Objective: 2 ski quiver

[yugi]

I plan to just use 2 skis. Well… maybe 3, but I'll try do without.

102 waist 3.6 kg (120-102-107)
Use for touring and lift access on firm snow days. I tend to switch to just these skis Mid-March on which is when the tours become much bigger. Powder from mid March on tends to be firmer so 100 waist skis give plenty of float.

115 waist 4 kg (135-115-122)
Lift access skiing, which includes touring (500m to 800 vert), up until mid March when I tend to use the smaller ones.

That's really all I need.

I have wider skis, but they really aren't that great on firmer snow. We ski shots that are 6000 to 8000 vert ft so we always get every kind of snow. The fatty pow skis just don't handle the firm stuff well enough to be worth using. I do have a pair of Praxis Protests (130 waist) mounted AT I might keep for really big days with Alpine friends. I've used them once a season so far. I'll try do without this year.

I have lighter skis, 88 waist K2 Waybacks. I might just keep them around with my duckbill boots for nostalgia purposes and the occasional huge day out (2000m vert days). I'll see if I really need them this year. Maybe as rock skis.

[cesare]

Agree. I go 104 (ON3P Vicik) and 122 (SkiLogik Bomb Squad) for float in a meter plus of depth hoar. Third ski is a 89mm Dynastar Nobis InSpired. I have a lot more skis because they are so beat nobody would want them. Anyway, these are the ones I use.

[Paul Lutes]

I'm inclined to organize around a primary and a secondary quiver (which sounds pretty much like what you're describing, Yugi). I have the basic 2 ski quiver: go-to harder snow ski; go-to softer snow ski. And then a secondary group of specialty/occasional/just-can't-quite-make-my-mind-up skis. Better to have too many skis than not enough My focus is shifted towards the firmer (usually groomed) so I've settled in at 80-85 mmm for hard snow and 105+/- for soft. Total active skis = 4.5 (the 0.5 is a soft snow ski that has been given an ultimatum - one more chance to stay). I am in the throes of the usual new season transition - considering a 95 mm ski for those in between moments.

[Quadzilla]

Above ^^^ sounds way too burly for me as dedicated BC rigs. My BC rigs are 115 and 95 AT with 95 Fishscales Tele in the mix as well. True weights of the gear, boots/bindings/skis is:115=16#, 95=14.5# and fishscales =17.5#. I guess for BC work I want to own the up and do the best I can on the down. All my BC rigs suck for resort skiing compared.

[Valdez Telehead]

I have a two ski quiver.

BD Drifts/01's for work and some skate skis for the groomed nordic trails. I also have an empty billfold to sell so I can get some used poles.

[thornton]

i rarely update my quiver, and i have many older skis. i ski in the sierra. for me, need and want are 2 different things. i need a single pair of skis to have fun skiing - it's all about adaptability, technique, and expectations. i want (and now enjoy using) multiple pairs.

i essentially have a 2-ski quiver for resort skiing and a separate 2-ski quiver for touring for turns (excluding xcd skis). for resorts, i typically use old 95-waist (i think) "chargers" of the day or (thanks to Steve and Fred) 115-waist "chargers" of more recent times (rocker-camber-rocker). i suspect i will be quite satisfied with these and will be quite happy using them in conditions that are not ideal for their design.

for touring, i have relatively light 95-waist skis with traditional-ish dimensions and relatively 138-waist skis with reverse camber and essential 0 sidecut. i've had this quiver for quite sometime and for the touring that i seek-out or end up doing in CA, they've been great. the 138-waist skis typically get more use than the 95-waist skis.

if i were planning on traveling or spending lots of time in the alps or whistler, i would probably use a ski like the 115-waist "chargers" that I own a lot.

i also have several minimally active skis that i pull our for resort skiing just for fun and occasionally, i ski my touring-oriented skis at the resort. my big touring boards are super fun in the 3d non-chopped snow.

[teledad]

Main skis are 106mm (Moment Belafonte) for firm snow and 116mm (ON3P Billy Goat) for soft snow. I find the style of the ski matters as much as the width, in firm snow I want something stable that can lock into a turn while in soft snow I want something more playful and loose. I have lots of other skis (XCDs, 66mm slalom race skis, 125mm fatties) that get occasional use but they're basically niche skis, I'd be happy with just the Moments and ON3Ps. If I was to add something it would be a ski similar to the Billy Goats but lighter for touring (I've been eyeing the Voile V8).

