K2 Pon2oon Skis 2012

Comments about K2 Pon2oon Skis 2012:

I am a strong 47 year old Utah skier, volunteer patroller. My main boards are the Coombas before they had rocker. I have been sceptical about rocker, but the new pontoon changed my mind. You can't sink the tips which allows you to charge in a way that is hard to describe until you actually ride these in deep snow. I was smoking through crud after a 16 inch storm at speeds that would not be possible with anything else I have ever been on. Definitely a powder only board... As billed you can tolerate the groomers to get to the lift, but quickly loose edge hold at high speeds on hard snow. Game changer for powder days... I am 5' 8" and weigh 185... I have the 179s. I could have definately gone longer, but I am not unhappy with my choice. In really steep and deep trees I was skiing faster and with greater confidence than ever before... Big mountain open terrain I would go longer.

Comments about K2 Pon2oon Skis 2012:

The Pon2oon is a winner. It surfs. It smears. It plays. It charges. As a big fan of the original Pontoon design, I was prepared to dislike the Pon2oon. I could not imagine how this year's changes could do anything but result in mediocrity. I was utterly wrong. I skied two late afternoon spring laps at Stevens Pass on the 179 cm Pon2oon. During those two laps I alternated between packed/cut-up groomers, chundered off-piste spring snow laden with grapefruit sized "snowballs", and a few modest untouched patches of nice creamy fresh Cascade snow. In the fresh soft snow, it was surfy and smeary. In chunky cutup, it cruised through - smoothly. For a ski of its size, it went up on edge on hard packed groomers with surprising ease and confidence - big carved turns were no hassle at all. While perhaps a shade less nimble in untracked snow than the original Pontoon, the Pon2oon seems to have retained most of the original's surfy soft snow handling while shedding virtually all of the original's weaknesses on cutup or hard snow. This is a ski you can take out on a great day, smile your way through the untracked, and not worry about those less than perfect patches or having to go back to the car to swap skis when the good stuff starts getting pounded out. Simply put, the Pon2oon is a serious standout ski. With respect to sizing, the 179 strikes me as the "go to" size for this ski (much as the 179 was for the original). Unless you are going to be doing big/fast lines you probably do not need the bigger size. The 179 was rock solid for me. And still very nimble. Since it is already so stable and sure footed, I would not give up any of the handling of the 179 for a bigger ski without good reason. Depending on the make/model, I ski sizes ranging from about 180 to 195, so I am not averse to longer skis when the design and/or conditions call for it. Me: 55 years old. A bit over 200 pounds. Middle of the road level skier. I get out about 70 days a year & favor off-piste skiing when conditions are reasonable. I'm a big fan of modern rockered designs.

Comments about K2 Pon2oon Skis 2012:

The new Pon2oon is sweet. Its stiffer and more streamlined. With less taper and less sidecut it is very stable bombing through heavy snow. It is very smooth turning and controllable. I found it to make nice turns on the groomers too as long as you're not afraid to throw it around.

Comments about K2 Pon2oon Skis 2012:

This ski loves the cascade crud also known as powder.

Comments about K2 Pon2oon Skis 2012:

Wow, what a fun ski! Zip through tight trees, shmear turns in deep pow at high speed, blast over crud, nail wind lips full-on, send it huge and stick the landing every time. On hard snow they're passable enough to get you to the lift line, but these are definitely powder day skis. Make sure to buy extra wax because these boards have a LOT of surface area.