Replying to Ski Advice Needed

Hey,

I'm new around these parts... i quite literally just found this place on google 10 min ago. I'm looking for some help buying a new pair of skis. Let me start by saying that i'm a 28 yo, 6'3" (1,91m), 235lb (107 kg) skier. I started skiing at the age of 4 and have consistently skied each season up until i was 20 or so. Due to day to day commitments ive had a hiatus from the slopes until this year. Having returned from a skiing holiday recently i've decided to invest in a new pair of skies.

Having spent most of my time skiing groomers with only the odd off piste run through the forest over the years i used the old style slim waist carving skies up to this point. I'm a pretty accomplished skier (on groomers at least)...even after an 8 year brake i managed to get out there pretty easily (its like riding the bike as they say).

Now i've decided to expand my skiing horizon so to speak and have set my sights on a pair of Salomon Rocker 2 100 2016 which from the info i was able to gather is an all moutain ski that can handle a variety of conditions. The goal is to have a do it all ski as i'm transitioning towards more off piste runs and jumps... atm i still have a lot to learn i imagine as this particular style seems harder then your regular on piste runs (even on black sloaps which ive never found particularly difficult). Also worth mentioning that i do most of my skiing in Europe (both eastern as well as Italy, Austria etc.)... don't know how the slopes over here compare to those in the USA or other parts of the world.

In any case, my old skies were a "classic" non-rocker ski with a length of 1,75m which were quite comfortable for me. My understanding is that the Salomon Rocker 2 100 has a rocker/camber/rocker profile which reduces the effective edge (i'm guessing this is the contact surface along the edge of the ski yes?!) quite a bit and i'm wondering if i should get the 1,78m model or would it be better to go with the 1,86m model. Which of these would give me an effective edge close to what i'm used to?

Also, would i need a specific type of boot or binding to move towards an off piste (and even park) style with powder skiing and jumps etc.?

My ski technology knowledge is rather dated so any extra info you guys could offer whether it's about the gear itself or how i should approach this transition would be most welcome.

Thanks in advance,
Valci

P.S.: english is not my first language so please excuse any spelling mistakes and such...