[qman]

just got my prasch, which is great but made a couple of errors in ordering the main one being the seat width. there 40cm is 38cm etc..

so mine is very tight but usable

[Pete Anderson]

I'm trying to lock in the cost, including VAT and shipping with Praschberger via e-mail, but I'm not getting a response. Any suggestions, besides calling them? They are the most expensive mono-ski out there. I feel this is a bad indicator for future services.

Pete

[qman]

actually they (prasch) are no where near the most expensive mono, they are actually one of the cheaper,

should try costing a tessier one. the prasch was 40% cheaper.

i think they are only slightly more expensive than the Freedom factory.

Prasch have been pretty good to deal with but have to remember that they are basically on summer holidays at the moment in austria. it will cost you about $2600 euro, should be VAT exempt if you are OS. but you will pay local duty or GST or VAT or whatever in your country

i have sorted out most of the tweaking now. the shock is 90% there turning wise now and i am actually happy with the seat although it is very tight and hard to get in and out of. it skis well though and doent mark my hips so should be sweet.

Like i said be carefull with the seat width. go about the width of your WC rather than narrower as they are roughly 2cm narrower than the specified width once the foam lining etc is in place. best to try one of a known width for size if you can.

the WP fusion shock is good and very adjustable. but will take me a while to get in nailed re dampening etc..


ps, they say available in 4 weeks which was roughly right but add a week for shipping and customs etc.. if over seas. 6 weeks to 2 months to be safe for ordering

[Pete Anderson]

Thanks for the info. So I am an idiot. What is a "WC?" And do you suggest the WhitePowder Fusion Shock, over the Emulsion? What is the difference?

Thanks! Any other suggestions on what to get would be helpful.

Pete.

PS: I slammed in hanggliding. I noticed you hammered in paragliding...Ouch!

[qman]

yeah, sort of broken eagles eh.

WC = wheel chair. if you are in a 16inch chair order a 16 inch (or =) sit ski, i went narrower as i wanted a narrower fit but they seem to have already taken that into account,

generally get the best shock you can afford. I think the fusion is better than the emulsion in that it has more dampening adjustments etc, if you can afford it get the ohlins shock but it is really expensive.

the other thing is the frame angle 70 degrees or 77 degrees i think. and the 70 degree one is higher than the other in the seating position and generally recommended for racers and lower breaks. it is a little more unstable but can be skied more aggressively. the 77 degree one is a little easier to get up if you fall over etc at the centre of gravity is lower.

the leg pods and covers are good if you can but are pretty expensive options and not really needed for recreational skiing IMHO.

the other things are pretty straight forward.

generally i am pretty happy with it, we have heaps of snow at the moment with about 1m over the last week, should be a big powder day tomorrow.

[Pete Anderson]

Thanks for your input.

I found a USA distributor for the Prasch and I am in the process of ordering one with the fusion shock. I double checked my seat width and feel comfortable with my measurements.

The Ohlins shock is the cream of the crop type of shock and is selling for about 1000 euros. Too much money for my taste and pocket book. This shock would be ideal in very cold condtions and for the hard core racers.

The Tesser mono ski appears to be top of the line, and so far the most expensive that I have found, over $6000. Again, no thanks.

I am definitely amped to ski this year since now I no longer sky dive, or hardly ever hang glide. My adrenalin filled body is starting to dry up and whither away.

[qman]

great,

just be sure they dont sting you to much extra for ordering through the distributor as it is pretty easy to order direct from prasch.

although i was a bit concerned initially i am pretty happy with the width i got now as it skis really well,
i am pretty happy with the fusion shock although it is taking a while to nail all the adjustments (4 variables). but that is no issue with the shock. it just takes time

it is skiing great now.

i really enjoy skiing as it really puts me on par with my mates on the hill and can seriously blast around.

[Pete Anderson]

Do you do any jumps, or x-treme type of skiing with your sit ski? Im really curious about doing bumps and jumps. I would think its tough on the shock and frame.

