My old Skis have finally reached their “use by” date and I’m considering replacement options. The Stockli Pit pros are advertised as a touring ski but with good all round performance and I’d be interested if anyone has any experience of them. There’s not much in the way of reviews on the net that I can find. Another contender is the Movement Couloir so if anyone has any opinions on either I’d be interested to hear them.

I havn’t skied the Couloir but it is a fat Movement IKI. The IKI got rave reviews from the French ski press last year.

This is comment from a friend

Despite the width the lateral rigidity and relatively straight side cut is good enough to hold an edge on hard snow and when traversing. A tolerant ski that can handle all snow conditions. A bit slow edge to edge. Well damped at speed. You can use Dynafit 92mm ski crampons (with a bit of chafing).

There seem to be big variations in weight between skis (some variation is normal but there are reports of 200g per pair) which maybe implies some problems with the manufacturing process.

The Pit Pro is a skinnier ski (unless it has gained some area) this year. Again great on hard and steep but it is not going to ride powder as well as the Couloir and it crust will be harder. If you can ski powder well it would probably be livelier than the Couloir but in that case why not look at the Movement IKI?

Thanks for the feedback. I’m also looking at the Movement Spark which seems to be a good allrounder. My local ski shop stock both Stockli & Movement so I should be able to try before I buy.

I have a pair of Spark I’ve been using for 4 years. Really love it. It’s a very tough ski, amazing in powder or crud (and even on the piste!). It’s probably quite similar to the Iki, maybe a tad heavier, but therefore probably also a little stronger and more reactive. I use it on day tours with Fritschi freeride bindings and it’s light enough for me. I’m thinking of replacing it next year, and frankly will likely have a close look at the current Spark again.

That’s interesting; thanks. I was considering putting the Fritschi Freeride on the skis. I’m using Naxos at the moment on a pair of Bizzard Titans (older skinnier style not the fat Titans of today) I’ve been very please with the all round performance with the only downside being weight. But I’m not doing multi day tours and I’ll put up with additional weight if it improves the performance.

The Couloir is not coming from the Iki. His parents are rather the Thunder (well appreciated in freeride a few years ago before the skis became even larger) and the Freeheel (a telemark asymetric version, well appreciated as well). It has been made lighter and softer as this is the trend these days. But compared to the Iki, the Spark and others, this is a ski that will definitely go faster and stronger in more varied snow and will like the steeps. It means also a bit more weight and more width going up…

I got some Couloirs in December and have done three tours in them plus a few more days acclimatisation. I cannot compare them side by side with the Stocklis - my usual ski is the Mission. I have found them an excellent touring setup. Light, very quick in bumps and terrain, good edge grip. They are 89 underfoot. However, being so light they can get thrown around a bit in heavy, grabby or crusty conditions. My Missions will crash through anything, and i find myself shortening turns in the Couloirs to hold a tighter more predictable line. Have skied good powder lines in them and are ok at speed but would not want to take them to the limit (yet). In short, I really enjoy touring on them and the weight/performance benefits more than outweight the twitchiness (which is mostly in my head in any event).

I think they are a ski that should get more take up. I have found Stockli to be stiffer. I am light and not a very aggressive skier (72kg) & 5’9”. A heavier or more aggressie skier might want to try the Stocklis. That said, the Dynafit Stoke is an amazing ski and the Manaslus are well worth look as well.