Praxis WooTest review

[harpo-the-skier]

So I have a bunch of days on my new, longer 196 Woo's so heres the report: Great float in bottomless fluff, no over-the-bar feeling like I was getting with the 187. I mounted them on the recommended line and have no desire to move them back like I did on my 187's. They also break loose into a slarve better than the shorter version. I haven't had them in true breakable crust, but they were also capable in heavy, overcooked pow. They did better in the overcooked stuff than my W112's or Billy Goats. The Woo's save more than a pound per pair over a pair of Protests of similar length and build. I also buy into the relatively narrower tip of the Woos. I think the tip design of the Protests makes it a bit easier to initiate and carve turns, especially on groomers, but in three dimensional snow I think the Woo tip is more forgiving and lets you switch from a carve to a slarve more readily, especially in tricky snow conditions. Best comparison will be when someone has Keith make them a narrower protest and skis them in backcountry conditions on backcountry gear. Wait, didn't someone do that already?

[My Pet Powder Goat]

I have a pair of Woos 1.0 196cm med-stiff carbon. moderate use, 40 days.8/10 if anyone is interested. Mounted once with dynaduke plates. 200?

[Lord Thomas]

Old time thread revival. Just bought a sweet pair of Woo2's in a 179 for my wife. She is super jacked about them. Long story (starts with a sprained ankle in Japan) but she is uncertain that she wants to go with the Helio 180's that came with them (but she will try the Helio's) and is kind of leaning towards Vipecs. So, if there is going to be a new set of holes drilled do we go on the dimple or back 1-2cm? All the beta on this type of Praxis seems to indicate that back is better. What says the collective?

[eskido]

Man, I know most don’t agree with me here and the consensus is going to say -1 to -2 but I would seriously take into consideration what skis she has and where she likes them mounted. I will say I do typically mount my touring specific Praxis behind the line but each one is closer to the line than the last and all of my alpine mounted Praxis are now on the line. Also if this is a tad long or short compared to her normal skis (I feel the Protest/Woo skis shorter than your normal sticks but float better than should), that should come in to play as well. Seriously doubt she wouldn’t be stoked at -1 but I would really think about going farther back than that without seriously considering the above. FWIW I only have the Protests (LOTS of other Praxis, just not woo) but I have mounted them in a couple different spots and have done some touring on them, they currently sit on the line with alpine binders but they are phenomenal in the BC (if I were to go pins I would put those on the line as well). Hab’s new skinnies have me really reconsidering this option, great pick for the wife I think! I’m a little green for sure

[HAB]

Man, I know most don’t agree with me here and the consensus is going to say -1 to -2 but I would seriously take into consideration what skis she has and where she likes them mounted. I will say I do typically mount my touring specific Praxis behind the line but each one is closer to the line than the last and all of my alpine mounted Praxis are now on the line. Also if this is a tad long or short compared to her normal skis (I feel the Protest/Woo skis shorter than your normal sticks but float better than should), that should come in to play as well. Seriously doubt she wouldn’t be stoked at -1 but I would really think about going farther back than that without seriously considering the above. FWIW I only have the Protests (LOTS of other Praxis, just not woo) but I have mounted them in a couple different spots and have done some touring on them, they currently sit on the line with alpine binders but they are phenomenal in the BC (if I were to go pins I would put those on the line as well). Hab’s new skinnies have me really reconsidering this option, great pick for the wife I think! I’m a little green for sure

FWIW I mounted said skinny Protests on the line. My full size ones are at -1 and I like them there, but I'm definitely inclined to go forward from there vs. even father back. The skinny version are going to be dedicated touring skis. I'll report back once I've got some time on 'em.

[eskido]

[emoji1591][emoji1591][emoji1591][emoji1591]fuck yeah HAB! Can’t wait to hear about it!!

[Lord Thomas]

FWIW her former deep tour sticks were BMT 122's. Even took them to Japan and loved them there and elsewhere so she is OK with mounts being a little further back. That said, she is interested in trying something a little closer to center that allows her to back off the shin pressure. High float, pretty loose, and minimally affected by mank/crust is the priority.

