Time to gear up for battle

It's that time of year again kids. Time to get ready for the onslaught of the upcoming winter. I'm pretty content with most of my outerwear so I shouldnt be grabbing anything there. However, after last season, my hardware is left in shambles. Holes in the bottom of boots, liners loose as slippers, and busted ass bindings with de-lamming skis. Of course I'll fix them up...but theres no way they are going to last the whole season. Most people look forward to christmas or their birthday as a time for goodies.....well this is my time of year for goodies. Lets get started.

First off, are the boots. I've been riding the same pair of boots for the past two seasons, which ends up to be around 310 days or so. They are disintegrating fast. Tecnica Rival HVLs. I've been using this particular model the past 4 seasons and have been very pleased. As they saying goes, if its not broken, don't fix it! So for this upcoming season, I will be purchasing another pair of the same, with a slight difference. Here is the Tecnica Vento 6 HVL. What is HVL?

HVL is for High Volume Liner. This is absolutely necessary for me cause I have such huge ass feet. Even with the biggest liner you can get, I will still have to get the sides punched out a bit on the shell for the best fit/comfort. These boots are also a little bit softer than the Rivals, which is what I'm looking for, as I am a 100% park rider now. Maybe a day here and there on the mountain, but that crap is pretty boring these days. These are also a previous year's model, so I can snag them for under 200 dollars, which is pretty damn good for ski boots if you ask me. Now, with that out of the way, lets get on to the skis.

That brings us to these lil guys. The Amplid Antidogma. Why these and not something else?
Well why something else? After having ridden all the major companies out there (Salomon, Volkl, Dynastar, Rossignol) I have been fairly unimpressed with any of them. Rossignol has treated me the best, as they have lasted through a season, where as the rest were either trashed at the end, or did not even survive the whole season. I had also ski'd on armadas two seasons back and was not impressed by the durability. You would think that being a huge company with lots of $$$ to chuck at r&d would result in bomb-proof skis, but that isn't the case. Most of the reviews I find, I usually take with a grain of salt. Yea, its good they are out there, for people who ride a normal season. There is no review that tests a ski 150 days a season, in the park. I am fairly convinced that almost no ski can really stand up to this without failing somewhere. Each season has been a test for whatever ski I have to see if it can live up to its claims. With a whole plethora of new smaller ski companies out there, it's almost baffling when you want to pick out a ski. There is pretty much no source for a good objective review, and wherever you look, someone's opinion always comes into play. None of those opinions are from people who ski as often as I do, so they dont help much. So really, why Amplid? Well because they are trying something different. The alternative materials and construction methods they have used interest me, and I believe them to result in a more durable ski. Of course I wont be mashing these on a daily basis as I have my other damaged pairs to use, but it's always good to have the "golden" pair for comp days...when you need to count on all of your edge being there. Some might say thats bullshit, but w/e. Skiing everyday beats down on stuff, FAST. I was considering Moment Reno Jibs for a while, as they come highly praised from a friend of mine, but then thought about riding a symmetrical ski. It's not really what I'm looking for. I would rather ride an asymmetrical ski centered, if that makes sense. I've been doing it for the past 5 years, and I am more than happy with it. Why change something if it isnt broken? I figured it was finally time for me to help out one of the smaller guys. Amplid, with their specifically park engineered ski, is the one I have chosen out of the array of new companies :)
Last but not least, we have the bindings. Sadly, the FKS w/ Pivot heel have faded off this planet. So we are stuck with Rossignol's Axial2 technology. This past season, I rode Rossignol WC MXF 150 Bindings, their world cup race binding. I have been a fan of these as they are much more durable than the standard Rossignol Axial2s. I have had a pair of the standard Rossignol Axial 120s, and managed to completely obliterate one of the toe pieces, straight up tearing the metal in half.....so I'm about done dealing with these weak things. In the spring, I found out that the WC bindings really were not the best choice. The excess plastic underneath the boot was really not made for the impacts of parks, as I have completely shattered it off one of my skis. Now I have a toepiece that is always vertically loose. It's still ski-able, but probably not the best idea. For this season, I will be shifting to the Rossignol Free 150, pictured above. Almost identical to the WV, but without all the plastic bullshit running underfoot. These are also bindings made for riding park, so I bet they will stand up to the abuse alot better.

As with everything, all of this crap carries a price tag. You just can't have fun in this world without spending money. Hopefully I'll be able to change that this season with the purchase of a video camera, and FINALLY the creation of a new promo, that I can put out there that shows my skills as of NOW, and not 3-4 years ago.

96 days until Breckenridge opening.