Bode gets Head

[Jack M]

http://www.skiracing.com/news/news_display.php/3780/ALPINE

funny, I didn't realize Head was still in business. Or that there was anything better than Atomic.

[Neil Gendzwill]

Better, race-wise you mean? I'm not up on what's hot on the world cup circuit, but I do know that other companies than Atomic have stepped up recreationally lately. Fischer is supposedly making some pretty nice gear for example.

[timinor]

Seems like Bode Miller has worked hard to cultivate an image as the "Zen" ski racer who lives in the country with no modern conveniences and rejects such mundane things as fame and publicity, yet before the Olympics he cashed in with every journalist who would pay for an interview so he could expound on his purist, athletic philosophy and now he's signed with the highest bid and he's unavailable for comment because he's on vacation at an island getaway.

Now, I'm all for money and island getaways. I totally respect his skiing and how he approaches training, being coached and racing attitude but, maybe he should learn from past champions like Ingemar Stenmark and Marc Girardelli about how to keep his mouth shut when within earshot of the media.

[willywhit]

his "big mouth" put him on the cover of TIME magazine, he'll have plenty of chances to walk away with Olympic bling. don't be deluded.....He is also a globally recognizable figure due to his charismatic persona and exceptional ability.”

[BobD]

To the right of the Bode article, fourth ad down for FRS. It rotates through about four or five pictures, just have to wait.

BobD

[Phil]

I didn't realize Head was still in business.

They still have a decent snowboard line as well. I know the local rep as well as several guys who swear by those boards.

[Alex Walters]

They still have a decent snowboard line as well. I know the local rep as well as several guys who swear by those boards.

Yeah, they also make a great hardboot :rolleyes:

but seriously Head skis kick ass. I'm really not a big fan of Atomics. Volkl and Head are consistantly my favorites when I demo skis.

[Kimo]

To the right of the Bode article, fourth ad down for FRS. It rotates through about four or five pictures, just have to wait.

BobD

Glad I wasn't the only one who saw it. I followed the link and there's a better picture on the website. You have to be patient for it to cycle thru to the hard booter picture (just like in the banner ad). Does this mean we all have to start drinking FRS???

http://ski.frsplus.com//insideinc.asp?source=insideinc$ad=ski120

[Justin A.]

his "big mouth" put him on the cover of TIME magazine, he'll have plenty of chances to walk away with Olympic bling. don't be deluded.....He is also a globally recognizable figure due to his charismatic persona and exceptional ability.?

I'm not so sure that he WANTS more olympic bling. Not showing up to practices, blowing off course inspections, all that...he really isn't acting like he wants to race anymore.

I saw him at Bretton Woods when I was up there last time, and he looked like he was having a ball just crusing and having fun. He's got a cushy job up there, why spread yourself over the world even more when you already landed one of the best gigs ever? I know that I'd probally be content with 2 olympic medals and being director of skiing at bretton woods.

________

Ford gt70 specifications

[skatha]

Bode wants to ski, drink beer and get laid.....the press coverage helps land goal #3.......If the Olympics happen....well, that helps goal #3, too.....

[BlueB]

but seriously Head skis kick ass. I'm really not a big fan of Atomics. Volkl and Head are consistantly my favorites when I demo skis.

They do, indeed! My wife's C140s are supposed to be higher intermediate skis, but they are so versatile that I'm crazy about them. Slow speed, hi speed, short turn, long turn, bumps,ice, fresh, they do it all. Carve like demons too. On vearious ski tests Hed's Monster line took highest honours in AM categories for few years in a row.

Interesting that you mentioned Volkl... Good part of Head and Volkl skis are OEM by Elan - another brand that I woul prefer to Atomic, anytime. (Nothing wrong with Athomic, though.)

As for Head's Intelligence system, I think that it was started by K2, and then sold to Head who perfected it. At least, inteligence is supposed to be in the head, right? :D

Boris

[Randy T.]

Do any of you know anything about Head carving boards?

I picked up a 155 Head Ax this year just to have for friends, it's too small for me to ride. I did a search looking for info on them and only found one post and it was from someone selling one.

[Justin A.]

Bode wants to ski, drink beer and get laid.....the press coverage helps land goal #3.......If the Olympics happen....well, that helps goal #3, too.....

hahaha! SOOOOOO true. And the condo that bretton woods gave him helps goals 1 and 3, then the irving station down the street with the cheap hooch helps goal #2. He has it made! Why bother being competitive anymore?

________

N02 Vaporizer

[Dave ESPI]

HEAD bought out OXYGEN right ?

Or was that Vokel ?