Pete

[qman]

i am pretty new to it really but am skiing steep and deep stuff when the snow is consistent.

i find it a little tricky in crusty snow but other wise it is great.

There are a few guys skiing these rigs pretty hard and getting BIG air.

check out http://www.theandyca.../1/Welcome.html

[Pete Anderson]

Before my accident, I would hate to ski in icey conditions, but with the sit ski, I found I have a lot of control and I can really cut an edge to carve out a turn.

In powder...that's tricky.

In crud...that's even more challenging.

I think that once I have my own sit ski, I can have it adjusted just right and really dial into the conditions.

That video of the down hill race where they're taking the jumps is really the acid test in durability of the sit ski design. I'm looking foreward to winter!

Pete

[qman]

it is a bit of different skis for different purposes.

fat skis help in soft snow. i have a ski up to 104mm underfoot and that helps sometimes but is poor on the firm snow.

I have a head monster 88 ski which i find the best all rounder. wide but stiff with a gs sidecut.

This post has been edited by qman: 12 September 2009 - 09:27 AM

[dave 67]

qman, on Aug 7 2009, 11:43 AM, said:

yeah but doesnt matter how good they are if you cant get them.

It is impossible to get even information on the Nissin let alone a price or delivery and the S Carver looks good but is nearly twice the cost of a prasch. They about about 4000 euro versus about 2400 euro for the prasch.

Yeah, What is with NISSIN. They put this product out there but refuse to discuss it. It's like a Japanese National Security issue!!
If a high profile company like Colours In Motion are distributing them I would have thought that they would have ready access to the information about their product, but NO, still the great wal of silence.
I've just posted about this before I found this string. This issue is driving me crazy

[Pete Anderson]

Its been an education getting to know what is out there.

In the US, there's two manufacturers that I know of: Freedom Factory and KGB.

Freedom Factory produces what some consider a basic design.
KGB is more of a high performance racing design.

In Europe there's the Tessier and Praschberger.

In Japan, there is the elusive Nissin.

I believe there is one other manufacture out there, but I don't recall the name.

Not a whole lot out there when comparing this to the number of various types, designs and manufacture's of skis on the market.

I just put my order in for the Praschberger (I took a leap of faith, and sold my first born to purchase it).

Pete

Opps, found this link in this thread: manufactures

This post has been edited by Pete Anderson: 16 September 2009 - 04:39 AM

[qman]

rumour has it that the nissin is sort of under restriction until after the winter olympics on the theory that those using it will have the upper hand at vancouver.

maybe they will become more available next year.

[russ1]

qman, on Sep 23 2009, 09:19 AM, said:

rumour has it that the nissin is sort of under restriction until after the winter olympics on the theory that those using it will have the upper hand at vancouver.

maybe they will become more available next year.

I suspect that's just a rumour - I was chatting with one of the US team who had one last year and my friend who's in the UK team has just bought one with a view to using it in vancouver.

[twisted_ophelia]

Well, I'm excited because ski season is just around the corner! Just heard that it is snowing like crazy in Breckenridge, CO already

[qman]

http://www.youtube.c...h?v=KCJxN0i3c1s

here is the lasted vid,

the first half is on a FF RPC and the later parts on my Prash

[outkastsl]

I just picked up a used RPC and I'm excited to go hit the snow. I didn't want to spend to much so the second hand one was perfect and it fits perfect.

Hey qman, awesome video, can't believe it's your first year...you look like you got it down. Also, what ski are you using?

This post has been edited by outkastsl: 26 October 2009 - 01:33 AM

[qman]

i was using (mostly) at Head Monster 88. which was excellent.

it is a nice all round ski for free skiing. wide enough to help in the powder but still holds and edge with a GS side cut.

also really well made, wood core, metal topsheet etc.

you will break skis occasionally on a sit ski.

