| ROCKER - What Does It Mean and What Do I Do?
[Part I]
Welcome to 2011/12 where ROCKER is everywhere you look (turn), and something you need to have. The good news is that ROCKER makes sense both from a design standpoint and user perspective. The challenge is what skis will work best for me, and what type of ROCKER is going to make my day on the hill the best it can be.
The following will hopefully let you gain some insight into ROCKER and what it can do for you and your skiing. Imagine that, actually buying skis that will make me ski and feel better, it's a great time to be on the hill.
I started by going through all of the major brands and taking note of the 'Types' of Rocker they had and I ran out of room to write! There are many different names for the Rocker types out there, but it all comes down to a few basics:
1. How far the tip and/or tail comes off the snow (Rise)
2. How far back the "Rise" is (Run)
The elements of #1 and #2, along with the ski construction and sidecut dimensions, will determine how the ski performs, and whether it is suited for you.
If the "Rise" is minimal, then you can expect the feel of more traditional ski performance. As you tip the ski over you will feel it engage early in the turn with more control early on and throughout the arc until release.
If the "Rise" is high then you will need to get the ski quite far over, a far more aggressive turn approach, until you feel the ski start to grip and perform.
Higher Rise skis will be better suited to deeper snow and crud. Lower Rise skis will be better suited to more typical ski area conditons which include groomed, non-groomed in-bounds and variable terrain (bumps).
While considering the Rocker profiles, make sure you focus as well on the sidecut dimensions, construction and natural turn radius. These still have meaning and will make a difference. In fact, these numbers may well still tell you the most about how this ski will and should perform.
In the next instalment I'll talk about actual dimensions and how they combine and work with Rocker profiles. Like it or not, they all have to work together.
Paul Cunnius
CSIA Level IV/Senior Examiner
K2 Skis
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