Thinking of putting Baron's on Line Prophet 100's. Have heard differing reports. Some shop guys say they will stiffen ski and negatively alter performance. Some say stiffening would improve performance. Who is right?

I have Barons on my LP 100's. I've never skied the Prophets with regular alpine bindings, so I can't comment on the difference in feel. However, I LOVE my setup, and it's my go-to ski for everything except boilerplate ice or insanely deep powder. I've got nothing but love for this ski/binding setup. If the Baron stiffened the ski, I certainly have not noticed it adversely affecting any performance.

In my experience, Prophet skis have a pretty snappy flex (wood + metal construction) and turn super quick for their width thanks to a shorter turn radius (~17m). Thanks to my gig here at Backcountry.com, I have the unique opportunity to ski dozens of ski/binding combination's each year and I honestly cannot tell the difference in a ski's flex when comparing one binding to another. Maybe it's me? If the Baron does in fact increase stiffness of a ski, I see it as a good thing. Stiffer equals better edge hold which can be clutch on wind scoured, icy snow above no-nonsense terrain. The mellow early rise nose on your Prophet ensures fun pow performance, stiff ski or not. I do notice the weight of a demo vs retail vs touring binding as well as the lift provided by each. Higher lift equals more leverage over your edges which in turn creates a quicker turning ski. While your Baron's will sit lower on the ski compared to a Fritschi, you still get a ~cm+ of lift greater than a retail binding. Your Prophets with Barons will turn super quick, hold an edge on anything, stay put on your boots, and absolutely smoke couloirs, glades, and variable snow. The usual Baron downsides remain their weight and the rather clumsy transition to/from ski/tour mode. For the record I'm 5'9", 140lbs (w/o all my ski and tour stuff), and have a Baron + hand-me-down Armada JJ 175cm slackcountry setup. Looking to upgrade the ski to something w/o a rocker tail. Enjoy your new kit!