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Hart Fuelie All-Mountain Skis 2008-2009

PhilPug (Eastern Hart Rep) started a thread at EpicSki.com about the Fuelie Scarab:
http://forums.epicski.com/showthread.php?t=65987

By: e.edelstein  Posted: Friday, January 25, 2008 12:48:09 PM

Here is a video review of the 09 Fuelie Scarab

www.youtube.com/watch

By: Philpug  Posted: Wednesday, January 30, 2008 8:25:20 PM

Of the fleet skied yesterday, by far the standout was the Fuelie Boss. This ski came in a 195cm size, yet was just a smooth as butter. Calm & huggin the snow, the Boss had a smooth ride that just wanted to make super G turns out of any terrain. Rolled up on edge nicely, carved into the snow well & gently released each & every turn. Suprising for such a large/long ski. Kinda like a matured Dynastar Legend Pro. This was especialy impressive since every single tester ageed that the mounting point on the ski should be moved up ~3-4 cm. Boss handled the loose pow & crud with ease. Never flinched at speed & turned smoothly. Graphics were on par w/ Stockli quality & the flex was just perfect!

This ski has potential to be a classic reference for big ski performance.

By: iriponsnow  Posted: Friday, February 15, 2008 5:32:35 PM

Hart Fuelie Boss
(121-91-111) 24.5m radius @ 195cm
2008-2009


[click for larger picture]

Manufacturer Info:

Hart Ski Corporation
641 E. Lake Street, Suite 225
Wayzata, MN 55391
Tel. (952) 476-7849
Fax (952) 476-7845
http://www.hartskis.com

Suggested Retail Price (MSRP):

$1,049

Usage Class:

Big mountain

Your Rating (with comments): (1="get me off these things"->10="I have to own a pair")

8+ (advanced skiers only) - NOTE: the bindings were mounted too far back, so an exact score was hard to come up with....but I got a good feel for this ski in a bunch of different surfaces....except deep powder.

Summary:

Big ski (any size you want as long as it's 195cm) with great manners and performance for lots of snow conditions. Mounted too far back (everyone's opinion at the Sugarbush test day), so I got "Bossed-around" on them in the New England terrain (especially in the bumps under the liftline - duh), but it made really good turn shapes without requiring a he-man effort to get it hooked-up.  Really smooth ride in the wide-open terrain with just a hint of slipperyness on the really hard boilerplate sections (could have been due to the bad mount position).  Excellent crud-buster in the chopped up crust plates and mixed pow-granular junk (sorry Philpug, I took them onto some "lesser travelled" trails when no one was looking). The faster you went, the better and easier they rode.  Don't get in the back seat.  Not for the faint-of-heart skiers, but definitely has a refined flex and vibration control to inspire confidence ast speed.  This ski could be really nice in the cut up shin-to-thigh deep powder and junk without overpowering the skier. 

Technical Ski Data:

Wood core, sandwich construction. Rubber dampening layer, melamine sidewalls, graphite bases, aluminum tip and tail components.  Hand made in small batches.

Pre-Skiing Impression:

Very nice quality, excellent finish, textured "no scuff" matte topsheet. Nicely shaped flex pattern from tip through the tail, with a hint of "oomph" in the tail as you flexed past a few cm. Big ski without a radical sidecut...makes you want to find some fresh snow. I liked the graphics.  "BOSS" is the perfect name for it.

Test Conditions:

Cold, dry packed powder conditions, perfect combination of packed groomers and some cut-up fresh stuff (only a few inches) on the side of some trails. Some broken-up crust plate garbage and granular junk and hardpack on some trails.

Test Results:

Skating to the lift made it immediately apparent there was WAY too much ski out front of my boots and WAY too little behind me with the bindings mounted as they were.  Swing weight was instantly skewed like a teeter-totter with 5 feet on one side of the pivot and 3 feet on the other...but....maybe an little stance adjustment could fix that....Anyway...The first impression was that I had some long smoothies under me. This is an easy fix.

