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Old December 15th 04, 05:30 PM
Booker C. Bense
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In article ,
Bruce W.1 wrote:
In a local XC ski rental shop here in the midwest I've seen a new style
of XC ski which looks a lot like an alpine ski. It's shorter, wider,
and has tapered sides.

[snip]

It has always bothered me that traditional XC skis don't like to turn.
Tapered sides would fix this problem. Is there any disadvantage to
this? On a hard packed surface I'm sure they are more difficult to keep
straight. In a groomed track there's probably little difference because
of the sidewalls of the track. But how do they handle on virgin powder?


_ Actually the reverse is true, they are awful in groomed
tracks and a blast in powder. Most are far too wide for the 70mm
that seems standard for groomed tracks.


The other issue is length. A shorter and wider ski is easier to turn,
which would be good on twisting/turning trails. A shorter length would
be more dangerous when crossing a frozen lake, I would think anyway.


_ I think any difference here is minimal, after all it's surface
area on the ice that counts and since these skis tend to have
less camber they might actually have more surface area to support
the weight.

But when trying to stay on top of crusty snow (with a powder base),
would a shorter/wider ski be more or less likely to punch thru the
surface, assuming it has the same surface area as a longer and more
narrow ski?


_ Toss up. I've got both and I couldn't tell you one way or the
other.


And why this departure from traditional XC ski designs?


_ Shaped skis have made a big change in alpine skiing and people
want XC skis that are as fun to turn as alpine skis. Since many
people are plodding on XC skis anyway, a ski optimised for
kick'n'glide that performs poorly in turning isn't always the
best choice for most people.

Are these
short/wide skis really only meant for groomed and packed surfaces, like
skating skis? And would they be suitable for backcountry usage?


_ IMHO, they are far more suitable for BC/ungroomed use than on
groomed trails. There is no free lunch in ski design, in general
a ski that turns better is going to be slower for kick'n'glide
and potentially a lot slower in the tracks. There is a lot of
range in this kind of ski, from some that might work okay in
tracks to some that never will.

_ Booker C. Bense



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