For those about to rock... we salute you.

For those of you following the trends of ski design throughout the industry you've already witnessed the freight train that is "rocker" railing through your local ski town.  Rocker has been around the ski industry, at least in theory, thanks to the late great Shane McConkey.  Here's a little history of Shane's pioneering thoughts on ski shape if you're unfamiliar.  While there are various ways to implement rocker in a ski design the goal is the same -- floatation and maneuverability.  Rocker gets to the heart of the difference between turning on the snow and turning in the snow. 

There are a lot of different terms (and marketing jibberish) floating around the industry these days... full rocker,  shovel rocker, pop rocker, decambered early rise, banana technology, recurve, etc.  Don't buy into the hype too much, the important thing is to consider how you are going to use any new pair of skis -- Riding groomers all day?  All mountain?  Sessioning the park?  Backcountry touring?  Heli ski trip?  Some combination these?  Basically it goes like this:  The deeper the snow the more rocker you want. 

I was discussing these points on the chairlift with a colorful old ski bum friend who's skied more days than most people live.  He asked me why anyone would ever want to float on top of the deep powder.  "Some of those skis just look ridiculous flapping around the hill," he said gruffly.  "If it's good snow I want to be as deep in it as possible!"   Interesting point.  

With the pros and cons of rocker in mind the process for designing our latest ski began.  A few weeks later the Skookoleel was born.  The Skook incorporates a sublte camber (think softened traditional ski) with an early rise at the tip and the tail.  We taper the tips and tails so that while you are skiing the hardpack they are out of the way allowing you to effectively ski the cambered running surface, but once you travel off-piste the early rise portions of the tip and tail kick in to give you added floatation and manuevarability.  What you end up with is a five dimensional ski with a 23 meter radius.  What does that mean?  A ski that can arc turns on the groomer and butter turns in the steep and deep.  It's beautiful thing. 

There's not a single ski on the market that will ski all conditions at the top of it's class.  But there are skis out there that will suit your style of skiing and the places you ski best 90% of the time.  So get out there and try some new rockered skis already!   

Delicious Demo's and Cowgirl Coffee

Over the last couple weeks we have been drinking a lot of Cowgirl Coffee and testing our sweet new ski designs -- The Canyon, Skook, and Soldier.  We're running some promotional lid stickers through Cowgirl Coffee (see picture) to get the word out about our new business so stop by one of their locations in the Flathead and get your caffeine fix.... oh, and ask them about Montana Ski Company too. 

The Soldier is our new all-mountain and park ripper that's light and initiates turns easily.  At 126-87-116 the Soldier has enough float and sidecut to arc groomers but not get bogged down off piste -- so far our testers love the performance but feel that the abuse put on park skis will warrant a heavier more durable ski.  So we've decided to beef up the Soldier underfoot and add an even thicker topsheet to defend against the abuses that jibbing boxes and rails delivers. 

The new Canyons have a more sublte twin tip design producing a longer effective running surface as well as a softer wood core to let it bend more easily in the pow.  Despite a longer running surface and a 106mm waist underfoot the Canyons have enough sidecut to slip through tight trees (23m radius at 184).  The Canyon has been my go to ski this season and with the new improvements will no doubt be my mainstay in 2011 too.  

Rocker seems to be the buzz word in the ski industry these days.  Shovel rocker, early rise,  full rocker.... it's all good, but in order to reap the most benefits you need to consider the conditions you're going to ride.  Considering that most powder days are a combination of untouched lines and skied out exits we created the shape for the Skook ski.  The Skook shape incorporates shovel and tail rocker with subtle camber underfoot to create a fat ski that can arc longer turns through the crud but has the float neccessary to handle an epic day.

The Throwdown at Showdown

Although it's been an odd winter with El Nino shepparding the snows to the southern states there are still many powdery stashes to be found.  I found a few stashes recently at the Showdown ski hill at King's Hill pass in the Little Belt Mountains. 

