Than's Nano One Diary

[Than_Bogan]

@estrom Ski it one time and I think you'll know why they put it on the market :).

[Horton]

For the last darn time. They think it looks cool. Most skis hide the uni carbon. Goode is showing it. I could give a crap how it looks if it skis good and it does.

[Than_Bogan]

I got $5 says that's not the Last Darn Time...

[skinut]

You guys remind me of my wife. Her opinion on how well something works is based on whether or not it matches her outfit and is pretty ;) I can just see the next forum topic, should gloves, life vest, and ski all match? Is it a skiing faux pas if your vest and gloves don't have your ski logo on them?

[Horton]

Well if you ski on HO and you have the little white sticker on the tip that shows the ski size => you are a dork.

[rayn]

@than Pull you anytime you want

[skinut]

@Horton-Very true.

[estrom]

Someone send me one and I'll gladly ski on it! I don't care how it looks. My comment was strictly from a business perspective. If I've got a great product, I can sell 'x' number of them. If I've got the same great product that looks a lot better, I can probably sell more than 'x'.

 

[estrom]

@Horton, I agree with you that they think it looks cool. I guess they're going for the uniqueness factor. They may want to rethink that though if guys who ski as much as you all do are expressing concerns about it when they see it for the first time.

[Than_Bogan]

Also re-re-repeating, but my concerns stemmed entirely from fear that it was broken. Once people know what to expect, it's a non-issue. In all honesty, I don't think they'd sell 1 more of these if it were prettier. If you're layin' down $2k for a ski, you have exactly one expectation: buoys.

 

@rayn Thanks, but I really need some rest. I am too fragile for that many -38s... :) Plus Massage Beating on Tuesday night is another reason I should take it a little easy on Wed.

[rayn]

From a drivers perspective, I did not even feel @than behind the boat until he started skiing 38 and then not even so much. All the passes felt silky smooth. 38 is his new 35 and just has to trust it.

[Than_Bogan]

Trust is hard. That purple line has stabbed me in the back so many times...

 

But Ray speaks the truth. Although a few minor adjustments may help me, mostly now I just need to believe!

[jimbrake]

@Than Bogan - recommendation: rethink writing things like "massage beating" on a public forum. Just sayin'. So is that what you mean by "a few minor adjustments"?

[Klundell]

I think I'm starting to get the N1 dialed. Ran 38 three times in a row today and 4x's in two sets. I don't think I've ever done that. Feeling good!

[Chef23]

I saw the N1 today and it looks much better in person than it does in the pictures. In the picture it looked like there was a ripple in the top skin and that is not the case at all. The ski is smooth on the top and you can see the texture in the material. The pictures are a little misleading unless the skis in the pictures look worse than the skis I saw.

 

The 65.25 ski looks awful small for someone that weighs around 200.

[Horton]

@Chef23 read my thread

 

http://www.ballofspray.com/forum#/discussion/6130/my-trip-to-the-goode-factory-to-see-the-nano-one

 

I hope I cleared up the one size fits all idea.

 

[Than_Bogan]

DIARY ENTRY

 

Well, that didn't work.

 

I did something slightly foolish, closing the entire gap between my feet by moving the rear boot forward 1/2". Although that's a very big move, it's worth noting I have tried that on my 9900 and found it "OK but not really better."

 

On the Nano One, this move was closer to "awful." My offside was completely messed up by it: sometimes turning too slowly, sometimes not finishing at the proper angle, and sometimes buckling me over with all my weight on the front of the ski.

 

I was unable to run -35 on 3 tries, which represents a huge step backward in score. I essentially lost a full pass.

 

That said, this move did make my on-side turn a little slower and under control. Probably too much slower, actually.

 

Interesting. While the Nano One doesn't seem very sensitive to wing angle, it seems more sensitive to boot placement than my previous skis. This may be why Dave keeps talking about boot position whenever I speak with him!

 

Given all that, it seems possible that a smaller move of the rear boot might be able to bring some control to my on-side turn without much impact on the off-side. Will try that next.

 

Boy, I am really not one of those guys who enjoys ski tuning. I just wanna get this right and start banging out -38s like I know it can!

[skibug]

@Horton, there is nothing the deliniates "big boy". Is that over 200? 220? 250? How do you know when to try/buy the bigger ski?

[Horton]

That is a question for Dave Goode. 200 is not the limit. 220? maybe.

 

Remember the ski was designed for NIck who is 6'4" and 200-205ish

[bogboy]

Uh, does that mean that I should remove my 69 ho sticker, or leave it on? I think I will leave it on, & keep people guessing... Or maybe not guessing.

[Razorskier1]

@Than -- I hear you! I hate fiddling with a ski. I just want to get on it and start skiing rather than wasting my time trying one thing after another to make it work!

