by François » Sat Sep 26, 2009 6:03 am
The 165 SS should be fine PROVIDED you use it for what it's intended purpose is, that is, making short radius turns. Being softer will make the SS better in bumps, I say go for it (provided).
I weigh about 165-170 and have had a 13-m 165 cm FISCHER WC SC as my main ski for the past little while, but I did demo the SS in a very short length (one fifty something) along with quite a few other skis in a wide range of lengths over the past few years. From my demo I could tell that it would be great in 165; it was very good at the shorter length.
The problem is that although you certainly can use a 13-m ski at high speeds and long radius turns, longer radius skis just work so much better at that game. I've got a couple of longer skis that excel at higher speeds and longer radius turns, and the 13-m ski might seem good if you haven't tried the longer radius skis at speed, but it really just doesn't compare.
It's not just a preference thing; it's a safety concern. The short radius ski can easily bite you. They were designed to be flexible enough to bend into a tight turn at low speeds and forces. Subjecting them to high forces that go along with high speeds can, if they should manage to grip and not slip in a high-speed long-radius turn (immediately dialing up a much shorter turn) they will fold up and either break your leg or eject you.
Final Answer: Go for the 165 SS, and ski it the way it was meant to be skied. Bring along a pair of GS skis too, for when you want to ski fast.