[clockwork1]

i know this is sort of in the wrong topic box but does any one have any adzise on what they found was the best hotel for the money, being a wheelchair user and getting to the slopes at Winter Park, Colorado, USA. any info would be good

[Alexandre]

In Europe the Tessier Scarver is becoming very popular. It's not very cheap but when you see how it works... Amazing!!!
You can adjust many things on this frame (seating angle, suspension movement, center of gravity...) so each skier find his best configuration, it's like a custom made one but you can try all adjustments. Also the shock absorber is excellent.
That's what I bought and I have never skied something like this before. It really worth its price.
Many European competitors (from national teams) have changed for it. I heard that in USA a member of the national team (I don't remember his name) has changed for it last season and had good results (podiums I think) with it at the national championship and at the world cup. Maybe someone knows it better than me. (I have never had the chance to ski in USA!).
That's for me the best sitski ever. Try it if you can!

[Pete Anderson]

I committed to and ordered a Praschberger at the end of September 09 and received it 2 weeks ago at the beginning of December. I'm relieved that I've made the right decision in purchasing this.

Although I've only tried out only one other sit ski, the Freedom Factory Mogal Master SP, prior to this, I am definitely more comfortable in the Prash due to the ease of getting on and off the chair lift and how easily it turns. On the Freedom Factory ski, I would sometimes get locked out from committing to a turn and loose my ability to control my speed. With the Prasch, this is no longer a problem.

Now my biggest hurdle is getting a good ski and binding. Within the last 12 months of sit skiing, I've broken 2 skis and one binding. Last weekend I bent a Volkl Mantra 183, on the bumps. I basically skewered the side of a mogul and endoe'd over the top. My first foreward flip on a sit ski!

The weekend prior to this I had washed out on a turn and laid the bucket down. I found myself going over a steep embankment on my new sit ski sliding over rocks, fallen trees, etc, and picking up speed. I finally came to an ubrupt stop after the bottom plate on the sit ski slammed up against a tree. My ski remained on top of the ridge and I literally had to crawl out onto the slope in waist deep snow. I'm really fortunate that my paralysis is below my knees, otherwise the ski patrol would have to hire a tow truck to get me out of there. Later that day my heel piece snapped off. My binding was completely destroyed and the ski patrol, with their snowmobile and tobacan had to rescue me.

As stated by someone else in this forum, I too found out that the Prasch does not release to the lower position after getting off the chair lift. So I will use a rope, as suggested, and rig this to the shock so I can "break" that cantilever position that the shock is in. In doing so I will be more independent. So far, everytime I would get off from the lift I had to look around and "draft" someone to be my little helper to disengage the shock from the upright position.

I also went to the ski shop at Park City, and they gave me 3 sets of Marker M9.2 bindings for a total of $20.00. Max DIN is 14. I will also pin it as well. I think this will work, but the more DIN, the better. The price was right.

Finally, I'm thinking about getting a Elan Quad 1 ski. This ski has a wood core, which is , from what I hear, a good thing. Its also fat.

Thoughts or comments are welcomed. I'm finding this forum very insightful for this topic.

This post has been edited by Pete Anderson: 21 December 2009 - 05:06 AM

[qman]

awesome, love the prach,

By far and away the best bindings i have found and pretty much the only binding i will trust is the Marker 30 race binding,
They have a 30 din and are absolutely bomb proof.

I also have a tyrolia binding with a 20 din which is ok but i prefer the markers,

have also had the unloading problem with the prasch but discovered it depends on chairlift.

the thick padded seats seem to stop the mechanism locking back in place. the plastic slated seats work great and will engage the mechanism 95% of the time.

a friend rigged up a small rope and pulley attached to the knuckle,

i have sort of lived with it. i can hit it down myself but usually get a ski buddy to hit it with a ski pole.

This post has been edited by qman: 22 December 2009 - 10:04 AM

[Pete Anderson]

Yep, the buddy with the pole thing is what I've been do'n the past couple of weeks. The Marker 30's I think are difficult to find. I'm finding that anything above 14 din is difficult to find, but I'm still looking.

I just purchased a pair of Elan Quad 1 skis. Big, fat mammas. They are 184 cm. I will only mount a good binding to this as it was pricey. Anything happens to this ski, like breaking, I'm just going to be buying used after this.

