BRING BACK THE EXPLOSIV!!

[Hicks]

My 190 Explosivs (the cool yellow orange neon top skin kind, and you know those are the best), also in primo condition, are, on the other hand not for sale, except at a rediculously high price.

Seconded, my sales price for them is unaffordable for peeps from this bord as well.

[train07]

I bet you losers cried when they stopped making snow rangers too!

Quit living in the past!

they stopped making snow rangers??

[Evmo]

My bro found a pair of mint 190's (first year) at a ski swap in marin for $75... The neon Ess Vars had to go, but he has skied them all year... so jealous

[addict]

I bet you losers cried when they stopped making snow rangers too!

Quit living in the past!

Agreed, explosives were great and I'd buy them if they were around, but there's some pretty sweet skis on the market now. Many of them better IMO.

[train07]

Browser question related to this thread.....i have a new lap top(iBook G4) at work and am using Safari as the browser since this came with it. Been having strange issues...like right now the posts btween #12 and #19 of this thread are missing...one of them mine and i know i didn't delete anything.

QUESTION.....does anyone else see posts btween 12 and 19?

Other strange things have happened..just checking this thread for now...

[lemon boy]

got em all. You should switch to IE, everything else just pretends at the interweb.

:

[train07]

got em all. You should switch to IE, everything else just pretends at the interweb.

:

One thing I know for sure...this browser SUCKS!

thanks




oh yeah

[squaretail]

Granted, I'm a reeaaal late comer to Volkl, I only missed the previous ten years... but the explodr changed me forever...now they're gone. I can't be the only one who wants this back..... maybe most of you guys have already had closure on this.
Come on Squaretail!!

Train, the Explosiv is gone, never to return. Sorry.

It was/is/will be my favorite as well. I have a museum's share of 'splosivs in my basement. But sometimes, change is necessary. Let's keep a few things in mind.

The Explosiv ran for 10 years with very few tweaks along the way - the truest indicator of it's perfection, IMO. That's virtually unheard of for any model or manufacturer. It was simply time for change. The biggest problem was that sales were beginning to decline sharply because the market perceived it as "old."

Regarding the Mantra, I firmly believe that it is a worthy successor. The irony is that I suspect that there will be a thread bashing us for discontinuing it someday.

[dirtybryan]

Train, the Explosiv is gone, never to return. Sorry.

It was/is/will be my favorite as well. I have a museum's share of 'splosivs in my basement. But sometimes, change is necessary. Let's keep a few things in mind.

The Explosiv ran for 10 years with very few tweaks along the way - the truest indicator of it's perfection, IMO. That's virtually unheard of for any model or manufacturer. It was simply time for change. The biggest problem was that sales were beginning to decline sharply because the market perceived it as "old."

Regarding the Mantra, I firmly believe that it is a worthy successor. The irony is that I suspect that there will be a thread bashing us for discontinuing it someday.

What about a "classic series"? With guitars and such this is such a huge hit ('58 Les Paul Reissue, Fender Blackface Bassman Reissue, etc..). I wonder if a ski company could capitalize on it...

[L8APX]

I think volkl should set on the mold for a few and then release a limited run with the old yellow and black graphics that were on the classic race stock volkls from the 70-80's era.

Also they should start doing topsheets more 2 gen gotamas or the wizards. I just don't care for the volant machette rip-off look on the new reds. It's a good thing those mantras rip for me though
My rule: How it skis 1st then how it looks.

[Cirquerider]

Like any true legend...leave em asking for more.

The Mantra has been a good ski for me, but with the shape and softer tip is NOT an Explosiv. It has its own strengths that I appreciate in soft snow and crud. The idea of bringing back a collector's edition classic is one that Volkl, as a commercial entity, would be foolish to dismiss.

[Jim S]

pretty sure the 190 explosiv was 41m @ 190cm.

I thought it was 34m but that's just a recollection

[HitMe]

Train, the Explosiv is gone, never to return. Sorry.

It was/is/will be my favorite as well. [...]
Regarding the Mantra, I firmly believe that it is a worthy successor.

I've had som time on the Mantras now and I do like them alot. For me, the Explosive (the 190 Wizard graphics model was my main ski for a long time and I still have it) pretty much was a materialization of my innermost wishes of ski performance. The immaculate feel I had come to like from many years on Volkl race skis was put into a great all round width package. I still love the ski.

That said I think the Mantra is a better ski overall and I it will make me spend less time on the Explosives. I think its true for me as a pretty strong (but light), aggressive and technical Völkl lover and even more true for a more "regular" skier. I would say that at least 10 times as many skiers are likely to be happy on a Mantra compared to the Explosive and even die hard Explosive fans are likely to ski better on the Mantra in over 90% of the skiing of a true all mountain skiing season (where I truly include _everything_).

There will be times and places where the Explosive hands down beats the Mantra, but most of these situations can be negotiated (as aggresively and as fast) on a Mantra with some extra technique input.

So, in a sense the Mantra allows me to have more fun but at the same time, what I miss most from the Explosive is the no compromise feel it delivers and the huge grin one gets on ones face after a good Explosive run. I like to describe the Explosive as that with thsi ski, the skier has to do everything himself - exept keep in control, this the ski does for you. So, when you had an all out run on the Explosives, you have indeed done som great skiing, probably at the edge of what you capable of. The Mantra might be a more well rounded ski (and a better one in some general meaning) but there is something special with a truly no compromise weapon like the Explosive.

