Rev 80 or Supershape Rally

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Rev 80 or Supershape Rally

Postby chill8 » Sun Jan 05, 2014 11:57 pm

Hello all! First time poster but long time lurker looking for some advice on picking up a new pair of skis :wink:

I'm an intermediate skier who has been learning pmts for about half a season. I'm 5'8 and about 155lb. I'm currently skiing a pair of Nordica Hot Rod Igniter (162mm, 123/76/107, partial side wall) which I bought from local craigslist about three years ago. I find it a little too short for me and the edge is not gripping very well, especially on the hard icy snow here in British Columbia.

As title suggested I'm deciding between the two (although other suggestions are also welcome). Actually I was set to buy the Rev 80 but I found out that a site is selling the Rally for the same price. I understand a narrower width would be a better choice to learn pmts, but I am also hoping this new pair can be my one skis quiver for the next few years, and I do want it to have better off-piste/all mountain/crud/new snow capability. I've read quite a few reviews lately and it seems that the rev 80 is more forgiving and relaxing, and has more rocker for the all mountain purpose; the rally on the other hand is probably a better carver and better option to learn pmts, but I worry if it'd be too stiff and too advanced a skis for me. And for either one, I supposed I should go for 170cm length? Any advice is appreciated.

Thanks !
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Re: Rev 80 or Supershape Rally

Postby HeluvaSkier » Mon Jan 06, 2014 2:58 pm

I've not skied the Rally, but based on comments from those who have, it is not an intermediate skier's learning tool. Look to something narrower. Where do you ski primarily?
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Re: Rev 80 or Supershape Rally

Postby chill8 » Mon Jan 06, 2014 5:26 pm

HeluvaSkier wrote:I've not skied the Rally, but based on comments from those who have, it is not an intermediate skier's learning tool. Look to something narrower. Where do you ski primarily?

Thank you for the reply HeluvaSkier. I primarily ski on groomers and some steeps in the west coast in British Columbia. I understand a narrower ski would probably be a better choice for me to learn pmts, but I'm also hoping to use this new pair of skis for a few years, and I'd prefer it to be more 'all mountain' capable.
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Re: Rev 80 or Supershape Rally

Postby HeluvaSkier » Mon Jan 06, 2014 6:17 pm

If you want very strong all-mountain capabilities, look to the 75-78mm waist range. I can ski my 77 waist skis almost anywhere... but they do make tipping A LOT more challenging - especially for those who are not already adept at tipping. A Rev78 may be a better choice...
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Re: Rev 80 or Supershape Rally

Postby Mac » Mon Jan 06, 2014 6:53 pm

I've had a chance to demo a lot of the new Head skis this season. If anything, it appears to me like the new Supershape line is a touch more demanding this year than in previous seasons, more of a slightly detuned race ski feel to them. They claim to have a bit of tip rocker to them, but if it does exist, it's so slight that I can't notice. I will say that the Rally was my favorite of the SS line, but it isn't what I would call a learning ski. The Rev's, on the other hand, do have a touch of tip rocker that is noticeable, and makes them a little more user friendly in junky snow. But a wider ski will always be harder to tip, and not as good of a learning ski as a narrower waist will be. Sounds to me like you really need two skis, one for practicing, and a slightly wider more forgiving all mountain ski. Maybe a combo of a ski like the Icon 80 TT (if you can still find them) and the Rev 80 would be a good choice. That is, of course, unless you can still find a pair of the original Supershapes floating around out there. They would probably make a great one ski quiver for what you're looking for.
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Re: Rev 80 or Supershape Rally

Postby chill8 » Mon Jan 06, 2014 11:27 pm

Thanks for input Mac. Looks like I do need a learning pair. Unfortunately, neither the original supershape nor the icon tt 80 seems to be available anywhere anymore. The closest thing I could find is this year's supershape speed, but I really hesitate to invest almost 1k into a learning pair of skis. :(
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Re: Rev 80 or Supershape Rally

Postby Mac » Tue Jan 07, 2014 7:36 am

Found a pair of new leftover Head STX's w/bindings in a shop up at Killington. A slightly detuned version of the original Supershape. I hate to recommend skis to anyone, Harald and Max are way more up on this stuff than I am. But if you do a search, there is a lot of info on the STX here on the forum. It seems like it would be an ideal learning ski. The guy has two pairs of 170's with Head bindings left. And I'm sure he would give you a great deal on them. If you want to follow up, I'll give you the link: http://www.forerunnerskishop.com/SaleIt ... fault.aspx
Scroll down till you find the Head XShape. Pictures of the skis are listed below.
Good luck.
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Re: Rev 80 or Supershape Rally

Postby Smackboy1 » Tue Jan 07, 2014 8:39 am

chill8 wrote:I'm an intermediate skier who has been learning pmts for about half a season. . .I'm currently skiing a pair of Nordica Hot Rod Igniter (162mm, 123/76/107, partial side wall). . . I find it a little too short for me and the edge is not gripping very well, especially on the hard icy snow here in British Columbia. . .

