When I unloaded this morning for a great day of skiing....mostly groomed up remnants of a 24" dump a few days ago. Weather beautiful, sunny and high 20's low 30's throughout the day. And it got better. I couldn't help but notice 10 or 12 canopies set up near the base of lift #1.
Indeed, I had stumbled onto a demo day...
Most of the manufacturers were represented. I inquired and found that it wasn't an open demo day, they were there for "retail reps and shop owners"...
However, I struck up a conversation with the Dynastar rep who said, "come by after lunch and I'll hook you up". I had been interested in the Cham series, if for nothing more than their intriguing shape and respectable purported turn radius.
I thought I would provide my initial and brief thoughts on two of the Cham series skis I demo'd today.(Disclaimer: This review comes through the filter of a progressing yet less than "solid" technical skier)
Conditions for all tests were the same: I basically tested both skis on the same series of runs that featured...at one point or another; Fresh groomed...Four to eight inches of chop...Windblown dust on packed.
Cham 97.... Stable platform, edged better than I would have thought. I didn't have any trouble initiating turns.....and they seemed to hold an edge good enough. They broke thru chop well and windblown dust didn't seem to affect them. My first thought? "My quads are killing me". These skis are heavy!! While stable, they are a "lot of work".
Cham 107 HM (HighMountain)...Expressing my thoughts on the "weight" of the regular 97's. The rep opined a lighter ski (without metal) might be a better choice. I did not feel a huge difference in profile with the 107. Again, edged better than expected, performed similar in turns, stable under the conditions I presented. Yet even with a bit more surface, they were a bit lighter than the regular 97's...But overall, still relatively heavy. Again, my quads were on fire half way down the mountain.
The tips of both the 97 and 107 felt a bit unwieldy( perhaps due to mount position) While I think a more technical or even flat out "stronger" skier may fancy them...I just didn't feel as if for the extra "beef" in terms of width, was I getting my bang for buck in terms of overall performance, allbeit, in the chop they both did "fine". And..its entirely possible they are the best thing since sliced bread in powder, alas none fresh to be had.
Realizing this last comparison could not be done without some bias...However, when I snapped back into my Rev 85's and skied them under the same conditions...I confirmed my feeling the extra girth of the Chams take them out of my everyday ski category. For lighter, progressing skiers....you may want to demo the Chams first before buying....I "believe" you can get as much overall performance out of a lighter, more nimble ski. Cham owners, don't hate on me....as much as I wanted to like them....they just weren't my cup-o-tea.....
The reps will be there again tomorrow....I am going to see if I can get a ride on some different boards, if I am lucky....some slated for 2014 perhaps.....
Cheers.......
ps: Moderators...feel free to bump this to the review thread...sorry for the extra work...I should have put it there initially....