[Lord Thomas]

FWIW I mounted said skinny Protests on the line. My full size ones are at -1 and I like them there, but I'm definitely inclined to go forward from there vs. even father back. The skinny version are going to be dedicated touring skis. I'll report back once I've got some time on 'em.

Yeah, I think you owe this crowd daily play by play reports when you get home every night. Those sound fucking awesome. I'm kinda in the market for something exactly like that myself. Looks like we're trying to que up another Japan trip next year. Skinny P's sound like a leading contender for that quiver spot

[hoarhey]

Way to go HAB for staying the course and ordering the skinny protests!


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[hoarhey]

FWIW I mounted said skinny Protests on the line. My full size ones are at -1 and I like them there, but I'm definitely inclined to go forward from there vs. even father back. The skinny version are going to be dedicated touring skis. I'll report back once I've got some time on 'em.

Please post up a photo of those when you can?

[HAB]

Please post up a photo of those when you can?

I have really lousy service right now, but look back a few pages in the main Praxis thread. There's one in there.

Edit: https://www.tetongravity.com/forums/...83#post6382083

[hoarhey]

Very nice!


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[SchralphMacchio]

Thread bump!

I finally got on these new to me 179 veneer Woo 2.0s that have changed hands a few times on this forum - I got them from meter-man (a bit too stiff for his wife) and he got them from … Mall Walker?

I’m also as surprised as others here that these skis never really developed a broader following for a warm climate midwinter touring ski - to the point where Keith took them off his custom ski page. Too specialized? Lack of marketing? Too much canniablizing sales of the other more versatile shapes? So I guess the Woos are really dead, and I should never give up the pair that I now own, huh?

I haven’t weighed these yet, if they are indeed mall walkers original pair then they would be a UL/C. And they feel about a 3.0 flex. The ski feels much more damp and substantial than my 2011-2012 stock BCs with the old MAP/C layup at Flex 2 stock stiffness (and the skis being 13 years old may play a part in that). Chord length is just shy of 178 cm, like maybe 177.5. Mounted on the dot at just about -8 cm (81cm from tail).

I’ve only had one run in 4” of medium-light density dust on crust that was starting to warm up a little. Of course the skis killed it and were extremely quick. Mount felt very intuitive, I bet I could have been at -7 for extra fun factor and slashiness without getting over the front, but meter-man mounted these for his wife on the line and at this point I’m not moving them. On the windscalped or sloughed off crusts, I didn’t have much confidence to try to turn them down the fall line, just side slipping or jump turning until I could get back into 3D snow. I think I would have felt a little better pointing them on 2D snow with a slightly softer flex. On that note, at 140 lbs naked, this flex with veneer is probably better suited to someone with about 25 lbs on me. If I were building up my own set (pure hypothetical now that these have been delisted) I might skip veneer and stick with glass layup because I suspect while that would cut down on the skis ability to be settled and damp at high speeds, it would make the ski easier to flex in the “mid stroke” if you will, and give a little more playful energy back. I also owned Flex 3 enduro veneer GPOs and I had a similar feeling about that suspension feel for me, just a bit too supportive where you feel like you really have to be on the gas more of the time than not, and while it provides a higher stability when blasting through density changes, it also gives up some playfulness and ease in my opinion. It just seems like veneer makes the ski hyper progressive where it “binds up” in stiffness after the initial flex, where fiberglass layups feel like they can get flexed a little deeper after the initial hit or displacement.

I live in western Oregon so most of what I have available to skin is high water content, low elevation, variable and warm 3D snow … so I think these skis will be pretty great for the 1-2 days a year I would get on skins for which I would actually want something more than a mid-90s touring ski. Most days probable to involve bulletproof crusts would also call for a mid-90s ski like the Yeti anyways.

Long live the Woos, in those of us who still have them!!!