G3 el Hombre Fat Ski - 2009 BCS

These are good, but gone. I'd give the G3 Zen Oxide a run. Super quick, but the weight won't crush you.

Neale-for your size/style I'd go with the 185 if you can find any. Good luck & keep 'em pointed!

reverse camber is the worst idea ever for BC rideing.......your ski should not be a pain to lug up hill with u. the G3 el Hombre is fun....soft tip and a big shovle make it super in everything. i mount this ski with dunafit and drop big stuff always

The Zealot is not a playful ski at all. Try something with a lot of flex, a lot of width, and early rise or reverse camber. There's a lot out there, but playful is pretty much synonymous with reverse camber these days, so look at the K2 ObSethed, the Armada JJ, the Surface Live Life, or something like that. The Verdict and the El Hombre are more traditional skis for linking up quick, snappy turns, and laying out pretty conservative lines. Rocker is what you want. For backcountry, you'd be happy with some Voile Drifters.
Good luck.

Hey Neale, these would make an outstanding all-day, every-day ski for resort skiing. They are light for touring but are not flimsy at all and excel at the kind of diverse terrain and conditions that you describe. We here in Utah see them all the time up at Alta and Snowbird. Buy them up and have a great winter.

For inbounds skiing the Hombres are as close as I've found to one tele ski for all conditions. Just fine on the groomed, great in powder, blast through chopped-up stuff. They are great in the backcountry too, but heavy. You are light enough that the Zen Oxides (same sidecut but lighter core) might work just as well inbounds, while saving a pound or so in the backcountry. I'm 6-4, 205, and ski the 192 Hombres (obviously, heaviest of all), and I really notice the Hombres' weight when climbing for BC turns.

I second John Duke's notes. The only drawback may be mach 5 turns on the groomed, but it doesn't sound like that is what you are looking for.
Enjoy!

Not at all. With the dims this ski boasts, it would make an excellent one ski quiver. The tip may be slightly soft for chunder, and beat up snow, but I would definitely consider this ski.

if you go with the 185 you will be super stoked, i think there is a place for a traditional camber and this is the ski for you, Paul Parker did a great job with this one!

Wow! What a question! I don't want to say "vague," but perhaps "broad" would more aptly describe your inquiry, and subsequent answer. We need to know your style of skiing, what terrain, what kind of weather... Tell us about yourself: What do you WANT your ski to do? There are so many styles of skis available now, that you can practically have a custom pair that's already on the market. Give as much detail as possible.
A 185 would definitely be a more adequate ski length for a person of your build. You will able to negotiate any terrain easily enough, and make tight turns when you need to.
If you aren't able to demo skis, see if you can't check out other resources and reviews, or, borrow some folks equipment. Most people are pretty excited and willing to show off their gear, and if you're nice, they'll let you take a run to share the stoke. Otherwise, backcountry.com is THE place to shop. You won't find a better (lifetime) satisfaction guarantee anywhere else. If you don't like the ski, then return it for something different.
Also, merely for expressing my own opinion and sharing my stoke, I have to encourage you (and everyone else) to buy a ski with rocker or early rise. Right now, I don't want to ski anything with traditional camber.

All the reviews and specs I have found for the El Hobre, or the Xenoxide, say that the turn radius is "skier dependent." This is over my head, but I believe it is similar to how Line skis claim that they have "5 different turn radius' in one." I don't think it's rocket science, but I don't understand the physics and geometry to make that work. To answer your question in as much detail as I could gather, without doing a flex test and algebra, I'd say "medium." Sorry I can't help more than that. Good question, though!

I thought that the Hombre was pretty similar to the Team 100's when I skied them. I'd choose the Karhu's over the G3's any day for the type of skiing you're talking about. I disagree with ahomichael about Rossignols; the Ravyns are perfect for fresh, corn, mank, and jumps. G3's are too tenacious and lively for me. I prefer a ski that doesn't get deflected. They are just too light for how stiff they are. I thought the Hombres were too stiff and unresponsive for crud-blasting and variable conditions.
Volkl Gotamas or Katanas would be a good choice, or some Scott P4s.

I have been telemarking for close to 30 years (gulp) and taught skiing for 5 seasons here and there. I have never found a Rossignol ski that I really liked-they always seem too flat...like K2's as well, I think they're just big ol' mass produced skis for the most prat. I am pretty picky, though.
I own a pair of the asymmetrical G3 Rapid Transits, my last ski before this was the asymmetrical G3 Tickets; I am a huge fan: they are well made, usually quite lively, and more than anything, they ski like a ski should. The Hombres are a big ski, though, I am not so sure you will get them to be lively in the bumps unless you get them relatively short for your size (which I did on purpose with my Rapid Transits-I got them in 171, mostly for bumps and trees-but in reality I probably should have gotten the 176!)

G3: The more you can give them the more they give back. Not so with Rossy or K2 (even tho you are not asking about K2's.) Were I to buy another G3 ski, it would be the Hombres to round out my quiver.
I have heard decent things about the Sick Bird, but I just tend to think G3, being a much smaller company, makes a better, more dedicated, and durable ski...

Ron ,
the skis have not changed from last year you will have lots of Fun with the Hombre. If your Looking to loose some weight choose the Zen Oxide same ski with a different core to make it lighter.

Hey Ron, not sure if they changed the ski from last year, but the 09s were a hell of a lot of fun. They are not "soft and playful" per se, and needed some speed to come to life, but if you are comfortable making fast tele turns, they are a great choice. I'd also check out the Line Prophet 100s.