[Than_Bogan]

@Razorskier1 It's almost more annoying that it does work -- or it did before I screwed with it! But it kicks such total ass in almost every category, that it's hard not to chase getting it to the point where it has NO issues and is Just Plain Ridiculous.

 

I'd almost like it better if someone could authoritatively tell me that the ski isn't going to get any better. Then I just get all the cool benefits and adjust my technique to get rid of the minor problems.

 

But what if ... ? :)

[Than_Bogan]

Drat -- the rope I used this morning was about 8" short of actual at -35, so my results are tainted. However, I still think I went too far because the "feel" wasn't good at all on the offside.

[9400]

The dreaded 11.80 meter pass....always throws a wrench into things

[Than_Bogan]

DIARY ENTRY

 

I may have found The Spot.

 

Unfortunately, heavy rain the last day or so resulted in nasty backwash this morning, so my absolute results don't tell much of a story. But I believe I've found the spot where I can get the crazy-automatic off-side that the ski had on my very first pass with it, but gain control of the on-side: Less radical, more consistent, and tighter line.

 

Dave's advice was extremely helpful. He suggested I move the rear boot forward just enough to stop the radical on-side behavior. I did that first, placing it at 16 13/16". (That's just where it ended up with the holes -- I wasn't actually targetting 16ths.) That seemed to work, and unlike my previous radical move, my offside wasn't ruined. But it also wasn't quite the work of art that it had been.

 

For that case, Dave's suggestion was to move the front (yikes this said "rear" for several days -- apologies for any confusion!) boot back. I went back an 1/8" to 28 5/8".

 

With the crazy backwash, and getting tired after a lot of skiing in the last few days, I wasn't able to challenge -38. But at -32 and -35, this sure seemed like what I was looking for: That same off-side as Day One, with a nice smooth on-side. Coach Mike in the boat was giving the "perfect" sign after my -32, and I felt the same way.

 

This setting is between the screw positions on my boot's plate, so I'll move the G10 plate to make it permanent, but that's not a big deal. The net result may be that my rear foot has to go to 16 7/8", but I'm thinking the rear boot placement shouldn't be THAT sensitive, especially with rubber boots.

 

Unless I notice a very specific problem in the future, I am optimistic this is the last tuning I need to do, and from here I can adapt myself to cover any remaining issues.

 

Now I just have to pray for drought! :)

 

CURSE YOU, BACKWASH!

[Than_Bogan]

DIARY ENTRY

 

Phew. Finally put my money where my mouth was and ran -38.

 

That becomes the 6th time in my life that I've completed -38. On my previous skis, I averaged approximately 1 completion per year. So far on this ski I'm at about 1 completion per week.

 

And I have a lot of reason to think more will fall, because frankly this one wasn't that great. But I'm starting to have faith in the ski and not panic and try to overdo things. Being behind and slightly out of control at -38 is no longer that big a deal; just keep doing the usual stuff and it'll work out.

 

I was a little lucky with the backwash because of the wind direction this morning, so while I did run -35 in a pretty strong tail, I can't really say the conditions were much of an issue on the -38.

 

In the first set, I was having some pretty bad tip rise at 1 and sometimes at 3 and 5 as well (off side). I had a sense that this was enitrely of my own doing, and in between sets I realized I was doing a really awful job of keeping the handle. Once I did that "decently," the tip rise completely disappeared and my off side was back to "Wow."

 

I think this boot position is indeed The One. The on-side is very consistent here, too, and with a little more time on the ski I'm sure I'll adjust myself to any minor issues.

 

I suppose I am obligated to mention my -39, but with a strong tailwind and my strength fading fast, I got stood up coming through the gate and then just blew right by 1. I really do think I'm going to learn something about -39 this year, but not today. The ski's not THAT good! :)

 

Something new to mention today is how well this ski can turn if you are super-narrow. I had a buoy or two in that -38 where I didn't build enough speed and width, and I had to swing the ski out just to get around the ball. I've never been on a ski that could handle that like this one -- it somehow just turns and I'm right back onto a tight line. On any previous ski, a move like that at -38 would generally be the last buoy I went around.

 

No ski is gonna totally change who you are as a skier, but I'm pretty darn sure now that this ski is adding buoys.

[jtwhit]

Than you are killing it on the Nano. I watched your last video of you skiing, do you have any new video with you on the Nano to share with you running those 38's? Thanks in advance.

[Than_Bogan]

@jtwhit Not yet. May video soonish. Just to be clear, I've only run one -38 so far. I think I'm gonna run a lot more, but I've been wrong before.

[Than_Bogan]

DIARY ENTRY

 

Just one funny story today. I didn't try any -38s -- it was time for a form/endurance day. But I did run -35 back-to-back. The first one was the "usual" easy pass on this ski. The second one got interesting.

