Taos "Demo" Day, February 21, 2012

The present ski season is not over yet, and the new one is upon us. The strong Alpine Sports crew went to Taos to try next season’s skis and snowboards. Many manufacturers were represented and we had to really pick and choose what to try first.

We concentrated mostly on brands we carry at Alpine Sports: K2 skis and snowboards, Salomon, Volkl and Nordica skis.

There are no huge changes for next year in ski and snowboard technology. Most of them will have some kind of a tip rocker. Pretty soon it will be quite hard to find a ski with a traditional camber.

On the first day of Taos “Demo” our female testers, Kara and Ewa liked Salomon Bamboo, a little bit more narrow under the foot, than last year’s version. This is a little, playful, yet very strong ski. It is fun on the bumps and carving down the slope, even at higher speeds.

Marie Ann really liked Salomon Geisha, wide under the foot with a front rocker. Ewa also liked Volkl Charisma. This is a new ski for women, replacing Tierra. Charisma is softer and more playful than Tierra, and it is a lot of fun on the bumps.

Harvey Chalker, the owner of Alpine Sports and Hugh Casey, a ski instructor at Pajarito Mountain, enjoy German beer during their lunch break at "The Bavarian" restaurant at the Taos Ski Area

Testing new equipment is exciting, but it is also a lot of work. We all enjoyed our lunch break at “The Bavarian” restaurant. After eating Spetzle, Bratwursts and Schnitzel, we all felt energized and eager to get back to work:  to ski on new skis.

Afternoon testing went fast. Some of us wandered off the testing path of Porcupine and could not resist to try new Volkl Aura and Kiku  somewhere where those type of skis really belong: Lorelei Trees, then after taking Lift #4 and a short hike to Hunziker Bowl to High Noon to  El Funko. Tuesday’s snow was great in the trees and in the bowls. What a way to end the testing skis day.

See you all next year!