mattj

I spotted this today and these skis apparently have a convex base for powder and six "cleats" to bite into ice etc. I figure it looks funky has got to be a b***h to sharpen the edges :) http://gearjunkie.com/dps-spoon-powder-ski-with-cleats

I just received the September issue of Ski Magazine which has their latest buyers guide in it. One of the skis caught my eye, the Rossignol Experience. The write up said: "We've seen lots of materials in skis: woods of all kinds, various alloys, Kevlar, fiberglass, carbon fiber, bamboo, rubber... but rock? In the case of the Rossignol Experience 88, it's basalt igneous - the most common rock in the earth's crust - which is melted, drawn into strands and then woven into a fabric used for reinforcement. Does it work? The testers say yes." I hadn't heard of using woven rock in skis so I did a bit of digging via Google etc: --- From one of the Rossignol PR folks and their website: Any new materials or construction technologies? We have a new technology called Complex. The Complex technology is a new aerospace fiber layer that replaces traditionally used fiberglass layers, the Basalt dramatically enhances the ski performance. By weaving Titanium or Aramide stringers into the Basalt fibers it raises the performance to a turbo-charging level. This new Complex layer has rock solid strength and higher elastic movement than even carbon fiber making it the ultimate material for removing vibration and improving snow contact. --- From one of the new skis on the Rossignol website: Experience 83: Reference RA1EJ01 Size Available 152 - 160 - 168 - 176 - 184 Structure CENTRAL DUALTEC Core FIBERGLASS WOOD Reinforcement BASALT Camber height HIGH Rocker height LOW Camber length *70%* Rocker length *30%* Tip CASCADE TIP Sidecut 132-83-120 Camber LOW Profile sidecut EXTENDED System TPX Tip protector INOX --- Thoughts? Metal is now popular, is this the "Next Big Thing" or just marketing hype? Are we expecting to see a Virus Basalt model in the near future? Matt

Satski works well and has maps for Keystone and ABasin. https://market.android.com/details?id=com.satski.ski2&feature=search_result Matt

Went out this morning on my old Prior (2001, 174 x 21 WCR) and had a hard time getting going. The board had a slippery/skatey feeling and I couldn't make it work. The conditions were variable: icy hard -> powdery -> deep/soft, sometimes all within 20 feet. After a few runs I decided to gave up on the Prior and move onto a wider, freeride type of board and mabe play in some of the softer snow. I got back to the car and started removing my TD3's to put them on my Sims Daytona 166 and I found that all of the bolts holding the bindings to the board were loose!!! Not loose enough to fall out but loose enough to wobble the whole binding on the board. I gave the Prior a wax a few days ago and I remember thinking at the time that I must remember to tighten the bolts before I ride it.... After I got over the shock of seeing how close I came to disaster, I got the Daytona set up and it was great in the soft snow. I had thought of selling it because it has only been ridden it a few times in the last decade but after today, it's a keeper. Matt

Looking at the weather forecast, I'm thinking Friday and Monday. Possibly the rest of the week as well if Monday goes OK. Matt

Today was my first riding day since the LCS. I took my son (age 6) to Keystone and played around on the front slopes while he was in ski school. I was back on my 178 Volkl Rentiger, which was good, but the conditions really made me appreciate the Virus UFC and a metal Donek 184 that I rode in the chopped up powder & blizzard at the LCS. I'm thinking that I might need a new board next season...... Matt

Had a change of plans so it looks like I'm going to be able to be there. Matt

I thought about posting this in the For Sale area but it is more applicable to the LCI. As a result of not boarding enough with the wife and brother, I have a Loveland 4Pack "spare". I'm not going to be able to use it before the end of the season so $100 and the four day passes are yours! Matt

Out of curiosity, how busy does Loveland get on the presidents day weekend? I'm thinking of sneaking up for a day but the thought of fighting 37 bazillion people on the slopes and I-70 doesn't really appeal to me. Matt

SOLD and the package is in the mail to newcarver. Two pair of bindings for sale because I now have a set of TD3's 1. Raichle X-Bone FAST stepin; and 2. SnoPro Race FAST stepin There are two sets of FAST heels included. One set is pretty worn and the other is brand new. Asking $75 for the lot. This includes postage to wherever a USPS flat rate box goes.