It was a great weekend full of sunshine and even some fresh snow falling overnight.  There were a lot of Montana families at Showdown, most of whom were there to compete and watch the Youth Ski League speed events that were taking place.  Imagine 12 year olds (and under) going 55 miles an hour...!!  Yep, a bunch of little ripping skiers shredding the slopes.  But while the kids were having lunch and changing from their racing gear to their freeskiing gear coach Zak (aka The Ginger Kid) found some pretty sweet little zones of fresh snow. 

Big shout out and thanks to the friendly staff at Showdown....thanks for awesome breakfast, good laughs, and epic turns.  See you next year!!

Town Hall Meeting

One of the great things about skiing in Montana is the relationship between the National Forest Service and so many great hills.  Having an open boundary with quick an easy access to backcountry skiing is just so excellent.  The next time you're out schralping some excellent sidecountry turns don't forget to thank the good people at the National Ski Areas Association, National Forest Service, and U.S. Skiing. 

http://www.wildwilderness.org/docs/ski-mou.htm

On the other hand, the occasional inbounds poach can land you in serious hot water.  And while it might seem like the TJ Burke thing to do, it may involve a brush with local authorities.  The last thing you want is to get caught waiting for the judge when it's powder day on Porphyry Peak!
       

Cinching it up in the Little Belt Mountains

Of the 16 ski resorts (I use the term "resort" extremely loosely) in Montana there are few that rival Showdown.  I'm not talking about epic lines, awesome nightlife, or high speed quads...I'm talking old school Montana skiing.  It's the kind of place that makes you feel like time travel is possible.  Pleasantville meets Ski School meets Deadwood.   If I had to sum it up in a word?  Classic. 

The two towns that sit just down the canyon from Showdown are Neihart and Monarch.  These old mining towns still have prospectors holding court at the local watering hole.  I'm not kidding, they still prospect and even pan for gold on occasion.  The ski hill itself has been in operation since the 1930's when some skiing pioneers founded the Great Falls Ski Club.  I can only imagine what the drive was like back then -- it's about an hour and half now. 

There aren't many pretensions at Showdown.  The rental shop is in an old A-frame that looks as old as the mountain itself (see picture above).  The breakfast special is called the Miner, the drink special is coffee (until noon), and everyone is on a first name basis, including the owner.  George has owned and operated Showdown since God bequethed it to him on the sixth day, or so it seems anyway.  Old George is a bit of a  curmudgeony fellow but he runs a tight ship.  He might be bellowing instructions to the staff one minute and then serving you hot coffee with a smile the next.

The skiing at Showdown is also free of pretension and the lack of posers is pretty refreshing.  Porphory peak provides some solid vertical and with an elevation a little over 8,000 ft there's always a fair amount of snow.  Every time I visit it's either a bluebird day or a powder day and on a few occasions it's been both.  I won't spray about awesome pillow drops or perfectly spaced tree lines; I'll leave it to you check out the action yourself.   Oh, and if you're in the area make sure to stop by the Cub's Den or the Lazy Doe for a frosty pint and a few stories, I gaurantee a classic moment will occur.

Mile High Mile Deep

Considering the progression and popularity of winter sports it is surprising that certain epic areas remain totally underappreciated and often totally untracked.  The realization of this phenomena became totally obvious us when we stopped into Walkerville, Montana.  We discovered that Walkerville has a proliferation of urban skiing opportunities unseen on this side of the Atlantic.  The people are friendly and despite it's proximity to a Superfund site we found a bevy of clean unblemished lines.  If you're in the Butte area we definitely recommend a stop into Walkerville... seriously good stuff.

MSC goes on tour

Be on the lookout throughout Montana as the Montana Ski Company goes on tour.  Post a mobile upload of the MSC H1 to Facebook and we'll send you an MSC hat or t-shirt.  That's right, all you have to do is cap a picture of us on the road (that means anywhere but Whitefish) and it's free swag for you!