Score!!!

[DangerBoy]

For the last while I've been looking for a deal on a wide-body slalom ski for guests at my cabin to use. I think we all know the drill of how you have guests who can drop a ski to get up on one but have a lot of trouble getting out of the water on one if they fall. I bought a deep-vee rope this off-season to try out but I also wanted to buy a wide-body ski - if I could find one at a cheap price. I had set my budget limit at about $250 CAD (~$190 USD) with bindings but I was really hoping that I might just luck out and find something for a fair bit less than that like $200 or a bit less. As for the bindings, I was hoping to get something that fits a very wide range of sizes like the Connelly Novas which fit Men's 5-11.

 

Over the last few months I've done multiple Internet searches of places in Canada and the US and SIA, etc, but came up empty handed. That's not surprising given my low budget and requirement for a front binding with a wide size range.

 

Today, I was searching again and decided that I should look for a deal on a Connelly Shortline with a Swerve binding + RTP package. I think they only make it in 67" and the Connelly size chart says it works for "most weights" and the Swerve Bindings are "One size fits most". Here's a link to a US on-line retailer that's got that package on sale:

 

https://www.h2oproshop.com/products/connelly-shortline

 

In Canada, we have a very popular department/hardware store called Canadian Tire, affectionately also referred to as Crappy Tire. They are not known to carry high end sporting goods but they do sell stuff that's okay quality and that's all I'm looking for with this ski. They carry that package for $270 CAD regular price which is very close to my budget limit. None of the stores in my city currently have one in stock. Today, however, I decided to look elsewhere in the province and low and behold I found one in the other major city of the province (Edmonton). They had just one in stock and had it on an In-store clearance for the ridiculously low price of............................................. -wait for it....................................... $69.95 - 75% off!!!! That's ~$53 USD!! :p

 

Of course I jumped on it and bought it the minute I saw it. I have a niece and a nephew in Edmonton who can pick it up for me and hold onto it until the next time I'm up there.

 

All I can say is persistance does pay off and it's better to be lucky than good. SCORE!!! :D

[Andre]

Good deal!

Congrats for persisting!

[DangerBoy]

So here's the ending to this story. When I finally got the ski into my hands I discovered that what I got was not exactly as was advertised. What they had advertised was a 2018 Connelly Shortline with Connelly Swerve one size fits all bindings. What I got was a 2015 Connelly Shortline with Connelly Front Adjustable Velcro bindings Size L/XL which fits only Mens size 9-14. Not exactly ideal for people with smaller feet. I was a little disappointed but how disappointed can you really be considering the paltry price I paid for them? Not much but I really wanted to have more size range on the bindings so just about any guest could use the ski.

 

I tried to see if the chain store I bought the ski from could find another one of the newer vintage units in one of their stores and swap it for the one I got. They agreed that I didn't get what their web page led me to believe I was getting but the item was discontinued and there were no more left in any of their stores so they couldn't help me except to offer a refund if I wanted to return the ski. I didn't want to do that.

 

I ended up instead calling Connelly Skis and explained the situration to them and asked if they had a cheap used or demo or factory second Swerve front binding kicking around or, alternatively, if it was possible to buy a S/M front toe piece for the bindings my ski came with so I could then just swap the toepieces out to suit the foot of whomever was using the ski. Swap in one toepiece and it's a S/M; swap in the other and presto! L/XL.

 

Honestly, the people at Connelly were so nice and helpful! :) They put me through to a binding specialist and after some discussion we decided the best way to go was for me to get a S/M toepiece for the binding already on the ski. That way I'd be able to cover the whole size spectrum and get a better fit for people at both ends of the spectrum vs. the Swerve binding. The problem was, they don't sell just the toepiece part; they only sell the complete binding. So, they gave me the entire binding which includes the healpiece (so now I'll have a spare one) pus the toepiece complete with it's own velcro straps for a mere $20 USD and a small amount for shipping to get it to my friend's PO box in Montana. What a deal!

 

I really have to give a shout-out to the nice folks at Connelly. I bought the ski at a crazy discount from a national department store so they (Connelly) really didn't owe me anything but they bent over backwards to help me and make sure I was happy with my Connelly product. If that weren't enough already, they also gave me a fantastic deal on the parts I needed. Thanks Connelly!!! <3

[DavidN]

Yeah, Connelly is a pleasure to deal with!

@CollinSpradlin and @The_Krista helped me out a couple times now, can’t thank them enough!

[CollinSpradlin]

We have a soft flex pattern in our hearts for Ballers. <3