"Rocker" skis the next big thing?

I met a super-experienced skier who was of the opinion that rocker
skis (skis with negative camber in the tip and tail) are the next big
thing in ski design. According to him they were better than
traditional skis in just about every condition to be found off-piste
and that he'll never switch back to the more traditional skis. What do
you think, has anyone tried rockers yet?

Evojeesus wrote:
I met a super-experienced skier who was of the opinion that rocker
skis (skis with negative camber in the tip and tail) are the next big
thing in ski design. According to him they were better than
traditional skis in just about every condition to be found off-piste
and that he'll never switch back to the more traditional skis. What do
you think, has anyone tried rockers yet?

They've been around for a few years - I think that the first one was the
Volant Spatula which had both negative camber and a reverse sidecut.
(Cue lal to chime in with a factoid about 4th century Norwegians and
their negative sidecut boards)

I haven't tried them myself, but by all reports they make it a bit
easier in the really really deep stuff, and damn near impossible on the
firm. So, if you can count on soft stuff everywhere, go for it.

//Walt

On Feb 17, 3:10*pm, Walt wrote:
Evojeesus wrote:
I met a super-experienced skier who was of the opinion that rocker
skis (skis with negative camber in the tip and tail) are the next big
thing in ski design. According to him they were better than
traditional skis in just about every condition to be found off-piste
and that he'll never switch back to the more traditional skis. What do
you think, has anyone tried rockers yet?

They've been around for a few years - I think that the first one was the
* Volant Spatula which had both negative camber and a reverse sidecut.
(Cue lal to chime in with a factoid about 4th century Norwegians and
their negative sidecut boards)

Volant Spatula is one of the ancestor of rockers and the reverse
sidecut made it a pure powder ski.

I haven't tried them myself, but by all reports they make it a bit
easier in the really really deep stuff, and damn near impossible on the
firm. *So, if you can count on soft stuff everywhere, go for it.

This guy I talked to was on some Rossi's and he claimed that the ski
was great off-piste and on the slopes he could do every turn in the
book with them. Apparently the shortness of the effective edge makes
the edges grip really well when necessary and the rocker tip allows
the ski to deal with irregular snow with great ease. I wouldn't mind
having a ski that would be dependable on cut-up packed powder, my
current ones need constant steering and still the behaviour of the tip
is unpredictable from turn to turn. I'll need to test some rockers the
next time I'm near off-piste, starting from K2 Obsethed...

On Feb 17, 9:07*am, Evojeesus wrote:
On Feb 17, 3:10*pm, Walt wrote:

Evojeesus wrote:
I met a super-experienced skier who was of the opinion that rocker
skis (skis with negative camber in the tip and tail) are the next big
thing in ski design. According to him they were better than
traditional skis in just about every condition to be found off-piste
and that he'll never switch back to the more traditional skis. What do
you think, has anyone tried rockers yet?
They've been around for a few years - I think that the first one was the
* Volant Spatula which had both negative camber and a reverse sidecut..
(Cue lal to chime in with a factoid about 4th century Norwegians and
their negative sidecut boards)

Volant Spatula is one of the ancestor of rockers and the reverse
sidecut made it a pure powder ski.

I haven't tried them myself, but by all reports they make it a bit
easier in the really really deep stuff, and damn near impossible on the
firm. *So, if you can count on soft stuff everywhere, go for it.

This guy I talked to was on some Rossi's and he claimed that the ski
was great off-piste and on the slopes he could do every turn in the
book with them. Apparently the shortness of the effective edge makes
the edges grip really well when necessary and the rocker tip allows
the ski to deal with irregular snow with great ease. I wouldn't mind
having a ski that would be dependable on cut-up packed powder, my
current ones need constant steering and still the behaviour of the tip
is unpredictable from turn to turn. I'll need to test some rockers the
next time I'm near off-piste, starting from K2 Obsethed...

Every thing old is new again.

Years ago Le Ski made the reverse camber claim. I had a friend who
swore by them but we just told him that we had a pair just like them
but we called them bent.

