Movement Jam as the go-to ungroomed ski?

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Movement Jam as the go-to ungroomed ski?

Postby oggy » Sat Dec 27, 2014 4:01 pm

I'm looking for a new ski for the ungroomed. My old ones have a radius of 23m, and I'd like to get something with a bit more pop. I know that the Jam gets a lot of love here, but from what I can see that's mostly as an all-mountain ski. However, I'm exclusively interested in its off-piste performance, as I'm perfectly happy with my Fischer slalom skis on anything resembling a prepared slope. Would you recommend the Jam for that purpose as well, or would you go for something wider? I'm in Europe, so I guess that would make the snow normally a bit heavier (but I have never skied in the States so I can't really compare). I'm mostly concerned with how good the tips are at floating, and if they deflect a lot in the crud? I'd get the ski in 182cm length. I'm 6'2"@200lbs.

Thanks!
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Re: Movement Jam as the go-to ungroomed ski?

Postby AnI » Tue Jan 06, 2015 12:15 am

I own a pair of Movement Jam (the green ones). I heard they changed in the following years, now with more rocker than in mine, so my observations might not be quite accurate for this year's model. My impression from the Jam is that it is indeed an all-mountain capable ski, but I never think about it as a a powder ski. It is true that the Jams can carve almost like slalom skis, and they behave well in crud and fresh. Flotation in powder, for all other conditions being equal, is determined by your weight, area of the skis, and to some extent geometry. The Jams are wider than slalom skis, but not anywhere close to true powder skis in terms of the area.

Harald was quite excited about the Jams, including their performance in crud and powder, but he is in a great physical shape (meaning, his weight is lower than yours and mine) and he skis way better... I think he can ski crud and powder on slalom skis just the same. No doubt, it is a great ski, but it might not be quite what you are looking for.

If you are looking for skis which can do it all, one pair of skis to take with you on vacation, Movement Jam is a great choice. If you need skis only for the off-piste... with the idea that you always will carry two pairs of skis to chose from... my take is that you could use something a little wider, which would float better under your 200 Lbs weight. Even Movement lists Jam in the "on-piste" category, implying that it is meant to be used as all mountain ski, i.e., both on the groomed and off piste.
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Re: Movement Jam as the go-to ungroomed ski?

Postby oggy » Thu Jan 08, 2015 2:44 am

Thanks a lot. I was worried that might be the case, but I hoped that the wide shovel and tail (10mm wider than my current pow skis) would be enough, combined with the 182 length. I had a good offer on an old stock pair of Jams (the green ones, I guess 2011/12) so I already got them in the meantime, but haven't mounted the bindings yet. Will probably wait for a powder day, rent a pair and decide whether to keep them or resell them. So if there are any Jam lovers in Europe, I might have a good price for you in a few weeks ;)
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Re: Movement Jam as the go-to ungroomed ski?

Postby Max_501 » Sat Jan 10, 2015 10:16 am

From my point of view, the Jam is considered to be an off piste ski. Keep in mind that the wider you go the more effort required to tip so your tipping skills need to be excellent to ski fat boards in the 90mm+ range with proper PMTS movements.
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