 

I completely lost my balance coming out of 2, and then just barely got the handle. I was hunched way over with no leverage at all (and basically pulling with 1 arm anyhow). I was aiming straight at the 3 ball. No chance to complete the pass, but might as well practice the ski-swing maneuver and get the full 3. The ski arcs out, finds the perfect track, and BAM I'm facing the other way with a tight line.

 

Early at 4...

 

Finished off the pass easily, despite laughing while rounding 5 and 6.

 

Yeah, I've run -35 hundreds of times, but I've never been on a ski that could do THAT.

[Razorskier1]

Sounds like you've found a good ski/skier match. I can do that on my Razor and have many times. For me it allows me to make a mistake (or multiple mistakes) and still run my harder passes. That's what all of us are looking for!

[6balls]

At times I've been able to make up time even at 38 after a sub-par start and finish early, but then other times can't run the pass to save my soul. GRR.

[Than_Bogan]

DIARY ENTRY

 

Ow.

 

If you are looking for an excuse to NOT spend $2k on a new ski, here's the best I can do for you:

 

Since getting on this ski, I have taken 2 rather hard falls. I'm a generally cautious and fairly weak guy, so I doubt I average more than about 1 such fall per season. 2 in the same week seems almost too much to be a coincidence.

 

The closest thing I have to an explanation is that this ski lets me keep going when in the past I would have had to give up. It kinda reminds me of my uncle commenting many years ago that "4 wheel drive allows you to get stuck in a far more remote location."

 

Yesterday's fall was slamming into 5 ball (@ -38, so I don't see that one very much). I thought I was going to run it, but I guess I was narrower than I thought, because the ski stopped dead and slapped me head-first on the water. I actually didn't feel THAT bad at first -- I almost considering taking a shot at -39. But a few hours later a headache came on that hasn't completely gone away even now, and I've experience some mild disorientation and excessive tiredness. I doubt this is at all serious, but I suppose maybe I got a super-mild concussion? In any case, I'm gonna take a few days off.

 

The good news was that this all happened at Jamie's place, so that means I got another chance to climb the mountain and commune with The Guru. Eventually I may try to make a post about "Wrap around the pylon; step in behind."

 

The scary part was a couple of times he said "I think you're understanding this stuff pretty well." I hope that doesn't mean his other students are grasping even less!

[Skoot1123]

@Than - don't know if there is such a thing as a "MILD" concussion. Good call on taking a few days off.

[sunvalleylaw]

@Than, I hesitate to ask, because a 2k ski is not anywhere near my ski budget, but what do you think about the N1 for the 15 off'r that you wrote your leveraged article for (ie a guy like me). I have always been partial to the forgiving feel of Denny Kidder products such as the D3 RCX I am on now. But your talk about huge break throughs has me thinking, just a bit.

[Than_Bogan]

@sunvalleylaw. First of all, my gushing praise relates to about +1 or maybe +2 buoys. You have to realize how significant this is at my stage.

 

At your state, 1 and 2 buoy PBs should be falling left and right as you climb the learning curve. I wouldn't even thinking about throwing $2k at a ski. By the time you need a ski to help you eek out a tiny gain from your plateau, this ski will be obsolete anyhow!

 

If you get a sudden urge to throw down $2k, go to a ski school!

[itch2ski]

Very good advice @Than

[sunvalleylaw]

@Than, ok, that is what I thought. Based on my own thoughts and your advice, I will stick with what I said in the when to buy a new ski thread: if I buy a newer ski, it will be to get the correct size of the RCX I currently have, or maybe grab a lightly used 67" Fusion from someone.

[Razorskier1]

@Than -- sometimes the next step up comes with a few hiccups -- sounds like you hit one! Were the two falls the same type, or just two totally different hard crashes?

[Than_Bogan]

@Razorskier1 Fairly different. The first one I was running -35 really early, but then just barely got fingers on the handle out of 4. Seemed like at that point I should be able to finish it off anyhow, but then right behind the boat my left hand slipped right off the handle, spinning me around and then I hit the back of my head and shoulders against the second wake.

 

Second one was running late, but thought I was still OK, into 5 at -38. Swung the ski out and (apparently) hit the ball hard. I suppose I was lucky that I "only" got face-slapped against the water -- that's the sort that can be an ankle breaker or tear an achilles.

[Than_Bogan]

Headache subsiding today, but I'm still not quite 100% certain about Sunday. Would be a huge bummer to miss my first (and only for this season) tournament on this ski, but ultimately I will protect my head as necessary. That's where the value is.

[Zman]

@Than_Bogan Looking forward to reading your upcoming post about "wrap around the pylon; step in behind".

[Than_Bogan]

Cracked the ski today. Will say more after I talk with Dave G.

