some 2008 fat/midfat reviews at Hood

[raj]

March 11 at Mt Hood meadows. Demo day

Conditions: We had excellent, deep snowpack till a week ago and then we got a pineapple express with temps at 70 in Portland and 50s on Hood with rain. No ice or powder but everything in between. Wet groomers, mank, crud, deep slow mank in trees. Perfect worst case conditions for testing in PNW After the demo, I rode my Karhu/ Line Prophet 100s in 180 on the same terrain to compare.

Skier: 5'8", 145. Decent. Like to go fast, set and edge and bend a ski. Learning park but suck there. I like honest reviews which will help someone of similar size/skills rather than dickwaving.

Previous ski likes/ dislikes: My alltime favorite ski I owned was Wizard exploders 180. My current everyday ski is Karhu/Line Jak/Prophet with 100 mm, 180. These are one notch less stable than explosives but much better in powder with even flex. I tend to like skis the 175-185 range and not rockstar enough to need anyhing longer. My park skis are 173 K2 enemy and 169 K2 PE. I haven't owned but liked this years white Gotama in 183, didn't like Sugar Daddy and hated pocket rockets in 175 a few years ago.
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Legend Pro in 186: Some people suggested after my PE review that I should sack up and get these. These were super stable but one size too big for this mountain and my weight. Turn radius is long so need to scarve a lot on our medium size mountain. I guess if I lived in a more open area like Mammoth, these could come alive but overkill for Hood at my weight. Rep said they are coming with a slightly shorter (176 or 180) Pro next season which may be better suited but didn't haev any for demo.

Gotama in 176: I already tried them in 183 and that is the right size for me for this mountain. However, they were too close to my present Karhu/Lines and didn't really do anything better, so was interested in shorter/ softer/ fatter for a dedicated tree/powder low speed ski for when the top lifts are closed. I could definitely find a speed limit in crud a notch below my Karhus. They are super maneuvrable. Also, in person these are oh so pretty. The maize topsheet is super mellow and not too loud. Graphics are almost as good as the first year black ones.

Head IM 88 in 175: I have been looking for a burly ski for groomers/ crud when it hasn't snowed in a while. My PEs don't cut it. These are the dampest ski I have ever skied. Still not sure if I love it or hate it. They were by far the smoothest in crud. It was almost eerie. They also had the best edgehold of skis today. Tip and tail are a bit stiff (perfect for crud and groomers but may tip dive in powder ? ). Stiff tails will also toss you if you get lazy. These are seriously fugly skis but black spraypaint works. I will seriously look at buying these if I can find a decent deal.

Dynastar Mystic Rider 178: I think these are the replacement for the Inspired and I was testing them for the same purpose/ no deep snow days. Tip is softer than the head 88 and initiates turns super easy. Midbody is ok stiff. These are overall less demanding than the Heads and would work for less skilled driver/ when you are tired. I couldn't find the speed limit due to limited terrain but felt like they would be one notch below the Heads due to softer tip and less damping.

Line Prophet 100 in 186: These are basically the same ski as mine (except next year's) so wanted to see what changed. They didn't have the 179-180 to compare so I tried these. Felt vey similar except a bit stiffer (likely just due to the length). Stiffness is one notch above a Gotama but below explosives. Significantly more userfriendly than Legend Pro.

Overall Verdict:

Stability in crud/ mank: Legend Pro > 186 Prophet > 175 Head =>My prophet 100 in 180 > Mystic Rider in 178 > Gotama 176.

Tight spaces: Gotma > Prophet 180 > Mystic Rider > Prophet 186 > Head 175 > Legend Pro

Demanding: Gotama < Mystic Rider < Prophet 180 < Prophet 186 < Head 175 < Legend Pro

Very different feel: Head. All the other skis are similar in feel with different flex/ stablity etc but this one just felt different. Some people may think it is dead while others would love it.

[AKbruin]

Thanks for the reviews. I'd really like to demo the 190cm Gotamas to compare them against my 186cm Prophet 100s.

[Sparwood Dave]

Thanks for the great review Raj
I live near Fernie BC and ski there and Castle in southwest Alberta. I'm a big expert (6'2" , 195 lbs) who learned powder at Mt Baker and ski 95% off piste but inbounds. I wanted some reasonably wide skis that could still work the tight trees and chutes but hold an edge on groomers. Based mostly on your review plus other postings I managed to buy the last pair of 186 Prophet
100's in Canada last January.
After the best winter of my life I can now say they are exactly what I wanted. They make everything except boilerplate easy. Incredible skis!!