Unfortunately the weather over the past week has been quite erratic. It snows all day, getting everyone excited and then the following day it rains and rains, washing everything away. The slopes have been quite slushy, conditions very similar to spring skiing. That doesn’t mean the skiing hasn’t been fun though. This type of snow has been super fun for doing big turns and slashes. This is also the perfect conditions for learning new tricks as it doesn’t hurt when you fall over! In saying that, it is very very wet, so make sure if you are coming out you have some good quality water proof gear.
Due to the wet conditions we have been spending a bit of time indoors and in anticipation for the powder forecast to come (a big dump on the 1st) we have been getting creative and have made a pair of rockered skis. Legend has it that Shane McConkey built the first rockered ski by attaching string to the tips of his skis and tightening it. So this is exactly what one of our housemates has done to his off piste Faction Thirteens. This means the ski is now inverse camber or rockered (u shaped like a surf board). Rockered skis are specifically designed for powder skiing and the bent u shape of the ski makes skiing in powder easier as the whole ski is thrust out of the snow.
These types of skis are relatively new but already most brands have a rockered ski or skis with rockered tips. I have never tried them myself but have heard amazing reviews. My house mate, James Webb (UK professional freestyle skier), rides a pair of Atomic Bent Chetlers and says that having rockered skis is incredible and makes so much difference to your off piste skiing.
So basically to make his skis rockered, Rick drilled holes in the tips of his skis, got some strong cord and thread it through, tightening it as much as possible so that the ski took a u shape when lying flat. Despite it raining in Morzine, Avoriaz (the higher resort part of the Porte de Soleil) receive a fair bit of snow on the 29th, so we decided it was time to test Rick’s customized skis! We went up to the fornet bowl in Avoriaz and got some fresh tracks in the powder! Ricks was so happy with his skis, the Faction Thirteens are very wide skis, specifically designed for off piste, but Rick said having them rockered made a world of difference. On the piste only about 50cm of the ski touches the piste so they were quite difficult to handle, especially turning! Rick was so thrilled with the results, I really want rockered skis now! Hopefully next season I’ll be able to get some.