Excellent response to pressure once you got up to about 20-30mph. Kinda balky in the tight New England bumpy trails, but that's not what these skis are for.  Surprisingly turnable at moderate speeds, and quickly responsive at higher speeds.  Very controlled ride across transitions over multiple surfaces, with a nice blend of power and dampening in the big turns with maintained pressure.  Not really a GS-type feel...more like a semi-fat big mountain ski with some GS genes lying under the surface to give it the abilty to lay down serious arcs. Very well behaved and predictable and stable as a BMW 7 series. Nothing deflects this ski very much.  This could be an excellent western US ski for all kinds of terrain except the bumps and race courses.  I wish they had more sizes.  Speedy bases. Overall, a sweet ride with the potential to please many skiers if they move the mount point up a bit.  Fun bruiser cruiser with great manners. This could be my big ski and do the job really well I think.

Analogies: (this ski is like...)

BMW 7 series car.  Not so great at weaving in and out of traffic in Manhattan, but when you get it out into the countryside...Get out of the way...the Boss is coming!

After Skiing These, I Want To...

Try them remounted at Whistler-Blackcomb for a week.

Self-Description of Skiing Style, Ability, Experience, Preferences (be honest):

Expert groomed-surface carver, "old-style" race inspired, "foot steerer" with fairly sensitive edging feel. Loves to hold long arcs with lots of pressure on the downhill ski (you know the type),  but also loves the feel of both skis on-edge leaving tiny railroad track edge tracks. Not an instructor, but 10 year coach for youth race team in New England (bulletproof is the norm).

 

By: e.edelstein  Posted: Monday, February 25, 2008 7:02:51 PM

Hart Fuelie Scarab
(120-86-110) 11.7m radius @ 167cm
(120-86-110) 15m radius @ 176cm
2008-2009


[click for larger picture]

Manufacturer Info:

Hart Ski Corporation
641 E. Lake Street, Suite 225
Wayzata, MN 55391
(952) 476-7849
Fax (952) 476-7845
http://www.hartskis.com

Suggested Retail Price (MSRP):

$1,049

Usage Class:

All Mountain "mid-fat"

Your Rating (with comments): (1="get me off these things"->10="I have to own a pair")

8+/9 (2 inches+ snow depth)
7 (hardpack)

Summary:

Easy-handling, smooth ride all-mountain ski that comes alive with great turns of all sizes with very little effort.  Big fun factor when skied "in" snow instead of "on" snow. Displays typical mid-fat tendency to have a weaker grip on hardpack and ice unless the edge angle and turn radius is "just right", but makes up for it as soon as the snow gets deep enough to cover your bindings.  You could ski this all day in snowy conditions without overworking yourself. If you typically have fresh snow on a regular basis and are looking for an all-terrain ski...definitely try the Fuelie Scarab. You might love the way it handles.  If you typically ski the packed groomers or travel in icy places...another model might be better for the money.

Technical Ski Data:

Wood core, sandwich construction. Rubber dampening layer, melamine sidewalls, graphite bases, aluminum tip and tail components.  Hand made in small batches.

Pre-Skiing Impression:

Very nice quality, excellent finish, textured "no scuff" matte topsheet. Nicely shaped flex pattern from tip through the tail, more "roundish" feel and relatively damp with compliant shovel.  No high-tension areas in the flex by hand. Felt like it would be freindly.

Test Conditions:

Cold, dry packed powder conditions, perfect combination of packed groomers and some cut-up fresh stuff (only a few inches) on the side of some trails. Some broken-up crust plate garbage and granular junk and hardpack on some trails.

Test Results:

On the Vermont packed powder/groomed runs, the ski was smooth and made round turns without much input effort, but felt like many mid-fat all-mountain skis in the lack of a really strong carving grip. It carved, but did not really "set" its edge strongly, choosing to move into a comfortable smear when presure was released, rather than pulling itself into the final part of the turn.  Very smooth and damp across different surfaces and very well behaved...just lacked a vise-grip hold on the firmer packed groomers.  Perfectly fine though for most groomed runs, just not exciting. Icy, steeper trails revealed another mid-fat tendency for slippage if the edge angle wasn't just right.  I don't expect an 86mm waist ski to really hold tightly on cue-ball surfaces anyway...so no surprise there.

