17 comments on “2016-2017 Blizzard Gunsmoke”

  1. Jason,

    One question. I am 6′ 3” and 195 lbs. I will be mounting Rossi FKS 180 bindings to the 14′ Gunsmoke 193’s. I will be riding primarily forward. Any suggestion on where to mount them?

  2. Great review as always,

    Have you had any chance to ski the Peacemaker?

    Interested in this as a one ski quiver for Europe, where it’s hard to justify the width of the Gunsmoke for my 30 days skiing a year.
    Need something that will float in boot deep powder, work well on groomers, deal with bumps, be quick in the trees and stiff enough for chop and crud. Nice if it can handle the park, but not critical. TST, Soul 7 are other possibles.

    Rob

  3. Thanks for the fantastic reviews – enlightening, interesting, informative,… always excellent.

    I’m currently skiing the Cochise 185 as my widest ski (184 Solomon Enduro being the other end), skiing most frequently at Kirkwood. I know you can’t really say, but would you tend to think that a skier’s preference for a soft snow resort ski would be either the Gunsmoke or Cochise? Or, are they sufficiently different that one skier could appreciate both. Basically, I’m wondering if the Gunsmoke is far enough away from my Cochise that I would use both, or if I should go farther away to something like the Bent Chetler for something more playful.

    • Steve,
      While the Gunsmoke still has the distinct feel that Blizzard skis seem to have, it is definitely a different animal than the Cochise. The softer shovel and tail, extra width, and greater degree of rocker make the Gunsmoke a far better option for deep light pow, where the Cochise isn’t really known to excel. For you in the Sierra’s the Cochise probably works really well on fresh days, given your higher density snow. The same physical differences I just mentioned of the Gunsmoke also elicit more playful skiing than the Cochise, yet the ski is still able to carve groomers and negotiate chop very well.

      The Bent Chetler is also an amazing ski, and as you suspected is going to be a much larger step away from the feel of your Cochise. You will not find the Bent Chet as versatile all-around as the Gunsmoke, but if you want to play in soft snow, your mind and body will be the limiting factors of what is possible, not the ski.

  4. I ski A Basin, Keystone, and Vail mostly. I love skiing pallavicina lift at A basin, the trees and bumps at Keystone and the bowls at Vail. I am considering the Gunsmoke in 193 or the Sir Francis Bacon in the 190. I could ski the steeps, trees and bumps pretty well with my 183 Gotomas with no rocker and 103 under foot but had to work hard in fresh snow over 6 inches deep. Will take any suggestions you could send my way. I am 6′ 4″ and 240. I ski with a lot with my 11 year old son and his freeride ripper friends who all ski 40 plus days a year so I need to be able to chase them through tight trees and still coach them in the bumps.

  5. Hey guys, great review!

    So is it safe to say that the information I’ve seen on other sites claiming the 2014 Gunsmoke is “unchanged” from the 2013 is not true? I’m asking because I like the sound of the ski and have a line on a great deal for the 2013 model. Let me know! I’m an East Coast skier who spends about 14 days skiing out West and think these might be my vacation ski.

  6. You guys write some amazing, in-depth, unbiased reviews.

    I’m not sure if you guys have had a chance to ski the new 2014 Rossignol Super 7’s yet, but I was wondering how you would compare the two skis (186 gunsmoke vs. 188 Super 7).

    Any thought or comments would be welcome.

    Thanks,

  7. Hey Jason, great review.

    Whats the “mounting sweetspot” of these skis? And how far back is the recomended line from “True Center”. Im 5’8″ 155 and looking at snagging a pair of the 186’s.

    Thanks again and keep killin it!!

  8. Great review Jason!
    you guys are really doing a amazing job. !!
    How would you rate the Gunsmoke for predominantly East coast woods and powder (Jay)?

