madshus anum hybrid setup

[tele.skier]

I am looking at purchasing the relatively inexpensive madshus anum. I plan to mount inserts for NTN freedom bindings to ski them with scarpa tx's....

When I look at the size chart, it says that everyone over 175lbs should be on 195cm length. The skis also come in 185cm length. I am 210lbs. I am wondering if some of the more XCD oriented people here have any opinions about the trade off in the kick and glide performance vs downhill performance for the different lengths.

I supose that so long as I am only meadowskipping the longer ski is not an issue on the downhill, still I would like to hear other people's opinions on the benefits/drawbacks of either length.. thanks..

[Matt J]

Both improve with length

I think the Karhu Guide feels a bit hooky for it's length. I think it's the nordic flex and camber with the more contemporary downhill shape. I'd say go 185 if you want to ski them in the trees and 195 if not.

[Quadzilla]

I never skied the Guide which is what that ski is but other XCD's from 178-199cm. If it were me I would get the 185 even so they reccommend the longer for your weight. I just think that ski would be a bit more agile and still carry you decently. I had a pair of 199 Fischer Boundless skis and with the camber it was not easy to turn. WTBS, I think if you could find a Rossi BC 125 in a 185 you would like and use it alot more as it will carry you , it will ski nice with NTN and it will slog along nicely on the flats. The Annum rigged like you want it would be a question mark IMO.

[mr. toad]

I'm 170lbs and ski the 185 guides/switchbacks. They meadow skip great and are perfect for catching that secret slackcountry on a windhold pow day. I would not want to go shorter. At your weight, I'd think you'd lose a lot of floatation but most people wouldn't consider this a pow ski.

[3PinGrin]

Note that I have not skied that particular ski, however I think the length you choose should be dictated in part by the nature of your approach to the area you are going to link some turns. If you are jumping out of the vehicle and starting to climb pretty quickly the shorter version might be okay, especially if you are planning on not using skins since the shorter version might give you better grip. But if you are looking for longer approaches on forest/logging roads etc. to get to the goods then the longer length can be nice for more efficient touring. I weigh around 170 and am on 189 Boundless crowns. I like that length for longer mellow approaches across flatter terrain to get to modest slopes. A shorter version would be nice for better grip but I like the efficiency of the longer length and some kick wax on the tips and tails aids the climbing ability. When it gets very steep I just put skins on anyway.

[Crowbar]

I'm at 190lbs and ski the 185 Guides/Switchbacks. I also had the 10th Mtns in 195's but felt they were too long and clumsy, so I went with shorter Guides and really like the way they ski in that length.

[fogey]

Whichever ski length you go I would be curious to know how the setup skis. That's about 4 pounds of binding and less than 6 pounds of ski--probably you'll do fine with it but it's an unusual ratio.

[Dostie]

I'm with Quad - a Rossi BC125 at 185cm would be my recommendation. Wider ski, more flotation and more grip when you need it. There's another thread in here that suggests the climbing pattern is not as aggressive as the Vector BC or the Annum and while I've noticed a difference between the Vector BC and the Madshus Annum (never skied the Rossi - yet) the biggest factor was usually the type of snow. Warm and wet always climbs better (steeper) than cold and dry, with a waxless pattern. The Vector tends to out climb the Annum in my experience, but it is also wider, thus grippier for a given condition.

[tele.skier]

Thanks for all the opinions.

[Teleman]

Teleskier sounds like you know how to ski tele....Get the more svelte ski, no matter what.....Even the BC90 would be good and cheap....Guides are ok in pow but on the up seem like dogs, auguring in and pretty unresponsive....Take a chance go skinnier, longer, and get out of the parallel tele rut...Just sayin....Teleman

[Quadzilla]

Thanks for all the opinions.

As far as grip, IMO, the BC 125 and the Vector BC are in the same grip catagory which is better than the others including the Guide(Annum) with the others lesser grip. I tour with guys on the 125's all the time and occasionally skiers with Guides, so I have a reference point. Additionally, IMO, wider+shorter is better where you live with the heavier Maritime snow and probably windpack similar to here at Tahoe but most likely thicker. Lastly, what works for a skier in the 160-180 catagory is way different than a 200+ skier.

[tele.skier]

Dostie and Quad, even if I was looking for more of a kick and glide trail ski (that would also happen to turn adequately meadowskipping on rollers and in the trees) would you still recommend the BC 125's over the anum??

My quiver is missing a pattern base trail ski for rolling trails. I want to use my scarpa tx boots too so I can travel on rollers efficiently, but also drop into some low angle trees and meadows here and there, then transition back to efficient kick and glide when I hit the next trail, without stopping to deal with skins and opening my pack, etc... I never considered the BC 125, and the anums are on sale too...

[Quadzilla]

Dostie and Quad, even if I was looking for more of a kick and glide trail ski (that would also happen to turn adequately meadowskipping on rollers and in the trees) would you still recommend the BC 125's over the anum??

My quiver is missing a pattern base trail ski for rolling trails. I want to use my scarpa tx boots too so I can travel on rollers efficiently, but also drop into some low angle trees and meadows here and there, then transition back to efficient kick and glide when I hit the next trail, without stopping to deal with skins and opening my pack, etc... I never considered the BC 125, and the anums are on sale too...

To be honest, when I am out touring with this kind of ski with others on XCD fishscales of different types/sizes, I don't really see a difference in distance gained per kick and glide. Everybody seems to be about the same. The big difference is that when the group starts going up, the bigger fishscales just climb more steeply as compared. Then when decending low angle, the bigger ski just planes up sooner on lesser slopes without the effort of trying to skate. WTBS, I don't ever ski on logging roads or packed down trails just typical wild snow BC touring conditions. The reason why I suggested the BC 125 is that if you look around you should find a deal on one as compared to a Vector BC which you won't. I don't ski a BC 125 but my friends do and they work well for them and most certainly in the same catagory as a Vector BC. IMO.

[purplesage]

I've got the Annum in 185 with Hardwires and they're great, very versatile, fine in the trees and on crappy stuff. Also have the Epochs in 195 with Hardwires and they are great for touring and easy meadow skipping but get a little chattery and hard to control on mank or in the trees. Recommend Switchbacks for the Annum if you're doing mostly up/down. I'm 5'7", 180.