Opinions on Volkl AC30

[Ray]

Hello. Is the Volkl AC 30 a suitable ski for PMTS? I am about 6 feet,195lbs. I can ski black groomed at Squaw Valley. When the snow is good, I can ski black off piste (it is not pretty). I have 3 Harb books and hope to attend a camp next season. I ask this question because so many skiers rave about the AC30. Thanks in advance for comments. Ray.

[jbotti]

Hi Ray, and welcome to the forum. I think that you will find that there are not a lot of Volkl fans on the PMTS forum. I have never skied the AC30 and you are right that the AC 30's and many other Volkl's are very popular skis. I have skied the new Tigersharks, the AC 40 and some other Volkl skis. I have yet to ski on a Volkl ski that I liked (which is not to say that it doesn't exist). In general, and I think that many PMTS skiers would agree, Volkl skis are way too stiff and have way too much metal in them and the flex pattern is far from what I like. I find it very hard to keep pressure on the tips in a way that actually bends the skis some to produce a tight arc while carving. The obvious benefit from very stiff skis with lots of metal is that they are generally excellent crud busters and they ski like bull dozers through chop, and chowder that you get often at Squaw (which has been my home mountain for the past 5 years). Having said this, there are many skis that also hold up well in crud and chop that also have a flex pattern that promotes tip pressuring and carving tighter arcs (vs. what Harald would call riding the sidecut or "Park and Ride" approach to carving).

IMO, sandwich construction skis with race laminate vertical sidewalls have the best combination of edge hold, crud busting ability and a flex pattern that promotes PMTS style carving. The AC 30,and 40 are cap construction skis with lots of metal. I believe that the AC 30 is less stiff than the Tigersharks and the AC 40. I would reecomend that you look at the Head IM 78 as mid fat ski that can pretty much do it all. It is a SW/vertical sidewall ski with great efge hold, it carves wonderfully and has a much tighter turn radius than the AC 30, and the flex pattern in absolutely wonderful. I love this ski, and it is a perfcet PMTS ski. It' also great in crud and chop and it will give you the option to carve or brush carve around the chop. or plow through it.

The other skis in the category that you might wnat to demo would be The Fischer Watea 78 and next years Head IM 76.

Lastly I will say that the best skis to really improve with PMTS are slalom carvers. My skiing soared when I got a pair of Head I.SL chips, and I still ski most of my days on the Head Super Shapes, which is IMO the best all mountain slalom carver that exists. I even ski them in some deep powder at Squaw from time to time, which can look almost laughable there when everyone else is on 190cm long, 110mm+ wide skis in fresh snow!!

[Mac]

I can pretty much echo everything that JB has to say in regards to the Volkl's. They used to make a very good ski years ago, they were kind of a boutique brand back then, very well made by a family owned company, very expensive, and hard to find, because they were not massed produced. They were like a status symbol. But that was back then. Volkl had a bombproof combination cap and sandwich construction that they decided to ditch in favor of the new Motion binding and rail system, plus a change of ownership (and philosiphy) and their skis have never been the same since. And durability has been a real issue, aka cores snapping, skis bending, bindings pulling off. I have demoed them many times since then, and I can say that they were some of the worst skis I have ever had on my feet. But Volkl still has a lot of high profile skiers in their pocket, many instructors still are sponserd by them, and many posers just go out and buy them for the perception of the image that used to go along with them. If fact, I think a lot of people go into the store with the attitude that they are going to buy them regardless, I don't they even bother to try them at all before they buy them. I think if they did there would be a lot less of them on the hill.

[Ray]

Thanks for the great information John and Mac. Do you have an opinion on the Head Xenon 7 ?

[Mac]

Have never skied them, all I know of them is from opinions of other people that own them, and from reviews I have read, all of which have been very positive. I think if you browse the gear section here, you will find some info from people that use them, along with some feedback on them from Harald. I get the idea that they are very light, easy going, and perform well in a variety of conditions. From what I can gather, probably not the best choice for a heavyweight hard charging expert hard snow skier, but other than that I think they would be fine for the rest of us mortals.

[Ken]

Peter Keelty likes the AC30 in his expertskier.com ski reviews. Peter's subscription ski reviews are the best on the web or in print and very well worth $20.

I have the Xenon 7.0. It's FUN in soft snow and holds an edge very well carving hard snow. It's not really the best choice for ice nor frozen crud. The Xenon 7.0 (or next year's 8.0) will immediately make you a much better off piste skier. The question is if it is adequate for black hard pack. The SuperShape is a better ski there. If you are rarely on the hard pack, jump on some Xenons if you can find them.

Volkl, and K2 and Marker are owned by Jarden Corp., the consumer products company that is also the proud owner of Mr. Coffee, Seal-a-Meal, Bicycle playing cards, Coleman camp gear, and other brands.

[Mac]

Just keep in mind that while the reviews at Realskiers are top notch, and well worth the price of membership, they do not necessarily reflect the opinions of Peter himself. The reviews over there are based on feedback from hundreds of realworld skiers, from instructors to ski shop employees that are not under contract or sponsored by any ski companies. I have spoken with Peter on a number of occasions, and I can tell you that some of the skis that recieve favorable reviews are far from his personal favorites. However, the majority rules, which is what makes the site so valuable, as it is not influenced by any personal or professional biases.