    I saw you are from out East, so really value your perspective on tight wood runs and cruddy iced up shoots. We ride 95% backcountry and go out west once in a while, but only get around 25 days out per year..
    I just started skiing more after mainly boarding for the past 12 years, so need to completely upgrade !!! (I am still on gen1 1080s)

    I have tried Sin and Soul 7 and my buddies Gypsy, as I have been used to camber twin tips, and ride pretty aggressive (however I am around 175 pound, but pretty tall) so did not like the Souls much ( the skinnier sins seemed a little quicker, but still not great – not aggressive)

    Any other skis you could recommend for these types of conditions.?

    How about then Völkl Bridge, SFB,s Bibby Pro etc?

    I am gravitating towards a 98-103 underfoot, mainly for quick tight wood runs, but honestly, you have a much better perspective as my knowledge of all the different skiis out there is pretty limited.

    Thanks Gregor.

  9. Great info

    This ski is on my list to replace my original Line Influence 115, I’m looking for a suggestion for this category (112-122mm.)

    Myself: 28 5’10 200lbs I grew up racing so I hard charge everything but looking for something lighter than my influences for touring in deep powder. I have a pair of Guardian 16s waiting to go on whatever I purchase.

    Current quiver
    189 13/14 K2 Shreditor 102/Marker Duke EPF
    186 11/12 Line Influence 115/Look PX14
    189 13/14 K2 Pon2oon/Marker Jester

    Boots
    10/11 Lang RX 130
    13/14 Lang XT 130

    My current list that is open to suggestions

    14/15 Blizzard Bodacious 186/196
    14/15 Blizzard Gunsmoke 186/193
    14/15 Line Pollards Opus 186/192

  10. I bought a pair of 2015 Gunsmokes, my first set of powder skis. I’ve skied for 45 years, and still can hang with the top 10% on the mountain on any given day. I’ve been out for two epic 16+ inch powder days now, and the Gunsmokes float likea champ. But better yet, they are very quick side to side, and very lively without sacrificing stability. As the day progressed from powder to chopped up bumps, this ski allowed me to attack it hard and to handle everything I threw at it- steeps in thigh deep snow, trees, bumps with loads of powder chunks to bust through. Just pure fun. I kept waiting to find a weakness but just didn’t. I wouldn’t ski this every day but for powder and defent top snow these are a blast.

    And after lots of research over mounting points I decided to mount mine (cowboy graphics) on the line and they seem perfect there. Very happy and impressed with what Blizzard has done with this ski!

  11. Jason, I know this is an older review, but I would very much appreciate your feedback to the mounting point. I ski mostly Alta, and I’ve mainly been on Opus’s for the last 2 years at Eric’s choice. I know the Gunsmokes won’t feel quite as quick, but I would like to have them as my daily ski for pow, charging, and jibbing. I bought them used and was able to mount my bindings in the old holes (luckily exact same binding, and sole length), at recommended. I just don’t find them to be as quick as I would like and feel a little weird going switch. I absolutely love my Opus’s, but got the Gunsmokes to be more stable and able to handle chop. I would like to gain the quickness and more center feel, without compromising the advantages of the Gunsmoke’s strengths. Would you recommend moving forward +2 or +3 from recommended (what specifically would you recommend)?
    Thank you very much if you see this and have the time to answer! Love the reviews, no one does it better!

    • Hey James, no matter where you put the bindings on the Gunsmoke they won’t be quite as quick as the Opus. That said, going forward as you suggested will definitely make them easier to swing around and more intuitive switch. As you can read in the review, I rode these at +2cm from recommended and never felt like I had too little ski in front of me. If you are a playful balanced skier I think you’ll be fine at +3, knowing you’re going to lose some drivability when the chop gets deep or the snow is a little upside-down/wind effected. If you just want to improve the agility a touch and keep as much stability in the chop as you can, go for +2. Good luck!

  12. Hi Jason,
    I hope you are well.

    I love my Gunsmokes. Had them now for 6+ seasons but they are on the last leg.

    Is there any ski that comes close to Gunsmokes?

    I am an expert skier, 174cm, 62kg.

    Thank you!
    Michaela

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