I understand a narrower width would be a better choice to learn pmts. . .


I was in your shoes a few years ago. I feel your pain. I started PMTS from books and video on a 73 mm ski (Head Xenon Xi 7.0). When I was able to finally get in front of a PMTS coach after a year or two, I asked him how my tipping looked and he said, "you're not tipping." In order to get even a little tipping, I had to work really hard to demolish my old skiing and rebuild from the ground up. It's been 3 years and 4 different PMTS coaches later and I now ski on 66 mm skis (Head Icon TT 80) but not a single coach has ever said to me, "enough tipping" or "too much tipping." Harald always says that tipping is the #1 essential and without it, the other 4 essentials don't really work. A <70 mm ski will make tipping (hence learning PMTS) much much easier. A ski for doing drills doesn't have to be a super duper all mountain stick, it's easier to learn PMTS skiing slowly on wide greens. If you have to, keep the Nordica for doing drills. I don't know anything about your skiing, but if I may be so bold as to venture a guess that a reason for the poor edge grip on ice may be not enough tipping.

Here's an option for a 170 cm $69 learning ski, Head Icon TT 10.0 Ti, 15.3 radius (similar dimensions to big brother Icon TT 80, 13.4 radius) Probably fine for PMTS drills on groomers.

http://www.levelninesports.com/Head-Icon-Tt-100-Ti-Skis
Last edited by Smackboy1 on Tue Jan 07, 2014 8:25 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: Rev 80 or Supershape Rally

Postby chill8 » Tue Jan 07, 2014 12:58 pm

Mac wrote:Found a pair of new leftover Head STX's w/bindings in a shop up at Killington. A slightly detuned version of the original Supershape. I hate to recommend skis to anyone, Harald and Max are way more up on this stuff than I am. But if you do a search, there is a lot of info on the STX here on the forum. It seems like it would be an ideal learning ski. The guy has two pairs of 170's with Head bindings left. And I'm sure he would give you a great deal on them. If you want to follow up, I'll give you the link: http://www.forerunnerskishop.com/SaleIt ... fault.aspx
Scroll down till you find the Head XShape. Pictures of the skis are listed below.
Good luck.


Thanks again Mac! I called the shop and they do still have two brand new pairs of x-shape stx at 170cm. However according to the head skis length chart at http://www.powder7.com/head-ski-size-chart-and-sizing-guide, 170 seems to be one size too long for me, as I'm 5'8 and 155lb. Do you think it'd cause some problems to me in terms of training?
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Re: Rev 80 or Supershape Rally

Postby chill8 » Tue Jan 07, 2014 1:15 pm

Smackboy1 wrote:I was in your shoes a few years ago. I feel your pain. ...


Thank you for the kind input Smackboy1! Now I'm starting to realize it would most likely turn out to be a big mistake to get either of two skis in the title as a learning pair. And I think you are probably right about it's because I'm not tipping enough that causes the poor edge grip --- I've finished reading the book and watching the videos, but haven't been committed enough to practicing. I'll see if I can find a right pair of learning skis, if not I guess I'll probably just keep my current pair; the only thing is that it's 76mm underfoot.
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Re: Rev 80 or Supershape Rally

Postby Mac » Tue Jan 07, 2014 6:11 pm

The 170 is going to be slightly shorter than your head height, which in my opinion makes them a little on the long side for you. But you said that your current skis are 162's and feel too short. My feeling is that a 163 would be about right, but you're the one that's skiing them.
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Re: Rev 80 or Supershape Rally

Postby milesb » Tue Jan 07, 2014 6:49 pm

I ski on STX 170. I am 6' 170lbs. I don't think they are going to be too long for you, they are fairly soft and respond well at low speeds. At 170 length they are somewhat unstable when flat on hard snow (I just keep them on edge), so I imagine a shorter length would be even worse in that regard. You can adjust the bindings forwards and back if necessary.
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