I am an expert skier from the Northeast so I ski VT, NH and ME. I get out west maybe once a year and I like to bring my own setup rather than rent. That said, are the Goats a suitable "northeast ski"? I currently ski groomers on 184cm Volkl G20s from '00 and powder on Dynastar Sultans. Is it safe to say I could narrow down to a 1-ski quiver with the Goats?

I think Lars said it rather succinctly. If you are an expert skier and can drive a ski, you will have no trouble at all carving up the entire mountain like you're on a couple Ginsus. Not so hot in the bumps at Cannon, but they were all ice anyway. 194cm, Barons center mount. Sharp edges.

I would not recommend this as an East coast ski. It handles soft snow (not packed powder) and powder quite well. However, this ski was not made for the typical East coast condition: hard-packed or groomed man-made snow. In the later case, this ski is quite skittish and suffers in overall performance versus narrower and more traditionally cambered skis. The advert says it is a ski that handles groomers. 'Handles' being the operative word. They should really say it 'survives' hard packed conditions. If you ask a ski shop in the East for a good quiver-of-one East coast ski, I'm sure that this baby won't be on the list. Who wrote the ad-copy? I can't believe they said this: "yet allows for phenomenal edge-to-edge contact on the hard pack." ... WRONG. It merely 'survives' in that condition. "Carbon-reinforced, full wood core provides excellent stability and creates a very lively ski." It is stable, albeit in soft snow only. Moreso, it is a damp forgiving ski. It is a smooth-flexing soft turning ski that handles powder and churned up fresh snow quite well. In other words, get another ski, like a Rossignol Experience 88 (98 would serve as a dual East-West quiver of one ski) or a Mantra (OK for East, better for West), or the Line Prophet 90. They would all be better choices.

Yup. Volkls "ELP" fully rockered design is pretty amazing. I ski Kuros and have demoed Gotamas a couple times - to me they are more stable at speed than traditional camber skis with big sidecut, because the tips are up off the snow and don't want to dart around, but rolled on edge hold a carve well. They're fine on hardpack, but will take a few runs to get used to. Depending on your height, weight, and skill, the length can have a big impact on how they ski. i'm 6'3", 195, and preferred the ~195 Gotama overall, but the next size down (186?) was better in bumps, with it's slightly tighter turn radius.

Completely agree with above. Also ski VT. I was in a similar situation winter of 2010...and was torn between Goats and Mantras. I went with the Goats and have been extremely pleased with them. Awesome when I've been out west (Salt Lake), and very good here as well. Granted they're not great when it is hardpack/ice or bumps, but they are great in just about everything else. I think you'd be very happy with this choice

In my opinion yes. This is obviously a great powder ski, and will excel there. But, it became my everyday ski (albeit in Utah) because I found it so versatile. However, consider the following: You can carve on this ski, so long as the terrain is moderate and the snow is not absolutely rock hard. Once you get on a steep terrain, the ski will be skiddy, manageable, but don't expect to be laying arcs down the steeper parts of Liftline at Stowe. Of course, there has to be a trade-off somewhere. Keep the G20s for the "dry" spells, you won't get much for them anyway. I grew up in the Northeast, and skied there for many years - so, I know what you are up against, but think you will ultimately be happy with this choice.