's and one Sbound 78. This spring I will be scoping out deals on MT51 waxless and Ingstad waxless for sure. The current Fischer "BC Country" ski is abysmal IMO, which is sad given the history and tradition of that ski. I was surprised at how flimsy the build quality was. Really happy to see Asnes taking over the 210cm traditional backcountry XC ski niche with so many new options.

regarding those weight recommendations, my attitude is ignore them and take 210cm every time. I'm 6-2, I have long strides! 25 years ago they would have recommended 215cm for me and 205's for women.

I suspect marketing and making people feel comfortable plays a big role in the recommendations. We now have a generation of skiers that is scared and intimidated by any ski over 200cm. You can see Rossi and Fischer making skis in lengths like 189cm, 198cm, 199cm, to avoiding scaring people.

True story - 2 years ago I walked into Ragged Mountain Sports in North Conway with some brand new 200cm Asnes to be mounted with 3-pins - I think they were Breidablikks. Before I could even open my mouth, the woman working there assumed I was there to sell them on consignment, and she said "Oh, we don't take 200cm and longer skis, they won't sell". Pretty funny! I politely informed her that they were brand new skis and I was there to pay them to mount bindings.

[bgregoire]

What? Me? Following recommendations?!?
You must take me for somebody else, or have gone clean out of your senses...

I have very, very specific tastes when it comes to skis, mounting location, size, length, uses, colors and flavors...

Don't worry, I know you're special J! I am just hoping to use that data to get a better sense of how stiff these skis actually are!

[Johnny]

regarding those weight recommendations, my attitude is ignore them and take 210cm every time. I'm 6-2, I have long strides! 25 years ago they would have recommended 215cm for me and 205's for women.

I suspect marketing and making people feel comfortable plays a big role in the recommendations. We now have a generation of skiers that is scared and intimidated by any ski over 200cm. You can see Rossi and Fischer making skis in lengths like 189cm, 198cm, 199cm, to avoiding scaring people.

EXACTLY! This is precisely my point of view. (And what I meant by "specific tastes"... )

People are stupid. The short XC ski trend is just as stupid as the fat ski one. No matter your height, weight or your astrological sign, skiing with long skis is just more fun. If I would follow manufacturers on XC size, I would have to buy 170-180cm skis!!! But hey, we cannot blame the manufacturers here, they give people what they want.

There is no way I am going to XC ski with 180cm skinnies just for having the privilege of fully pressuring the wax pocket. I have tons of very nice XC skis under 195cm here that I never want to use. 200cm is the minimum for my taste.

Don't worry, I know you're special J! I am just hoping to use that data to get a better sense of how stiff these skis actually are!

My view is that I'd rather have a nice pair of long and stable cruisers than a camber adjusted to my weight. Don't get me wrong, if I could have both, I would be the happiest skier, but that is never going to happen until the short ski trend is going on. For me, I prefer to sacrifice speed and K&G efficiency for the indescribable fun of cruising around with long skinny planks.

If only they could make 210cm skinnies with a camber for lightweight skinny guys...
(This is called vintage decambered skis, my favorite...!)

[Woodserson]

From an article in this weekend's Times... I found it relevant to this thread:

We are told that innovation is the most important force in our economy, the one thing we must get right or be left behind. But that fear of missing out has led us to foolishly embrace the false trappings of innovation over truly innovative ideas that may be simpler and ultimately more effective. This mind-set equates innovation exclusively with invention and implies that if you just buy the new thing, voilà! You have innovated! Each year businesses, institutions and individuals run around like broken toy robots, trying to figure out their strategy for the latest buzzword promising salvation.

https://www.nytimes.com/2018/12/07/opin ... ssion.html

[bgregoire]

This mind-set equates innovation exclusively with invention and implies that if you just buy the new thing, voilà! You have innovated! Each year businesses, institutions and individuals run around like broken toy robots, trying to figure out their strategy for the latest buzzword promising salvation.

You're right, ultimately, all we need is a SINGLE pair of skis!

[Woodserson]

Woah woah woah... Pump the brakes!

regression is progression. My 210cm Madshus Brown Touring and Asnes Tur-Modells from the 60s and 70s have the same dimensions as the E99s and Gamme, with similar lengths and flex (minus the rocker). My Asnes Tur-Langrenns are a direct ancestor of the Mountain Race. The Fischer Outback 68 in a piddling little compact-geometry length comes from nothing but innovation for innovation's sake, and as such they go nowhere...

[Johnny]

Yep, there hasn't been much "progress" in the XCD world in the last decades. The major breakthrough is without a doubt weight reduction. The Objective really was a major breakthrough, and that was only 3 years ago. Hence the reason I was SO excited about it when it came out...

The other most important innovation since the 60's is Nordic rocker. Nordic Rocker changes everything, from XC to downhill. The way we ski, the way we turn, the way we mount bindings etc. Hence the reason I was so freaking excited about it last season when Asnes really turned the NR into pure magic...

2018-2019 is also the year where the world has seen for the very first time supportive NNN-BC boots at only 725g per boot. The Alfa Guard is the most innovative boot since the invention of NNN-BC 30 years ago.

I feel so sad for so-called "Telemark Skiers" who think tele is restricted to NTN or Tech. Every year they are dreaming of innovation: different types of screws or inserts, half a gram reduction on existing stuff, the addition of anti-ice tape on tech bindings etc. I think right now we are living THE most exciting and innovative times in the wonderful world of cross-country downhill.