Salomon X-Wing Tornado Reviews

Roddy Mackay's review has yet to be rated - Be the first!
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I recently moved back to the NE and was persuaded by a group of old friends to get back into skiing which I hadn't done for about 10 years. Realising my old skis and ski boots were well passed their sell by date I looked on the internet for local outdoor stores. I came across the LD Mountain Centre website, ldmountaincentre.com who are on Dean street in the centre of Newcastle Upon Tyne and decided to check out the store rather than buy online. LD is a full on outdoor store catering for walkers, climbers and mountaineers as well as snowboarding and skiing, apparently Berghaus started here as a brand back in the 1960's. Anyway the guys in the shop were really helpful and friendly pointing me in the right direction and giving excellent advice. The ski boot fitting service was excellent with detailed foot and stance measurements all recorded on a fitting card which is kept in case further adjustments or customisation is required. There was a great range of ski boots from Salomon, Atomic, Nordica and Lange. Suitable models in each brand were clearly explained in terms of specification and performance so that I could make the right choice.

During the boot fitting I was encouraged to spend time in each of the boots which included an outstanding pair of Wigwam Ski Socks as an esential part of the fitting process, there was no hurry and the staff were very patient and genuinely interested in me getting the best possible fit. Unfortunately this gave me the opportunity to look at the great range of ski clothing. As I was also looking to replace most of my well worn kit the staff explained the importance of layering up with base, mid and outer layers and the choices of fabrics available and how they perform. This was really useful in helping me to make informed choices from the wide range of brands and styles. Many of the brands I recognised like Salomon, Spyder and Eider but there was some great looking stuff from Haglofs, Norrona and Arcteryx. I was really impressed with the Icebreaker Merino wool base and mid layers, I've always used synthetic before but these look and feel great.

The store provides a comfort fit guarantee and ski boot proving sessions at Xscape in Castleford. This means you can take the boots home, try them around the house, then have the chance to actually ski in them to make sure the fit is ok. The Salomon Impact 8 CS I got has a custom moulded shell, something else new to me, as well as heat mouldable liners which give a really precise fit. The selection of skis was great with lots of well known brands like Salomon, K2 and Atomic as well as one or two that were new to me like Line and Scott. The range seemed to have something for everyone and again the staff knew what they were talking about and some of them had skied on everything in the range at some industry test week in Italy. I went for a pair of Salomon XWing Tornados and as they have a really fast binding mount system and the store wasn't too busy the ski technician mounted them up straight away. All in all a great shopping experience and a really friendly independent store, I would highly recommend a visit, the website looks pretty cool too!

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Awesome pair of skis. Have been skiing for 3 years and decided to upgrade to an intermediate - expert ski. Took a couple of skis for a test run then came across the tornados. my first impressions were good. I then arranged a whole day trial where i put them through their paces. They were solid underfoot cutting through all the rubbish on the slopes and responded quickly when they needed to. On piste and off piste they stood up to the test and I am very pleased with my latest purchase. The money ...

Jonnyf's review has yet to be rated - Be the first!
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We'll see how they are at Chamonix in a few weeks. I was never going to buy another pair of skis, but these were just so good anywhere on the hill, I had to have them. I don't think there are any. I bought them in the States as ex-rental in March when the exchange rate was good, so not pretty cheap.c

paul uk's review has yet to be rated - Be the first!
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Went from 5 Stars to AC 3's which felt very solid but not as alive as my old 5 stars. Spent 2 weeks in Sun Peaks, BC, on these Tornados cover pretty well all the bases. Quick edge to edge, enough width under foot for playing in crud, fresh pow or bumps, light enough to flick around, yet on a groomer they are stable enough you can really crank them over - even got a glove down you can get such good angles:) Despite aging body these things made me want to go again and again until the lifts closed ...

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I'm a returning skier with 4 seasons under my belt, after not having skied since I was in my 20's, (I'm 50 this year) I would class myself as an intermediate, more towards the beginning side. I try to ski at least 10 and hopefully 15 times a season. I weigh 210 lbs. and am 5' 10" tall. I have been skiing on Atomic Izor 3.1 skis for a couple of seasons and have really liked them, but as I have gotten faster and on greater steeps, (usually advanced Blues) I have noticed chatter, so I got a pair of ...

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Good to hear a real skiers review, not one of those reviews where you know the guy has been paid to ski 30 pairs of skis in one day!

TheGreatSandaledOne's review has yet to be rated - Be the first!
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I was lucky enough to get my Tornadoes on sale from a ski shop on Ebay paying around £300 rather than the full price in the region of £550-600. These were complete with the Salomon Z12 binding.

The ski itself in a solid piece of kit with all the hallmarks of Salomon quality. They are truly awesome to ski on. Though mostly an on piste carving ski, they're perfectly capable off piste where the riders ability is present.

I've not felt as confident on another pair of skis, though ...