Powdery trails or snow more than 2 inches deep was another story.  The Scarab was a really, really fun and easy handling ride in the smooth or cut-up snowy surfaces.  Great tip response and turn adjustability when dancing through the snow the ski could sink into a little bit.  It really came alive when the snow was up and over the bindings so the shovel could feed the rest of the ski into the turns.  I had a blast hugging the tight edges of the trails where no one had gotten into the snow yet.  Surprisingly agile ski for 86mm as long as the ski had something to float into to get its flex working.  It was almost like the snow had to flex the ski, not the skier, to get the Scarab to light up.  Really fun softer-surface ski and definitely a choice for all-mountain terrain not dominated by packed groomers or hardpack.  Very easy to ski, with a great ride in the snow. Good pick for western U.S. all-mountain ski or Eastern ski when there is something to ski "IN" instead of "ON". Not a trace of nervous feel at speed, yet responsive in the tighter, slower terrain.

Analogies: (this ski is like...)

Friendly, obedient, really fun black labrador dog playing all day in the water when the snow makes no noise underfoot, slightly apprehensive golden retriever on the noisy surfaces.

After Skiing These, I Want To...

Try them during and after a 6-12 inch storm.

Self-Description of Skiing Style, Ability, Experience, Preferences :

Expert groomed-surface carver, "old-style" race inspired, "foot steerer" with fairly sensitive edging feel. Loves to hold long arcs with lots of pressure on the downhill ski (you know the type),  but also loves the feel of both skis on-edge leaving tiny railroad track edge tracks. Not an instructor, but 10 year coach for youth race team in New England (bulletproof is the norm).

 

By: e.edelstein  Posted: Tuesday, February 26, 2008 7:17:47 AM

Hart Fuelie Boss 2008-2009

First Impression:

Those are mine!  Stood out from the rack of skis, not just size, but graphics.  Nice topsheet.

Opinions/Experience:

Mounted too far back. 

This ski loves speed, loves crud.

Analogies:

SuperSalmon

SuperBro

Blossom Canalone

After Skiing These, I Want To...

Hit La Grave, down some BIG, OPEN, DEEP bowl.  Then fly down Les Triffides, maybe cruise over to Pan de Rideau.  Le Pas de Chevre, Le Pas de Chevre!

Things you would change about this ski:

Rebalance.  Deeper Sidecut.  Shorter Radius, but keep big dimensions.  Lengths.

Ummm "Fuelie"... really?  "Boss" is perfect, couldn't we just leave it at that?

Short Answer When Someone Asks,"What did you think of this ski?"

Get out of my way!

Advice to people considering this ski:

Big Mountain

By: Speed  Posted: Tuesday, February 26, 2008 7:32:57 AM

Hart Fuelie Scarab
(120-86-110) 15m radius @ 176cm 2008-2009

Pre-Skiing Impression:

Great topsheets, will they hold up to European stomp-on-your-skis lift lines?

Best graphics in, ridiculously titled, "Fuelie" line.

Test Results:

Skis short, it's a twintip.  Heading through previously tracked crud frontside and backside was NICE!  This ski really liked the ungroomed.

Analogies: (this ski is like a...)

Troublemaker, hate to use another ski analogy, but it just kept feeling like a Troublemaker.

Things You Like Abouit This Ski:

Stability.  Backside/Switch in crud was sweet.

Things you don't like about this ski:

I'd make it longer.

After Skiing These, I Want To...

"IDEA"

Short Answer When Someone Asks,"What did you think of this ski?"

Switch with speed.

Advice to people considering this ski:

All Mountain Jib.

By: Speed  Posted: Tuesday, February 26, 2008 8:11:16 AM

 

Hart Stage 1 (124-77-110) 2008-2009

Pre-Skiing Impression:

Smaller Scarab

Test Results:

Did not ski as expected.  Different animal than the Scarab. 

Wants to turn.  Nice, easy initiation.

Analogies: (this ski is like a...)

Squirrel.

Things You Like About This Ski:

Blasted through junk

Things you don't like about this ski:

There are plenty of available sizes.  Great waist size.  Saw other testers holding a line really well with this ski.

Nothing to change, except maybe that "Fuelie" thing.  How about an "Attack" line?  There is a great name for a line of skis.

After Skiing These, I Want To...

Find some Sierra Cement.

Short Answer When Someone Asks,"What did you think of this ski?"

