# Ski Length??



## Rambo (Jan 13, 2009)

I see that ski length is now based on your weight instead of height. I am 210 lbs. and ski on older K2 Axis XP's at 175 cm. These seem plenty long enough but I see a lot of people on like 167's and they say those are plenty long enough. So I'm thinking about dropping down to 167's for my next skis. 

Just wondering what length skis other posters here use?


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## Geoff (Jan 13, 2009)

6'2", 230, 184 cm


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## andyzee (Jan 13, 2009)

Don't do it. I tried a 164 in the Atomic Metron 11s, was one of my favorite ski, but you could sure tell the difference when you get on a longer ski. More stable at high speeds and just a nicer feel. Presently my ski lengths from 178 to 182 and I wouldn't change it. 6', 235


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## drjeff (Jan 13, 2009)

6'3" 230lbs, 172cm Atomic B5 Metrons.  

With the HUGE variety of sidecuts/widths nowadays, you really need to demo a few lengths to find out what feels right to you and your skiing style.  Pretty much just throw out any formula nowadays as what length you should get based on height/weight.


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## djspookman (Jan 13, 2009)

I'm 155 lbs, 5'-9"

Tele:  my regular sticks are 169 (k2 Piste Pipes), but I wish I went a tad longer, say a 175.. and my powder sticks are 175's, and PERFECT! (Volkl Sumo's)

Alpine, 178 is perfect for me. (Elan 662's)

With those sizes in mind, I'm a pretty aggressive skiier.  All the above skis are for all mountain use.

dave


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## tjf67 (Jan 13, 2009)

5'7" 175   
both my allmountain and powder skiis are 177.

Those XP you got are a great ski.  I had those in a 167 and loved them.  I think you are to heavy for a 167.


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## skibum9995 (Jan 13, 2009)

5' 6" 130, normal everyday ski is 181.


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## madskier6 (Jan 13, 2009)

I agree with all previous posters' suggestions.  For Atomic Metrons, however, it is important to remember that those skis have such extreme sidecut that it is customary to ski them in shorter lengths.  In fact, they didn't make them longer than 172-176, depending on the model.  So using those lengths as a guide is not a good representation of what length should be skied on other skis.

Rambo: It depends on which skis you get but generally, I wouldn't go shorter than 175 just because others are going shorter.  If you're talking powder boards, those should generally be longer than carvers or midfats.  While weight is the primary factor in determining length of ski, your height is also relevant.  If you're really tall or really short, the length should be adjusted accordingly.  If possible, demo different lengths to see how they feel to you.

I'm 5'10" 220 lbs & I ski 178 for a midfat & 183 for my powder boards.


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## Vinstant (Jan 13, 2009)

*Ski lengths...*

2006 Head XRC 1400        163
2006 Volkl Karma             177
2007 Elan Magfire 12        184

I like them all.

I am 220, 6' 0


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## Greg (Jan 13, 2009)

6' 1", 165 lbs.

172 cm Dynastar Legend 8000s
179 cm (measure 174) K2 Cabrawlers


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## tekweezle (Jan 13, 2009)

i think it depends on what you are planning to ski most of the time.  I usually use the short, stiff skis, narrower waist 167 length for the east coast hard pack and narrower trails.  when i go out west, i use a slightly longer wider 170 ski.

I am 5 10 and about 192 pounds now.  i was on my 167 K2 Axis on the variable conditions at killington this weekend(saturday packed powder over crust, sunday powder over crust).  I kept thinking to myself that maybe a longer ski would be easier for me to balance on in the variable stuff at the expense of being forced to make longer turns.  i was getting thrown around alot when i hit the cut up crud.b


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## tjf67 (Jan 13, 2009)

tekweezle said:


> i think it depends on what you are planning to ski most of the time.  I usually use the short, stiff skis, narrower waist 167 length for the east coast hard pack and narrower trails.  when i go out west, i use a slightly longer wider 170 ski.
> 
> I am 5 10 and about 192 pounds now.  i was on my 167 K2 Axis on the variable conditions at killington this weekend(saturday packed powder over crust, sunday powder over crust).  I kept thinking to myself that maybe a longer ski would be easier for me to balance on in the variable stuff at the expense of being forced to make longer turns.  i was getting thrown around alot when i hit the cut up crud.b



those xp are 78 under foot and not the stiffest ski.  Go fatter and stiffer if you want to bust through crud and stick underneath.