lafcadio: Ahhhh, I missed that. THANKS! This is exactly what I need. West Carven: I have used the TD2 Tweak-O-Matic to get a rough location for my TD3's and then I tweaked them once they were on the board and I rode it a bit. This is more of an intellectual challenge than real need. I'm having a play with the Google App Inventor for Android and thought that making my own Tweak-O-Matic would be a good way to learn to program as well as build something useful that doesn't need a data connection and flash to run. I thought about building this app a while ago when I was standing in the car park at Keystone swapping bindings from a RT 178 to a Sims Daytona. I lowered the angles to fit onto the Daytona and then had a lot of staring at the bases before I remembered which way the cant's went. I know the setup is easy but I was cold and in a hurry which didn't help :-) Matt

From the Carvers Almanac, and an old post I found by Jack, I have: Cant = arctan(tan(a) × cos(b)) or a × cos(b) Lift = arctan(tan(a) × sin(b)) or a × sin(b) Where: a = Cant in Deg along the long axis of board; and b = Binding angle This is fine for the cant disc at 90 deg but I'm having trouble figuring out what it would be when the cant disc is rotated. I know the 'a' value will change but I can't work out the formula for it. The TD2 Tweak-O-Matic shows the results very nicely but I can't figure out how they did it. Any ideas from the more math inclined folks here? Matt

My wife is a little interested in this but has a couple of questions: 1) She can't find a 152 on the main Oxess page. If this was custom built then how stiff is it? What's the weight range etc 2) Since it's primarily a race board, how would it ride for an intermediate carver? Would this be too much for them? Thanks, Matt

Update: The childcare problem has been solved. Unfortunately, I now need to have surgery on the 31st of Jan and will not be able to board for ~three weeks afterward. Therefore, we have had to cancel the trip to SES11. Matt

Late last year I was sitting next to the stairs up to the food area at Loveland tweaking my new set of TD3 SI's and I noticed a guy in a Loveland uniform explaining what my board and bindings were to a girl. She was asking questions about the width of the board, stance angles etc and he was doing a great job answering her. She asked me what I was doing and I explained that the bindings were new and I was still tweaking them. Then the guy said "I probably made those. I also work for Fin, running one of his CNC machines." All I could say was "Thanks, you did a great job!" Matt

Stacy and I are planning on coming to SES11 but the baby sitter we had organized (mother in law) to come with us to mind the kids (ages 4 & 5) has had to cancel. We have looked at ski school but at ~$320 a day for both of them it isn't really an option. Both kids are beginners on skis so keeping them with us whilst carving isn't an option either. The 5yr old boy could probably ski most of the greens but the just turned 4yr old girl needs a lot of help. We took them to Keystone before Christmas and it took ~2 hours to get the youngest down Schoolmarm. Does anyone know of any daycare/childminding places in Aspen that offer occasional care? We are definitely looking for Mon-Tues and Thurs-Fri. The weekend would be good as well but I think I'm pushing my luck a bit :) Thanks, Matt

I saw this in the magazine and managed to track down the link for it. It seems to be a data logger that clips onto a ski to record what the rider was doing so that the ski builder can build/fit the ski to the rider. http://www.wired.com/reviews/2010/12/pr_smartskis/ I'm not sure if it would be useful when building snowboards. Matt

Ah Ha! You were the guy on the silver Kessler that I saw making very nice trenches at Loveland. You had just lost your wallet and were running off to find it when I briefly spoke to you at the chair lift. I'm glad you found it! Matt

Today is stunning at loveland. The suns out, not a cloud in the sky and not much of a crowd! Saw one other hardbooter earlier today in a grey jacket but haven't been able to find them again. Matt

Sigh, wife sick to day so no boarding. Tuesday looking good. Matt

Anyone going Monday? (14th) Matt

Snowman, Stacy and I should be boarding on Thursday. Are you going to be at a-basin? Matt

As at the 9th of Nov: three at Loveland and one a A-Basin. Definitely one, possibly two more days this week :-) Got to love Colorado Matt

I could not get to loveland yesterday but today a liftie said to me "we had this kid on a race board here yesterday and he was amazing!" Well done! Matt

Couple of quick questions: 1. Anyone going to a-basin on Thursday? (4 nov) 2. Will it be crowded? I'm at loveland today and the tribes of straightlining ski racers is scaring me. Matt