Revisiting the One Ski To Rule Them All...

[JohnSKepler]

Last year I wound up with a FT62, Gamme 54, and a Voile Objective.

With an Xplore binding:
The FT62 turns very nice in low to moderate angle slopes in good conditions. When it starts getting bumpy, icy, or steep, it's not as stable (for me.) It kicks and glides okay but not great. But definitely okay. I'd like scales on a set.

The Gamme 54 kicks and glides really well on low angle stuff. It handles a few inches of snow well and fits in tracks. For a true double-camber ski it will turn pretty well. But that doesn't mean it turns well, only that it will turn, with some persuasion. I wish they made a scaled version. Go ahead, hate me!

The Objective has scales and excels as a mountain bike-ski but K&G ain't for beans. But it turns so nicely and is just a joy in some deep snow in the woods. I may get myself in hot-water and get a set of Transit bindings. The TxPro is a lot of boot for that ski but, man, you might really be able to push that ski around in the backcountry and of all my boots the TxPro fits the best. All day comfort.

There are many, many, many other skis and new stuff coming out all the time. My dream would be a fusion of these three skis with a Transit bindings and an unobtanium light weight TechToeTele boot. I know if such a ski exists (I know the boot doesn't) and it probably can't exist. There are too many competing requirements. But what gets close? Right now, the FT62 works the best across a wide range of conditions and use cases but is there something better? For now it would be on Xplore/AlfaFree or Alaska. And it should have scales. Everything should have scales!

I don't own anything by Fischer or Madshus and maybe I should.

BTW, I'm looking out my window at work and there's white stuff on the mountain tops...

[Manney]

Have you considered that your struggle isn’t with finding the right ski, but not settling on what type of skiing you choose to do as a priority?

I don’t mean Telemark. That’s a turn… can be done on piste, in the backcountry using any number of free heel setups. I mean XCD vs AT.

The gear differences are quite profound. And while “Backcountry Skiing” might be code for “both”, it is so broad as to be almost meaningless when it comes to gear. So while Xplore and TTS may involve pincer-like binding mechanisms and allow a skier’s heel to rise off the top sheet, they share little in terms of real functionality.

As for the rest, one might as well compare apples and oranges. Skis, bindings, boots, poles, even clothing. XCD, AT. Very different gear.

[Lhartley]

Karhu Guide xcd with switchbacks and excusrions if I had to choose one setup. But nah, lots oh skis is fun. I get really curious of gammes though when they're brought up. If I already have e99s is there enough of difference to give gammes a go? Really like the video of that Erik kid shredding those, made me want to learn to turn the e99s better

[Manney]

We’d all benefit from more time on a single set of skis. It would allow us to focus on mastering skills that are often practiced far too infrequently to really “stick”.

[Lhartley]

Idk, I skied strictly zero g's with dynafits and skins for several years and didn't know what k+g was even, it's like you said in a previous thread, different setups for different styles of skiing. That said, I do want to narrow it down after trying absolutely everything last season

[jtb]

I use Objective BC's with TTS and F3's for everything from kick and glide to big mountain objectives. The only thing they're not great at is deep powder (width) and resort (scales). But by compromising on either of those, you end up with a ski that is less capable in more backcountry scenarios, so they're the closest thing I've found to a do-it-all ski. I take Objective BC's the majority of the time, even though I have a fairly large quiver.

[spopepro]

I agree with jtb. The objective bc is about the closest to a one ski setup as is possible. I also have skied them with rat traps and T2s everywhere. That includes a skimo race (not recommended, but maybe for unexpected reasons—the up was fine, the 40deg ice going down was not… but I finished, and not last), in bounds, secret side country, rolling tours, mistakes were made epics with people on AT gear, at Nordic centers with people on track skis (in the middle obviously). They aren’t the best at any of these things but they are certainly at the center of the weight-flat efficiency-downhill capability triangle.

[JohnSKepler]

I agree with jtb. The objective bc is about the closest to a one ski setup as is possible. I also have skied them with rat traps and T2s everywhere. That includes a skimo race (not recommended, but maybe for unexpected reasons—the up was fine, the 40deg ice going down was not… but I finished, and not last), in bounds, secret side country, rolling tours, mistakes were made epics with people on AT gear, at Nordic centers with people on track skis (in the middle obviously). They aren’t the best at any of these things but they are certainly at the center of the weight-flat efficiency-downhill capability triangle.

Well a set of Objectives is almost as expensive as an entire quiver this year. $900. Significantly more than last year.