On Feb 17, 11:47*pm, snoig wrote:
On Feb 17, 9:07*am, Evojeesus wrote:

This guy I talked to was on some Rossi's and he claimed that the ski
was great off-piste and on the slopes he could do every turn in the
book with them. Apparently the shortness of the effective edge makes
the edges grip really well when necessary and the rocker tip allows
the ski to deal with irregular snow with great ease. I wouldn't mind
having a ski that would be dependable on cut-up packed powder, my
current ones need constant steering and still the behaviour of the tip
is unpredictable from turn to turn. I'll need to test some rockers the
next time I'm near off-piste, starting from K2 Obsethed...

Every thing old is new again.

Years ago Le Ski made the reverse camber claim. *I had a friend who
swore by them but we just told him that we had a pair just like them
but we called them bent.

Yeah well this high-mountain guide + heliguide I talked to was saying
that they totally transformed his skiing for the better. There just
might be something to it...

On Tue, 17 Feb 2009 08:07:53 -0800 (PST), Evojeesus
wrote:
. Apparently the shortness of the effective edge makes
the edges grip really well when necessary and the rocker tip allows
the ski to deal with irregular snow with great ease. I wouldn't mind
having a ski that would be dependable on cut-up packed powder, my
current ones need constant steering and still the behaviour of the tip
is unpredictable from turn to turn. I'll need to test some rockers the
next time I'm near off-piste, starting from K2 Obsethed...

Let us know how it goes. But I'm skeptical. I thought one of the
great things about sidecuts was how they gave you a _longer_
effective edge on a shorter ski. Seems like a shorter effective
edge, relative to the ski length, would mean less edge grip, not more.

And all of my skis have had rocker tips. Irregular snow stability has
depended on stiffness and length, and hasn't been hard to find.

bw

On Mar 17, 8:53*pm, bdubya wrote:

Let us know how it goes. *But I'm skeptical. *I thought one of the
great things about *sidecuts was how they gave you a _longer_
effective edge on a shorter ski. *

Sidecut is great on-piste for carving but outside one does not really
need much.

Seems like a shorter effective
edge, relative to the ski length, would mean less edge grip, not more.

Well, in theory a shorter edge could mean more pressure to cut into
the ice.

And all of my skis have had rocker tips. *Irregular snow stability has
depended on stiffness and length, and hasn't been hard to find.

Stiffness and normal camber is n ot necessarily the best combination
in soft conditions. Why should you need to bend the ski to make it
work in the soft if it can be pre-bent for you?

They've been around for a few years - I think that the first one was the
* Volant Spatula which had both negative camber and a reverse sidecut.
(Cue lal to chime in with a factoid about 4th century Norwegians and
their negative sidecut boards)

By description, these sound like new technology barrel staves, no?

Trekman wrote:
They've been around for a few years - I think that the first one was the
Volant Spatula which had both negative camber and a reverse sidecut.
(Cue lal to chime in with a factoid about 4th century Norwegians and
their negative sidecut boards)

By description, these sound like new technology barrel staves, no?

From February 15, 1965 issue of Sports Illustrated. Sorry
not a facsimile of the article, just the text, no pictures.

"One of the stock items in an aging American's fund of nostalgia is the
pair of barrel staves that were lashed to his boots with strips from an
inner tube and used as skis. Progress doomed staving at some point
between the wars, or so it seemed. But this winter staves are making a
rollicking comeback on the ski slopes of Killington, Vt., where
traditionalists like Bill Wood and Paul Racicot (left) are cutting
antique capers. Enthusiasts claim that staves are perfect for Wedeln and
fine for resting, too (below). Vermonter Preston Smith started the
revival as a gimmick. Now, with Yankee acumen, he sells edged
whiskey-barrel staves complete with normal ski bindings at a cool $29.95
a pair."

If you were to get a copy of the book "Killington, a Story of
Mountains and Men" by Karen Lorenz, you would be able to see
photos of these truly rockered, reverse cambered (fat in the
middle) 'skis' with steel edges and bindings. They also had
p-tex bases.

These were 4th century Vermonters.

VtSkier wrote:
Enthusiasts claim that staves are perfect for Wedeln

I'm sure that they are.

//Walt