[Dostie]

If I were forced to limit my choices to 2 for BC skiing - well, I wouldn't be fully satisfied unless I could stretch that to 3. But, sticking to the strict limit I'd probably go with Dynastar's HM Cham 97 with TTS. That's to cover everything from fat pow to steep couloir with all sorts of conditions thrown in to the mix.

Then I'd add a waxless metal edged ski for mellower tours with an XCD flavor, current fave would be Voile's Vector BC with Switchbacks. My dream WME ski would have a shape like K2s Coomback, not quite so wide though, more like 94mm at the waist.

For a 3rd ski, my choice would be the Atomic RT86 with TTS or Switchback X2 and Clipskins. Great for long tours in spring conditions.

[dschane]

I'm a recovering quiver-changer-gear-whore.

Is there a meeting group for this? In the last three years, I've bought and sold enough to qualify. I've settled on Voile Vector BCs (96mm at the waist) for my main ski. I prefer to tour, but as my kids get older/bigger (the oldest is only 5), I see myself spending more time at the local hill -- I even bought a season pass this year. And with that, I also picked up a pair of Praxis BC's at 106mm in the waist and a pair of T1's -- that ski will be the fattest one I will have ever tried. I'm skeptical at the moment that I'll like burlier skis and boots (I enjoy getting bounced around and feeling a bit wobbly), but I found a sweet deal on the boots on Craigslist and got those skis early season and with a coupon, so we'll see. They'll be on the gear sale rack if I haven't found the love by March.

[JustinB]

Left and Right = 2 correct?

If I had to choose between 2 pair in my quiver, it'd be my Elan E-99s and my Alpina SRXs. They'd cover the bulk of the condition that I encounter, bot snow and personal conditioning. It' really hate to mess up the SRXs with kickwax, I'll save that for a 3rd pair of 65 mm under foot free-bie stright boards and 3-pins.

[PeterTheRed]

I find that two skis is really the bare minimum. Skiing on one ski is too challenging to be any fun at all... :-P

[PeterTheRed]

... to be serious though, my two-ski quiver this year will be:

1) BD Verdicts w/ Axls for in-bounds skiing and (if I get my sh!t together to get skins for 'em) more aggressive up-and-down BC days.
2) BC125s w/ Switchback X1s for longer / mellower tours.

I'm stoked to try the former - new this year. The latter has been fantastic, especially on wetter spring snow. I wish they were rocker'd a bit though... If I were buying new, I'd probably opt for the Voile vector BC's that everyone's raving about.

I have a pair of atomic access w/ Tele Bulldogs that may have become obsolete now that the Verdicts are on the scene.... narrower waist than the verdict, but much more rocker - no fun on hardpack at all. They'll probably see some use on soft days at the resort.

[Alex]

Being a cyclist, I feel that this breaks RULE #12 of cycling, but many of these rules seem to cross over to ski touring, so I use them interchangeably.

Rule #12 for skiing - The Correct Number of Skis to Own is n+1
"While the minimum number of skis one should own is three, the correct number is n+1, where n is the number of skis currently owned. This equation may also be re-written as s-1, where s is the number of skis owned that would result in separation from your partner."
reference: http://www.velominati.com/the-rules/

[Rock_Doc]

I entered the 2-ski quiver club last year with the addition of the Liberty Helix to the mix for lift-served telemark in the Pac NW. At 105 underfoot with early rise and some camber, I was loving the Helix on fresh snow days last year. I retained my Atomic Kongurs at 84 underfoot and traditional camber for non-fresh snow days. I absolutely love the width and early rise of the Helixes, but I am not quite ready to part with a narrower and trad camber ski just yet. For my next set of boards in a year or two or three, I might replace the Kongurs with something in the ~90 range like the Volkl Kendo - but who nose.

Cheers!

[Hindfoot]

Well, it's comments like Rock-Doc's on the Liberty Helix that caused me to risk exceeding Alex's s-1 formula above and double my one-ski quiver by getting some Helices in the Spring. Very much looking forward to trying them. Just need some snow. My other ones are old Rossi Altibirds, 83mm underfoot, which I will keep for a while and and see how often I use them. Both pairs are mounted with Hammerheads.