[Than_Bogan]

DIARY ENTRY

 

It's official: This is ski is "so good it's dangerous."

 

Three hard falls in 8 days. For me that's literally about how many I used to see in 8 years. And every one of them was caused by a situation that I would never have managed to get to with a previous ski.

 

I am going to have to learn when to give up, because this ski doesn't know how to.

 

I sure think that's a good thing, but I have to admit I'm a little scared right now. I twisted my ankle pretty nicely ejecting out the front, and it's going to be a few days before I'm able to ski again. If I can't stay healthy, it's not going to matter that this ski seems capable of bringing me to new personal bests.

 

The long story:

 

I skied my first tournament with it on Sunday. I suppose the silver lining is that my best round of 2 @ -38 is actually the best score I've ever posted at Dubes Pond (at 34 mph), and that's a site I ski fairly regularly. But I was skiing like a donkey all day -- and I don't mean one of those spry, athletic donkeys. In the first two rounds, I missed -35 due to Extreme Stupidity. That became the first time since I got this ski that I missed any two -35s in a row. Sheesh. Third round I finally got my act together and smoked -35 (as "usual" on this ski). But I flubbed my gate at -38, and thus got out of 1 really late and awkwardly. Screaming into 2, trying to figure out if I'm going to "just take" the 2, and then the ski just comes right around. Holy crap. Guess I'm going for 3!? Big mistake. OTF at near maximum speed.

 

When the boat crew picked me up, they noticed the ski was cracked. It's impossible to know if this happened before or as a result of the fall, but I'm 99% sure I didn't hit anything, and the handle wasn't even close to the ski. Add in the fact that the crack is at the locally thinnest part of the ski and this has stress fracture written all over it.

 

I guess the good news is that I won't be skiing for a few days anyhow, so I have some time to get a new ski and get it set up...

 

What's amazing is that 2 @ -38, a site best, feels like complete crap with this ski. If that had been my worst round of the day, I might have considered it acceptable.

[Than_Bogan]

Spoke with Dave about the crack. He'll be sending me a new ski right away. AWESOME!

 

He seemed pretty confident that the ski broke because of an impact from the top. While it doesn't really matter (see: new ski being sent right away!), I'm almost certain that he is wrong about that. Because of the nature of the fall, there was nothing near the tip. And as I noted above, the crack is at the thinnest point, which is exactly where a material should be expected to fail under a bending stress.

[ral]

Goode skis do not fail, and Goode bindings always release when they should, unless you do something wrong, like putting your ski on the dock or boat platform, or not having the exact correct combination of brand new dual lock for your weight, abilities and skiing style.

[Chef23]

I was in the tower judging when @Than_Bogan fell and I am fairly certain (beyond reasonable doubt) that there was no impact with the ski. Interestingly enough the skier right before Than also broke his ski an older D3 Nomad RC when that ski broke I heard it from the tower. I thought that ski had a handle pop that hit the ski it was certainly that loud and there was a lot of rope snapping back to the boat.

 

I haven't seen a ski break in years although I do have a small sample size and I saw two this weekend.

[Than_Bogan]

Based on a few private comments I have received, I think I should clarify for the non-engineers in the audience:

 

I am not trying to claim any design flaw in the ski. If I thought that was the case, I would simply say so.

 

This was a very hard and rather unusual fall, and I'm simply doing my best to analyze it. I hope it goes without saying that any analysis may be wrong.

 

I do not feel worried that my new Nano One will also break. (I'm maybe just a hair worried that it will break me, though -- I really have to relearn appropriate caution level on this thing! :) )

[Than_Bogan]

I have just learned from Dave that I am THE first and only person to break a Nano One, including the prototypes.

 

Like I told Dave: Mad Skilz, I guess :-).

[Ali]

I saw the fall from the boat and you were lean locked past the second wake heading towards 3, physically impossible for the handle to hit the ski. Huge fall. Great skiing up till then though.

 

Ali

[Than_Bogan]

CRACK EXPLAINED! (Probably.)

 

I got a visit from my dad last night. Oh by the way he has a mechanical engineering degree from MIT. So I asked him what he thought could explain the crack.

 

After some analysis, he pointed to a spot on the bottom toward the tip and said the symptom was consisent with something hitting the ski right there, but he was surprised to find no evidence of an impact. I was just about to suggest that maybe slapping the water could have acted similarly when I suddenly noticed a really obvious (once spotted) ding on the bevel that was almost exactly level with where he was pointing.

 

(Dads are smart...)

 

No clue how none of us saw that before, but I think this now forms a very coherent theory. At some point I hit something in the water, which dinged that bevel and created the impact force necessary to crack the ski. This could have happened before the crash, or could have been the immediate cause of the crash, or could even have happened during the crash.

 

Is it too late to request a reride? :-)