Turny, but not radically turny.

Advice to people considering this ski:

Hit a plateau in intermediate skiing?  Break it with this.

By: Speed  Posted: Tuesday, February 26, 2008 8:34:25 AM

Hart Fuelie Stage 1
(124-77-110)

11.7m radius @ 162cm
13m radius @ 170cm
14.5m radius @ 180cm

2008-2009


[click for larger picture]

Manufacturer Info:

Hart Ski Corporation
641 E. Lake Street, Suite 225
Wayzata, MN 55391
Tel.
(952) 476-7849
Fax (952) 476-7845
http://www.hartskis.com

Suggested Retail Price (MSRP):

$1,049

Usage Class:

All mountain

Your Rating (with comments): (1="get me off these things"->10="I have to own a pair")

9 - Frontside groomers
8 - Softer surfaces

Summary:

Really fun and easy-to-handle frontside groomer sportster with pretty darn good manners in softer stuff considering its 77mm waist.  Great variety of turns, both short and long, with quick handling tempered by nice dampening and never, every squirrely.  Excellent eastern frontside ski. Not a racer, but a high-performing ski easily handled by intermediates looking to improve their game, or advanced-to-expert skiers looking for a groomer cutter.

Technical Ski Data:

Wood core, sandwich construction. Rubber dampening layer, melamine sidewalls, graphite bases, aluminum tip and tail components.  Hand made in small batches.

Pre-Skiing Impression:

Very nice quality, excellent finish, textured "no scuff" matte topsheet. Nicely shaped flex pattern from tip through the tail, with definite spunk underneath...but not much vibration if you "gong" the ski and feel its reverb between your fingers...feels like it just might be quick and fun.  Pretty good shade of blue too.

Test Conditions:

Cold, dry packed powder conditions, perfect combination of packed groomers and some cut-up fresh stuff (only a few inches) on the side of some trails. Some broken-up crust plate garbage and granular junk and hardpack on some trails.

Test Results:

This ski immediately told me it was easy to turn, but willing to hold an arc with a little or a bunch of pressure. Perfectly quick and fast underfoot if told to do so, but quiet and obediently grippy on the faster turns.  Loved the hardpack and moderately softer surfaces...sank a bit (77mm waist) in the soft stuff...but ripped off all kinds of turns of different radii.  Easy to take off the side of the trails...just didn't float like a fatter ski...but never dived...just kinda "sank" a bit underfoot.  Very responsive and compliant in the bumps and junk. Not a slalom ski or race-bred ski...more like a narrow-waisted all mountain ski with great grip.  Excellent Eastern U.S. ski I think.  Never tiring. Definitely a good choice and one of my favorites of the new Hart lineup.

Analogies: (this ski is like...)

A semi-retired Frisbee dog....ready to do the quick turns and rowdy fun on demand, and keep up with the younger dogs without effort, but happy to cruise along easily with its head out the window enjoying the sights when you are.

After Skiing These, I Want To...

Borrow a pair for....uhm...ahh....a season?

Self-Description of Skiing Style, Ability, Experience, Preferences (be honest):

Expert groomed-surface carver, "old-style" race inspired, "foot steerer" with fairly sensitive edging feel. Loves to hold long arcs with lots of pressure on the downhill ski (you know the type),  but also loves the feel of both skis on-edge leaving tiny railroad track edge tracks. Not an instructor, but 10 year coach for youth race team in New England (bulletproof is the norm).

 

By: e.edelstein  Posted: Friday, February 29, 2008 2:59:20 PM

Scarab:

 Nice ski, solid construction & a fair blend of midfat waist & just enough sidecut.  I found this similar to the "public enemy", yet with a touch more beef for stiffness.  I skied this one last & was suffering from a bum knee that day, so I really was not pushing too hard.  Still the ski handled bumps w/ confidence & was able to mash though end of the day slop b/w hitting gaps of scrapped off ice.

 My only worry w/ this ski is that it really was not an earth shattering design.  I question how well retailers will be able to push yet anther mid fat.  Most skis in this size/width are really "value" skis.  I was expecting a little more from Hart on this one.

By: iriponsnow  Posted: Saturday, June 14, 2008 4:29:06 PM

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