[bobdea]

but now Atomic sell boards under their own name

[bobdea]

might be decended from one of the boards that was in the Generics line up, the first generation of head gear was very similar to Generics because Head bought the company

[BDZal]

The wood-core Atomic SGs and above are incredible skis. They are surprisingly easy to ski, at least my 201s, which are not FIS legal but are average stiffness. I've only skiied one beta and it was agressively detuned so I didn't get a good impression of it's abilities (it was the R11 from a few years back). I'd love to try some of the square betas though.

The Head Supermojo's look sweet. What I really want are some fat Donek powder skis... My Elan M666s are very nice. I have also heard that Elan makes skis for other companies (meaning the other companies are the OEM, which doesn't make any sense but apparently that's how it works). Check out their new swallowtail in the far left of the picture below.

[BlueB]

Whoa, these swallowtails are in the Skwal region of waist width! Anyone interested in sharing a pair ;)

Boris

[patmoore]

I rented some Head Monster 88s at Jackson Hole this past winter and was pleaseantly suprised that someone has finally come up with a powder ski that can carve on a firm surface. I ran the NASTAR course a couple of times and found that they had some GS characteristics. Go figure.

When it comes to racing, I'll stick with Atomic. Of course if Head wants to give me the same sort of inducement they gave Bode, I can be bought.....

[Guest skidoc]

As the former Product Development Manager for Volkl Skis, and friend of Bode, I think this is a good thing. Bode is great for the sport as he adds controversy as well as enlightenment. Not to mention his undisputable athletic ability. Having traveled down that same path as a world cup technician for Hilary Lindh of the U.S. and Kate Pace of Canada for 7 years, being on the road with the Great White Circus can and does suck! So I can truly respect whether perceived right or wrong, any proven world-class athletes opinions on their sport and how they go about dealing with the lifestyle it evokes.

Okay enough of whatever that was meant to prove. I can't wait to see how the Head material works. Having worked with piezo technology at Volkl, passive systems were really all that was possible from a financial and production standpoint. Head's is the real deal as they have the power pack to amplify power and activate the wafer. They pay a heavy price to have the patents for this technology. Equally impressive is the "Liquidmetal" technology and all of its patents. Instead of completely utilizing titanal which has proven to reduce return force, the liquidmetal layer creates an equal return force, and you can truly feel it. Whether or not Bode uses a little or a lot of these materials, very few people will ever know, much less be able verify what's really going to be on his feet.

The bottom line is that these are true technologies that make skiing/riding a better experience, and the performance they can offer is profound.

Unfortunately, the depth of their product line is limited as several models still need tweaking. Also, their U.S. distribution needs to pull out of their organizational nose dive or the product is going to go with it (hence Bode). And of course my biggest rub is their consistently horrifying factory tune that takes all this wonderful technology and drives it right into the dirt! All of their product consistently comes with a 3 degree base edge bevel and a 1 degree side edge angle. It's really supposed to be the other way around. So if anyone is frustrated out their spending more time on the Head that's on your shoulder's instead of the Head that's on your feet, and its inability to truly "adapt" to your skiing/riding needs, now you know why. Get it fixed and you'll be a changed and very happy sportler.

Skidoc

[patmoore]

Thanks for the informative post SkiDoc. If the skis come with a 3 degree base, won't it be necessary to do a base grind in order to set the base angle to 1 degree?

[roscoe]

Prior to the olympics, I thought bode was a great role model and definitely was one of the best out there. I do not doubt his ability, but I don't agree with how he goes about applying them. goes out drinking during the olympics, has a pretty poor showing, and then plays it off with the "oh there are more important things in life and its not all about winning" .. true, but not when you're at the olympics.

Again, not trying to piss people off , nor saying he sucks as a skier, but I think he has a lot of improvement to make with his attitude

[bobdea]

the olympics are just a big marketing ploy

yeah, I watch them and there are some cool events that never get airtime otherwise but thats about where it ends, its like saying that you should take NASCAR and the daytona 500 more seriously or something

if you really are that into it great but if you bomb out and don't win who cares there is more to life.

No one ever said anything about the favorites that did not do well at the US Open after a hard night of drinking, better that way anyway, way cooler when someone you have never heard of kicks ass and ends up on the podium

case in point for that would be Rob Kingwell in '98, rocked it in the pipe at a US open and went home the winner, proir to that he was not well known at all but he went up there and won against some legends of the sport and thus became one himself.

Bode might think differently than allot of people and some don't but the truth is that he is one of the best and is on his own terms, thats one of the great things about him is that he is NOT consistant, makes things exciting I think

[Guest skidoc]

You got it Pat. The nice thing about the Head product is how it refinishes. The materials and construction all conspire to create a great result. If it's done correctly you should be very pleased.

Skidoc