Hey Newschoolers,
I've been researching a lot about powder ski options this year. Last year I was on a pair of 08/09 179 (184) K2 Hellbents mounted at -1.5cm from true center with a pair of Rossi FKS 155s. I really liked the playfulness of the setup for light, untracked, deep snow, but there were several drawbacks that led me to sell them at the end of the season. The super soft, noodley flex, combined with an ultra-fat tip and super high rocker splay caused these to get bounced around like no other in variable conditions. Also, the above attributes caused the ski to actively push against deep snow to the point where I could feel my self slowing down as the ski flexed against the heavy powder. Lastly, the softness and sidecut and rocker splay made these skis have a noticable speed limit and got squirrley very quickly. Because of these drawbacks, I'm looking for something with:
-a stiffer flex than the hellbents
-a long, but much lower rocker profile than the hellbents
-a longer turning radius than the hellbents
Basically I'm looking for a pow ski that can be almost as playful as the bents in deep untracked powder, but infinitely more stable in variable conditions, with a much higher speed limit. The Icelantic Gypsy (along with several other skis I've found) seem to fill that description fairly well. The only problem I have is that I've never personally fondled a pair of Gypsys, so I don't really know how they flex, how solid the construction is, how torsionally stiff they are, etc. To anybody who has personally fondled and/or skied these beauties, how do they flex? How solid are they? Stability at speed? Are these the skis I'm looking for? If not, what are your suggestions? FWIW I'm 140 lbs, 5'11", still growing, and would be getting the 190 size.
Thanks,
Isak
PS. Other skis I've been looking at include the On3p Caylor 191, On3p Jeffery 186, Atomic Bent Chetler 192, Klint Krypto 192, 4frnt Renegade 186/196, etc. The only skis I'd actually be in a position to buy would be the bent chetlers, gypsys, or possibly caylors (I have a friend who might trade me, but is kind of on the fence, so I'm not sure if he's down to make the trade). The main reason I'm interested in the Gypsys is that I've found them on multiple sites for very reasonable prices, and they have a similar matching rocker/sidecut thing to the renegades which sounds very interesting.
