Cheater Skis for Slalom?

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Cheater Skis for Slalom?

Postby SkiMoose » Wed Sep 05, 2018 7:06 pm

Hey everyone, this next season will be my first ski racing, and I was just looking for some advice on SL skis. I have a pair of Fischer RC4 World Cup SCs in 165cm, with a 13m radius, I know this isn't Fischer's top of the line race ski, and I have heard some mixed things online. Would these skis be suitable for racing USSA and high school level races? Thanks!
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Re: Cheater Skis for Slalom?

Postby jbotti » Wed Sep 12, 2018 1:13 pm

I was hoping that Greg would respond to this as he has done more racing than most on this site and knows the gear well. I will quickly attempt to answer your question. It really does depend on a variety of factors which include your level of technique (how much hip on snow carving can you do in a race course), how hard will the snow be you are racing on (ice? injected? (unlikely). For most masters beer league racers that are just out to have some fun, arc some turns, a recreational slalom carver is fine and might even be preferred. Once you start to amp up the intensity, edge angles etc having a WC RD ski becomes more and more important. Only you and or your coach will be able to assess this for sure. If you want to post some video of you arcing tight slalom turns several here can help make an assessment and what skis would be best.
Balance: Essential in skiing and in life!
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Re: Cheater Skis for Slalom?

Postby SkiMoose » Sat Sep 15, 2018 7:01 pm

Thanks for the feedback jbotti, here's a link to a few videos of me carving somewhat short turns
https://photos.app.goo.gl/ZYsapcmAEMrLFmiV6
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Re: Cheater Skis for Slalom?

Postby Max_501 » Fri Sep 21, 2018 9:58 am

SkiMoose wrote:Thanks for the feedback jbotti, here's a link to a few videos of me carving somewhat short turns
https://photos.app.goo.gl/ZYsapcmAEMrLFmiV6


See this post for tips on taking video that is good for MA: MA Video Tips
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Re: Cheater Skis for Slalom?

Postby thatguy_onthehill » Sun Sep 23, 2018 11:15 am

Here is my opinion, having skied on Fischer's for most of the past 30 years of racing and general skiing. I would not consider the current SC a very good race ski. It has a wider waist (69mm) and is really soft in the front. It uses the racetrack or powerail system which has a ramp angle that is excessive for a racer and very hard to adjust unless you lift the boot toe (and doing so, could really mess you up on a different set-up). The other problem is that the boot sole adjustment is build-in so it is nearly impossible to get the sole perfectly centered or placed where you want it (compromising). That all siad, At 200+ lbs, I enjoy the SC for rec skiing with slower friends / family because it's pretty easy to bend to 8-9m turns and doesn't send me like a rocket (in other words, it's kind of slow out of the turn). However, on hard / ice, I find it weak compared to the WC ski. I've worked with some beginner master's racers who are light weight (<140 lb) and generally only ski on "snow based" courses as opposed to firm or icy race courses and want one ski for everything - they tend to like the SC for this.

There is a marked difference between the SC and WC; I would not even consider them related beyond the color and brand name). I would find a good pair of Fischer WC for racing. Be aware of the years when they sold both "stiff" and "medium" flex. If you are a high school athlete under 160 lb, I'd go with the medium flex. The past few years, they eliminated the "stiff" flex and the standard model is the old "medium" (stiff is not the their "race stock").

Hope that helps your choice.
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Re: Cheater Skis for Slalom?

Postby SkiMoose » Mon Sep 24, 2018 8:08 pm

Thanks a lot for the advice, thatguy_onthehill that makes sense to me, I will look into the RD version of the Fischers. As for my skiing footage, I didn't really mean for it to be the best videos for MA purposes , I was more trying to provide a general idea of my skiing for jbotti. I am also looking to get a better video camera or DSLR for future MA videos...
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Re: Cheater Skis for Slalom?

Postby Max_501 » Mon Sep 24, 2018 8:52 pm

thatguy_onthehill wrote:It uses the racetrack or powerail system which has a ramp angle that is excessive for a racer and very hard to adjust unless you lift the boot toe (and doing so, could really mess you up on a different set-up).


Why is the ramp angle excessive for racers?
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