Recommend a Ski for a Kid Who’s Done Doing the Gate Thing

My boy never was too aggressive or competitive, he just liked skiing with his friends, albeit in a still pretty good way. He is a solid 180 and 5’9” freshman. I can see him still wanting to move along at a decent speed, but also be pretty chill doing it and and enjoying a ski he didn’t have to be on top of like his former race skis.

I like my MFree 108 a lot, so I was thinking of getting him a pair, but that’s a lot wider than he is used to, and maybe I should get him the Mfree 99? The last couple of years he has been all over the hill and in all kinds of snow on Rossi SL and Atomic GS.

Maybe an MPro would suit him better? Or a QST? Or maybe he would click, unlike me, with an Enforcer or Mantra?

Or maybe I should just go to a ski swap and grab anything in his size range and not spend too much money?

I see a lot of kids in his position moving to the Deacon Masters - piston plate and smaller radius.

Or be a rad dad & get him a Hertiage Labs rc85 or 95.

Mantra or kendo in appropriate width would be my recommendation. The long low profile rocker gives good tip engagement feel, It will be less different than a higher tip rockered ski.

I ski the Kendo and MPro 99 a fair bit each. I like to ski relaxed and these 2 are perfect for that. I also weigh 180# but I'm a lot older. If I wasn't east coast bound, I'd definitely grab the MPro more than the Kendo but [le sigh] I am stuck here on the east coast.

ETA: the Kendo is now the Mantra 88.

Rustler 9, solid ski and still playful.

Where is he skiing?

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Originally Posted by D(C)

Where is he skiing?

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Mostly Skibowl, so lower elevation Mt. Hood Cascade concrete. Spring TLine and maybe a few days at Meadows.

I love my MFree 108, especially in the manky crap that’s why I was leaning there. However, he is probably a better skier than me and definitely lighter so doesn’t need the width to cheat like I do.

Good recommendations so far. Appreciate it Mags!

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Originally Posted by Hood26

Mostly Skibowl, so lower elevation Mt. Hood Cascade concrete. Spring TLine and maybe a few days at Meadows.

I love my MFree 108, especially in the manky crap that’s why I was leaning there. However, he is probably a better skier than me and definitely lighter so doesn’t need the width to cheat like I do.

Good recommendations so far. Appreciate it Mags!

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id still go 108 if skiing hood and being 180 pounds and growing. 108 isn't super wide by many west coast standards and I have friends who rip them in the rockies even on hardpack.. and hell appreciate the width for the fresh days

Keep the old race skis for groomer days. The M-Free 108 is a great ex-racer wide ski. It responds well to good technique and handles a lot of conditions.

As you likely know, the old 182s ski short, and the 192s are manageable but on the long side for tight terrain. The new 185s could be perfect.

Also keep in mind that really good skiers can get a lot of performance out of a more nimble ski and don’t need the crutch of something super chargy to charge.

All good recs. I am thinking the plan will be to shop the steep discounts and swaps for all skis mentioned here, and see what we can find.

I also have a MPro 90 that does a lot of sitting because they are only 178 ( a super clearance impulse buy) and I really only take them out on bullet proof days. Might get him set up with those and then also hand off my Mfree 108 too because I want the new 185. I have a feeling he could make the MPro 90 sing in most conditions.

He’s been spoiled enough, as the older he has always gotten the new skis and boots, and after all wasn’t the real reason for expensive race coaching so he can pretty much ski anything, any time, anywhere :)

He might also be able to keep his GS and SL skis so long as his little brother (still racing) doesn’t need them for the groomer and spring days.

He's not a "kid" anymore, why not ask him what he wants? Most ex-racer kids I know (most of my friends kids) want to be big mountain freeride skiers now, so 110mm waist or wider with a bunch of tip and tail rocker and mid-180's for him . . . if it doesn't snow for 2 weeks, he has race skis at home. Or does he still think what you and your geezer friends like has any relevance?

Moment commander 102’s. He can still charge like a beast but they will also serve him well all over the mountain. You can also get last seasons top sheet(same construction) for a nice discount with the 176. Size wise will be fine for him at 5’9

https://www.momentskis.com/collectio...-commander-102

forgot to mentioned you’ll get free mounts, free wax’s and free tunes for the life of the skis from moment. I know you’re not local but you’re also not far from the factory.

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Originally Posted by FloridaSnow

Moment commander 102’s. He can still charge like a beast but they will also serve him well all over the mountain. You can also get last seasons top sheet(same construction) for a nice discount with the 176. Size wise will be fine for him at 5’9

https://www.momentskis.com/collectio...-commander-102

forgot to mentioned you’ll get free mounts, free wax’s and free tunes for the life of the skis from moment. I know you’re not local but you’re also not far from the factory.

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I would say Deathwish 104, Commander has a titanal layer, its not for everyone.

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Originally Posted by FloridaSnow

Moment commander 102’s. He can still charge like a beast but they will also serve him well all over the mountain. You can also get last seasons top sheet(same construction) for a nice discount with the 176. Size wise will be fine for him at 5’9

https://www.momentskis.com/collectio...-commander-102

forgot to mentioned you’ll get free mounts, free wax’s and free tunes for the life of the skis from moment. I know you’re not local but you’re also not far from the factory.

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I would say Deathwish 104, Commander has a titanal layer, its not for everyone.

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Originally Posted by bigdude2468

I would say Deathwish 104, Commander has a titanal layer, it’s not for everyone.

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i have the dw 104 and a commander 98. If im coming from a racing background the commander 102 is going to be much more familiar and easy to adjust to than the DW104. Triple camber isn’t for everyone. Let alone people coming from a racing back ground. I absolutely love my deathwish 112 and 104. Just wouldn’t put a ski racer on it over a commander ski.