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## Greg (Jan 13, 2009)

tjf67 said:


> those xp are 78 under foot and not the stiffest ski.  Go fatter and stiffer if you want to bust through crud and stick underneath.



Depends. Some of the older Axis skis were 70 at the waist.


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## tekweezle (Jan 13, 2009)

yeah, my Axis are 70mm at the waist which felt huge when I got them nearly 7 years ago.. 

but I think one of the things influencing my skiing is the shovel weight being a little light for me now-I think I am overpowering the tips a bit.  a longer ski might provide the additional stability.  it;s either my ski technique or I could just accept the fact that these skis are not the best for certain conditions.


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## GrilledSteezeSandwich (Jan 13, 2009)

Rambo said:


> I see that ski length is now based on your weight instead of height. I am 210 lbs. and ski on older K2 Axis XP's at 175 cm. These seem plenty long enough but I see a lot of people on like 167's and they say those are plenty long enough. So I'm thinking about dropping down to 167's for my next skis.
> 
> Just wondering what length skis other posters here use?



A 175 seems like a good length for you for a carving ski..167s seem awfully short..My shortest skis are 170 Length Atomic race skis..my Elan S12s are 176s, my Rossi Scratch BCs are 182s and my Nordica blowers are 193s..Your best bet is to demo a couple of different length..a difference in 8 centimeters is only 3 inches..


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## wa-loaf (Jan 13, 2009)

178 - 5'9" 210lbs.


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## andyzee (Jan 13, 2009)

drjeff said:


> 6'3" 230lbs, 172cm Atomic B5 Metrons.
> 
> With the HUGE variety of sidecuts/widths nowadays, you really need to demo a few lengths to find out what feels right to you and your skiing style.  Pretty much just throw out any formula nowadays as what length you should get based on height/weight.



Love that ski!


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## SkiDork (Jan 13, 2009)

Ski Length == Penis Length.

Nuff said...


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## drjeff (Jan 13, 2009)

andyzee said:


> Love that ski!



I'm on my second pair now, and when the current pair is fatally damaged and/or skied out, there's a good chance that I'd get a 3rd pair of them!  For my skiing style, there really isn't a thing that they can't do, and do pretty well!  For me atleast this is a true "1 ski quiver"


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## SkiDork (Jan 13, 2009)

SkiDork said:


> Ski Length == Penis Length.
> 
> Nuff said...




hotlinking sux


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## madskier6 (Jan 14, 2009)

drjeff said:


> I'm on my second pair now, and when the current pair is fatally damaged and/or skied out, there's a good chance that I'd get a 3rd pair of them!  For my skiing style, there really isn't a thing that they can't do, and do pretty well!  For me atleast this is a true "1 ski quiver"



If you want that 3rd pair to be new, you'd better buy them this year because this is the last year Atomic is selling them to the general public.  They won't be offering a 2009-2010 Metron model.  In fact, the only model of the entire Metron line that is available this year is the B5.  They're phasing them out.

I also have a pair of B5s & have enjoyed them.  Did you experience the edge crack problem that many B5 owners (including me) did?  I understand that many B5 owners had edge cracks after a season or 2 of usage & Atomic refused to warranty them.  I'm told it had something to do with the combination of the cap construction & Atomic's edges on their supercarvers like the Metrons.


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## andyzee (Jan 14, 2009)

SkiDork said:


> Ski Length == Penis Length.
> 
> Nuff said...



