Graduating from Volkl Kendo 2016

[exwanabee]

I am looking for a follow-on ski to my Volkl Kendo 2016, which I love. I ski in the west (mostly UT & CO) and probably spend 50/50 of my time on & off-piste. On-piste is usually to warm up, practice technique, getting to off-piste terrain, when off piste is unskiable (frozen) or if my quads are shot. I am 5'8", 150lbs and an advanced skier (expert wanabe). I ski a lot of expert terrain but not like an expert would Something that feels solid on ice is imperative, like the Kendos do, and something that is OK in powder if I am lucky enough to ski it. My Kendos are 90mm underfoot but I am thinking of moving up to 100mm underfoot. I dont like floppy paddles like the Soul 7 or some of the Blizzard skis; I have demo'ed those in the past. Would appreciate any recommendations, especially from people who have skied Kendos. Thanks.

p.s. Attaching a pic of my outdated Kendos to jog your memory, as I dont see them around anymore

 

[KingGrump]

The 2016 Kendo is gen 3. Nice ski. Had couple pairs. If you liked the 2016, demo a pair of the 2023 Kendo (gen 5). Really sweet ski. Stay away from the gen 4 (2020 - 2022). The 2023 is better off piste than the 2016. Didn't lose much on the groomed.

If you want a bit more float for off piste, try the Mantra M6. Much improved over the M5. Nothing like the gen 2/gen 3 & gen 4 Mantra.

 

[ktish]

Maybe not directly applicable to you, but when I first got back into the sport after a short hiatus, I picked up some older Kendo's and Soul7's used for a great price. My commitment to the sport (and ability level) really exploded and I found myself wanting to reinvent my quiver. I ski a small mountain in Vermont. I was fortunate enough to find this site right when the @GregK Faction cult thread was gaining a lot of traction, and the skis were really cheap. From the kendo's and Soul7's my quiver is now as follows:
-K2 Disruption STI 165 for really most says in VT
-'21 Faction CT 1.0 172 for better conditions and when I decide to be a hoon, or if I'm skiing moguls
-'21 Faction CT 3.0 178 for the few days a year we get significant snowfall, or in the spring and I'm harvesting corn

Really the Soul7's were fun in powder but lacked everywhere else. 3.0's are much more fun but require input. Edgehold and confidence is leaps and bounds above the Soul7's. The 1.0's have equal if not more edge grip than the kendos and have a funside I never experienced on my kendos. K2's are a ton of fun because they make me want to get out on firm days, plus make teaching kids really easy. Good energy and not as demanding as a race ski (or something that is doing a race ski impression). I think there'd be a great benefit to your enjoyment by splitting some duty across different skis. I was very price conscious building the quiver and I own all 3 pairs for less than 1 pair of Stocklis, if thats a reference.

 

[AlexisLD]

The kendo is a pretty good ski. There is not much to graduate from in terms of equipment. Is there something you don't like about them?

Do you want something to replace it, or do you want to start building a quiver? Having more than one ski might make you experience different on-snow feels... which is a good thing to improve your skiing.

If you go for a single ski, go with the appropriate width for what you ski the most. A width of 100+mm might not be bad for Utah, but you talk about ice so 90 might be a good sweet spot. The kendo is torsionally stiff, so if you want something different (which doesn't seem to be the case) you could go for something more playful. If you want more stability, you could scale up. If you are building a quiver, you could go narrower (more piste/race) or wider (more powder shape). Both are fun!

 

[Seldomski]

The Kendo you are on is a great ski. You could get a newer one and upsize length to get some more float in pow. But you will lose a bit for skiing trees if you do that. But if you don't care about trees, then go for it.

Is this a one ski quiver or would you entertain multiple pairs?

Suggest you demo a few different brands. There are a lot of interesting flex patterns out there and takes on sidecut/multiple radius. Also try some wide skis on a hardpack day and see how your knees feel. I ruled out anything wider than a Kendo after carving wider boards on groomer for a day. I could definitely feel it - the skis carved fine, but my knees were not happy.

If I had 2 ski quiver, wider would be OK. I could do an all mountain 75-90mm most days and a 95-105 for softer snow days.

 

[exwanabee]

Thanks to all for your inputs. I will give the Mantra M6 a try. I am open to having 2 skis, as my ski bag fits 2 pairs for travelling. So I could use my Kendos 90's on hard pack days and go with something wider for powder days. Maybe it willl improve my powder skiing. I am afraid I am limitted more by technique than the quiver for powder, but anything that helps my powder efficiency would be good. Someone suggested Nordica Enforcer 100. Anyone skied that? Would that be a good option for a wider pair?

 

[AlexisLD]

Thanks to all for your inputs. I will give the Mantra M6 a try. I am open to having 2 skis, as my ski bag fits 2 pairs for travelling. So I could use my Kendos 90's on hard pack days and go with something wider for powder days. Maybe it willl improve my powder skiing. I am afraid I am limitted more by technique than the quiver for powder, but anything that helps my powder efficiency would be good. Someone suggested Nordica Enforcer 100. Anyone skied that? Would that be a good option for a wider pair?

The Mantra M6 is pretty much a carbon copy of the Kendo, just wider. You will float more in powder with the increased width, but neither of these skis really has a "powder shape" if that is what you are looking for (i.e., have a lot of rocker and taper). A powder shape will flap a bit on hardpack, there is no getting around that, but might enable you to "unlock" some better technique in powder (e.g., it is hard to progress when your tips dive into the snow... but with some tip rocker this will happen less often and you will get more turns and confidence, and then you will get more time to experiment with front/back balance to avoid tip dive in the first place).

The Enforcer 100 has a fair bit of tip rocker, is a little bit heavier and is also wider than the M6. It has a similar flex pattern has the kendo/M6, so it is not a noodle. It is a precise ski (high torsional stiffness), not as playful as other models. I own an Enforcer 100 and I love it. It is my daily driver. I live on the ice coast, but I try to ski when it is soft. It is also the main ski I bring when I travel.

You can compare all these skis here.

 

[exwanabee]

Thanks AlexisLD. Will plan to demo both the MantraM6 and the Enforcer100. May also try something with more powder shape. The trick will be to demo in powdery conditions, for which I will need to get lucky as I dont live that close to the snow. Nice comparison app!