[HitMe]

I thought it was 34m but that's just a recollection

The 2003 190 Explosive (wizard) has a 32m sidecut radius (by calculation and thats also just about what Völkl advertised it to have.

Over 40m and you're approaching the radius of the Sanouk

[Mudfoot]

In case anybody is looking, I came across a pair of 180 Explosivs in pretty good condition at Taos this weekend. I think they belonged to the shop owner and he had'm priced at $350 with bindings, but it was definitely negotiable. Too short for me, but if you are interested contact Terry Sports up at the mountain.

[BCpowder]

how would exploders compare to gotamas in terms of performance and which would make a better one-ski quiver?

[Arty50]

how would exploders compare to gotamas in terms of performance and which would make a better one-ski quiver?

IMHO Gotamas are better. They carve better on hardpack and float better in pow. The only thing they don't do better is blast through crud. But that's what my Spatulas are for.

[seldon]

if y'all are looking for a super-g ski with metal in it, why hasn't anyone mentioned the LP? IMHO they're more easily skiable than the exploder, but i skied them at such different weight/leg power/athleticism moments that I can't really make the comparison. they are that though - a racing ski that stayed in the womb too long and came out 97mm at the waist.

[mntlion]

if y'all are looking for a super-g ski with metal in it, why hasn't anyone mentioned the LP? IMHO they're more easily skiable than the exploder, but i skied them at such different weight/leg power/athleticism moments that I can't really make the comparison. they are that though - a racing ski that stayed in the womb too long and came out 97mm at the waist.

great ski for sure, But you can find the explosive used for $300 or less, LP's usually are a bit more.

[ulty_guy]

I've had som time on the Mantras now and I do like them alot. For me, the Explosive (the 190 Wizard graphics model was my main ski for a long time and I still have it) pretty much was a materialization of my innermost wishes of ski performance. The immaculate feel I had come to like from many years on Volkl race skis was put into a great all round width package. I still love the ski.

That said I think the Mantra is a better ski overall and I it will make me spend less time on the Explosives. I think its true for me as a pretty strong (but light), aggressive and technical Völkl lover and even more true for a more "regular" skier. I would say that at least 10 times as many skiers are likely to be happy on a Mantra compared to the Explosive and even die hard Explosive fans are likely to ski better on the Mantra in over 90% of the skiing of a true all mountain skiing season (where I truly include _everything_).

There will be times and places where the Explosive hands down beats the Mantra, but most of these situations can be negotiated (as aggresively and as fast) on a Mantra with some extra technique input.

So, in a sense the Mantra allows me to have more fun but at the same time, what I miss most from the Explosive is the no compromise feel it delivers and the huge grin one gets on ones face after a good Explosive run. I like to describe the Explosive as that with thsi ski, the skier has to do everything himself - exept keep in control, this the ski does for you. So, when you had an all out run on the Explosives, you have indeed done som great skiing, probably at the edge of what you capable of. The Mantra might be a more well rounded ski (and a better one in some general meaning) but there is something special with a truly no compromise weapon like the Explosive.

very well said, and i 'ditto' a lot of this sentiment. sure, there's newer skis that do fancier things for you than the explosiv, but when the going gets weird on unpredictable snow, there's nothing else i'd rather have on my foot than a sploder.

[bad_roo]

I've written to Nordica telling them to bring back the W105. How they thought the Beast 92 was an adequate replacement for God's own ski is beyond me.

[jonski]

Prolly cos they were new to skis - they'd only just gone to Nordica from the Kastle branding - and really new to freeskiing.

So what happened? They had a ski that seemed recockulously huge at the time and weighed a ton - hardly great selling points when you are just trying to make it in the ski production circle as it doesn't appeal to mass mkt.

Agree they should look at bringing the shape back now though - although Blowers aren't far off from what info there is on them....

[bad_roo]

Stop hitting me with those negative waves, Moriarty.

[Mudfoot]

Sometimes you just need a bulldozer.

[dookeyXXX]

I'm obviously a panty waist, cuz I skied a pair of Explosivs last season on demo (the maroon ones with the bhudda sticker on 'em) and those skis killed me.

Granted they handled great in pow, but on-piste they were like skiing two-by-fours.

I can easily see the appeal if you're in nothing but ankle-to-knee deep powder, but on-piste they were horrible. of course it didn't help that I was at Sugarbowl two days after a storm, so pretty much everything was tracked out. Also, I was trying to demo some Stockli's and the shop tech mistakenly told me that they had them and then when i got to the shop they were like "Um, we don't demo Stockli's, but we've got a nice pair of Explosivs." To their credit the shop did preface the demo transaction by saying "Just point 'em downhill and mach it out and you'll have a blast." i neglected to tell them that I actually like to turn some and am not a Mach 11-with-my-hair-on-fire-kind of guy. I skied them for a few hours and then took 'em back and swapped 'em out for some M:EX's. In hindsight, I kind of wish I'd kept the Explosive's for the day and tried to figure them out. But I'm a quick fix kind of guy and I just wanted to have a day skiing with my buddies rather than sprawling around the hill trying to figure out a pair of skis, especially powder pigs on a mostly groomer day.