This coming from a man that used to ski on Fischer Jr Skis. :lol:


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## andyzee (Jan 14, 2009)

madskier6 said:


> If you want that 3rd pair to be new, you'd better buy them this year because this is the last year Atomic is selling them to the general public.  They won't be offering a 2009-2010 Metron model.  In fact, the only model of the entire Metron line that is available this year is the B5.  They're phasing them out.
> 
> I also have a pair of B5s & have enjoyed them.  Did you experience the edge crack problem that many B5 owners (including me) did?  I understand that many B5 owners had edge cracks after a season or 2 of usage & Atomic refused to warranty them.  I'm told it had something to do with the combination of the cap construction & Atomic's edges on their supercarvers like the Metrons.




To me it seems like the Nomads are the replacements for the Metron line, is that correct?


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## madskier6 (Jan 14, 2009)

andyzee said:


> To me it seems like the Nomads are the replacements for the Metron line, is that correct?



To a degree, yes.  The Nomad line is supposed to be a hybrid of the Metron series & the Daddy series.  The stiffness & carveability of Metrons with the float of the Daddies in one ski.  So the Nomads are the closest thing to the Metrons without being exactly the same.


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## RootDKJ (Jan 14, 2009)

GrilledSteezeSandwich said:


> A 175 seems like a good length for you for a carving ski..167s seem awfully short..My shortest skis are 170 Length Atomic race skis..my Elan S12s are 176s, my Rossi Scratch BCs are 182s and my Nordica blowers are 193s..Your best bet is to demo a couple of different length..a difference in 8 centimeters is only 3 inches..



GSS, my K2 Crossfire's are only 167's


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## GrilledSteezeSandwich (Jan 14, 2009)

RootDKJ said:


> GSS, my K2 Crossfire's are only 167's



freakin short..I'd think you'd be on a pair of 180s or so..


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## drjeff (Jan 14, 2009)

madskier6 said:


> If you want that 3rd pair to be new, you'd better buy them this year because this is the last year Atomic is selling them to the general public.  They won't be offering a 2009-2010 Metron model.  In fact, the only model of the entire Metron line that is available this year is the B5.  They're phasing them out.
> 
> I also have a pair of B5s & have enjoyed them.  Did you experience the edge crack problem that many B5 owners (including me) did?  I understand that many B5 owners had edge cracks after a season or 2 of usage & Atomic refused to warranty them.  I'm told it had something to do with the combination of the cap construction & Atomic's edges on their supercarvers like the Metrons.



Pair #1 succummed due to the edges, however the cause was a MEGA core shot right on the edge under my heel piece    Since I'm tuning my own boards every week and am very diligent about their inspection/care, edge details are something that I'm very keen on.

Pair #2 is doing fine after roughly 50 days on the hill.

I was just hoping that the B5 phase out was a rumor , as I demoed a pair of Nomad Crimsons a year ago when pair #1 had the fatal encounter with a piece of Mount Snow, and while the Nomad's are a nice ski, they're NOT equals to the B5 when it comes to hard snow and shorter radius turns.  Equals in the soft and longer radius though IMHO.


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## drjeff (Jan 14, 2009)

GrilledSteezeSandwich said:


> freakin short..I'd think you'd be on a pair of 180s or so..



GSS, the older you get, you'll find that many things start shrinking


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## RootDKJ (Jan 14, 2009)

drjeff said:


> GSS, the older you get, you'll find that many things start shrinking



I'm not that freakin old yet!  My older skis (Head Monster 70's) are a 177 but I feel more stable carving at high speeds on my 167 K2's. 

I'd like to get something a little fatter, but need to land myself on a demo day first.


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## Bumpsis (Jan 18, 2009)

Nothing wrong with going a bit longer. I really do think that it contributes to the stabilty of the ski.

I ski on Head World cup, narrow waist - about 67mm and the showel is bout 108. The length, 185cm.
I'm about 155lb, 5'7''. The ski is super stable on groomers and nimble enough in the moguls, although I will probably go a bit shorter for my next pair. Mougls cut with shorter skis tend to get rather tight for my 185s.


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