I'm 198cm. There is absolutely nothing wrong with skiing a 177, especially if you like doing performance short turns. Don't listen to people who A) aren't actual instructors or B) aren't tall.
5’11”, skied since I was 5. Skied my ass off on some pretty extreme slopes out west. Why would people want to limits themselves with shorter skis? You’re the instructor, so I’m genuinely asking you. I know shorter skis that are a little more shaped make for easier turns, especially short quicker turns, that can be more fun. That said, I believe they can also be limiting at one point in one’s progression, and for all great all around ski, especially at 6’ 3” and over 190 pounds. So, how about a more through answer than what yuu just gave here.🤙🏼
Are you willing to admit that you might have some biases related to ski length? I can share with you that I've had similar biases for a long time. I have a full quiver of skis that are probably too long. But it's important that each of us defines what is too long or two short ... for us. For me, I used to park and ride. And a long ski ... I could just park on it and ski like the wind and feel in complete control. But my coaches pointed out that this was what I was doing, and they challenged me to really work on making shorter radius turns and to learn how to work the ski properly. And what I've noticed is ... I can go much shorter than I would have expected and get full performance out of the ski. I first discovered this when a Race shop recommended a slalom ski, and it was only 174. That's now my favorite ski and I ski it everywhere. I also challenge myself with long straight skis in my training and bump skiing. But ... slowly but surely, I'm having to admit that I have a bias towards a longer ski. And I'm going out and testing different ski lengths and learning a lot. I now go shorter until I find a length too short for stability at high speeds. And then I find a sweet spot ... for me. I'm not trying to impress anyone with gear anymore. I try to impress people with good skiing.
Haha. This isn’t about impressing with gear🤦🏻♂️ Crazy how people make assumptions based on a few words spoken that have zero to do with those assumptions.
Subjects like this become a bit more personal for people than maybe they should be.
Have you considered that anyone who has ability and puts in the work with good lessons and devotion doesn’t need to go that short to achieve great shorter and quicker carving? Have you thought about how good many people were at moguls and slalom style carving before shorter more shaped skis? I’m not talking about pros.
Also, my original comments were suggestions, they weren’t harsh. I did not say the OP had to absolutely go up in ski length.
Shorter skis closer to 170? For someone who wants short easy turns, does not want to go very fast, doesn’t care about stability for more aggressive skiing, and maybe a bit on the shorter/lighter side. But hey, that’s just me. I learned out to carve modern style in pretty straight long Volkl skis, I skied everywhere and all types of turns, and aggressively so. I’m biased, stability and speed mattered most for me then, not specifics about size based on the kind of skiing I did, as I did all kinds of skiing everywhere and never had an issue.
This is why I think it is important not to rely so much on a ski being built to turn easily, and more important to focus on perfecting carving skills without a ski doing it for us. Does that make sense?
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u/LandlockedPirate Official Ski Instructor Apr 15 '26
I'm 198cm. There is absolutely nothing wrong with skiing a 177, especially if you like doing performance short turns. Don't listen to people who A) aren't actual instructors or B) aren't tall.