I'm finding that its really easy to brake stuff sit skiing.

Cheers!

Pete

[russ1]

Pete Anderson, on Dec 22 2009, 03:41 PM, said:

Yep, the buddy with the pole thing is what I've been do'n the past couple of weeks. The Marker 30's I think are difficult to find. I'm finding that anything above 14 din is difficult to find, but I'm still looking.

I just purchased a pair of Elan Quad 1 skis. Big, fat mammas. They are 184 cm. I will only mount a good binding to this as it was pricey. Anything happens to this ski, like breaking, I'm just going to be buying used after this.

I'm finding that its really easy to brake stuff sit skiing.

Cheers!

Pete

If you pin the binding does the din setting really matter - I was advised that anything under about 20 din would have to be pinned but to be honest I don't know anyone who sit skis who doesn't pin their binding even though this makes it more likely to break skis.

If you do the string thing properly you'll never ever come off the lift in the raised position. Much more dignified, I attach a key ring to the string at the right point and hook this onto one of the bolts on the frame while I'm on the chair so the knuckle stays broken as you come off.

[Pete Anderson]

I'll have to try that key ring thing. I definitely want to look dignified rather appear to be a turtle on its back!

Pete

[Teralin]

ANY ADVICE? I live in salt lake city utah and work in Park City at the Canyons. My six year old nephew is paralized from the waist down.....I really want to get him started on a sit ski, but I can't find anywhere to rent one??? I tried the National Ability Center, but they require you to have a ton of really expensive days out with one of their instructors. I want to be able to take him on my own. Does anyone have any advice on how I can get a hold of a childs sit ski? Have any of you ever made one yourself???? He is really small (smaller than my 2 year old niece) So I'll have to assist him the whole time---so it doesn't have to be super nice. Thanks so much.

Teralin

[qman]

i cant stress enough that the marker 30s are the way to go. its not just the din settings but the whole construction.
they are bomb proof.

[Ndisc84]

I saw one response saying most ski resorts have sit-ski rentals, such as Breckenridge etc. but does anyone know if much smaller hills and highlands in the midwest for example have them for rent? I honestly can't remember seeing them out of the hundreds of times I went pre-injury, but maybe just didn't notice.

Also, how soon after injury did anyone go skiing? I haven't really asked a doctor yet, but one of my therapist joked that she doubts my butt will be skiing down the mountain this season. That seems a bit ridiculous. I'm thinking she thought I was injured snowboarding, because I talk about it a lot and had been riding the day before my injury, so maybe it was just an innocent comment telling me to slow it down or something. I'm planning on going late February unless they tell me absolutely no.

advice on either topic??

[Pete Anderson]

Regarding the son and wanting to take him out on your own, I suggest being a volunteer at the NAC and incorporate your son into the program. That way you know what types of gear are available, and how to use for free, and you'll be able to later purchase the right gear for your son and teach him accordingly.

About the 30 DIN binding. I agree, the more din, the better. I've been looking on the internet for used, but this type of binding is hard to come by. I may just purchase the real thing new because of the difficulty in finding this binding used at that high of a din.

Finally, regarding the last post, I tried alpine skiing within 6 months of my accident. That was a joke. My feet had to be forced fit into my boot due to my swelling hadn't gone down from my accident. I had a lot of atrophy throughout my body and my body would not follow the directions that my brain was telling it. In the end, I hung up stand up skiing due to my paralysis in my lower legs. It was no fun to ski. I couldn't turn but I could bomb a hill and go really, really fast!

Sit skiing, solo, requires upper body strength, if you have the mobility. Get with a program and take one lesson. It may be very humbling, or it maybe very rewarding, depending how strong and able you are. Just don't damage yourself more than what you already have, like run into trees, go off cliffs, fall off the lift, etc.

The NAC at Park City is/was very helpful for me and got me excited enough to drop a lot of cash in purchasing my own gear. The winter months can be very long without anything to do. I can't say enough about their program. They definitely aren't in for the money! Very good, patient people!