camber

Question
Hi.  I recently purchased a pair of Head Xenon 9.0 skies and after 10 days of skiing, they seem to have very little camber.  When I tie up the ski brakes and lie them flat there is about 1/4" of clearance. I dropped them a few times; could that cause a loss of camber.  The ski shop I bought them from says that they just don't have a lot of camber; it is part of the design.  Your thoughts?

Thanks

Answer
Hi Steven and thanks for the question.
Without seeing your skis i am unable to determine the camber situation.
What do the skis in the shop look like? Do they have a similar clearance to yours?
The way you describe them they will not give an acurate picture of the ski camber.

You can try a this test:

Tail on the floor - tip in non-dominant hand.
Push on the ski between the bindings and let go - how much spring does it have?
Do this above and below the binding as well
Now do it to the other ski - does it feel exactly the same?

If you have a notable difference then yes, i would assume you have a lack of camber/flex in your ski.

Also lay both skis next to each other on the floor - do they have the same clearance under the binding? If there are notable differences then again - yes you have a problem.

Dropping skis will not destroy camber -edges perhaps and sometimes blow the tip or tail, but not generally from one drop [unless you are really unlucky].

However, storing skis together tied up will reduce the flex/camber of he ski over time [just like trying to flatten a piece of rolled up cardboard - store them loosly together to maintain their natural shape.

Sorry i cannot be more specific.

lisa