La Sportiva Hang5

La Sportiva's Hang5






Product: La Sportiva's Hang5



Length Tested: 178cm
Turn Radius: 23/30/23m


side cut: 145/117/135


camber: 7.7mm
Tip rocker: 425mm


Tail rocker:
0

Running length: 1510mm

Weight: per skis: 1900g / 4lb. 3oz.



Binding: Dynfit Radical Speed toe TLT Speed heel



Mount point: Mounted @ La Sportiva's suggested line



Ski
weight with bindings: 5lb evenper ski



Environmental
Conditions: early and late Spring skiing



Location of Test: Crystal Mountain Washington




Number of Runs: 15+days of spring skiing,



Snow Conditions: Early and late Spring skiing conditions ice to slush



Demo or Own: own















CONSTRUCTION TYPE: FUSION SIDEWALL - 70% Camber / 30% Rocker

SIDEWALL MATERIAL: ABS Thermoplastic

TOP SHEET: 0.5 mm Double Polyamide (ISO ICP8210) - Glossy

CORE: Vertical Laminated Light Karuba Paulownia Wood

LAMINATE LAYER 1: Tri-Directional Fiberglass

LAMINATE LAYER 2: Bi-Directional Carbon/Fiberglass mat

SPECIAL MATERIALS: Fiberglass Veil

REINFORCEMENTS PLATES: Under bindings

TIP AND TAIL REINFORCEMENTS: Rubber

BASE MATERIAL: P-Tex 2000 factory hand waxed

EDGE MATERIAL: 1,8 mm steel + rubber laminate

FEATURES: Tip and tail attachment holes, flat/notched tail

SIZES: 178, & 188

COLOR: 99H Yellow

PRICE: $825 USD



Tester Info:



Height/Weight:
6'1" 190lb



Ski
Days/Season: 30+



Years
Skiing: 30+

Aggressiveness& Moderate



Current
Quiver: Huascaran, Aspect, GTR, Lo5, Hi5, 112RP, 138, Broad Peak, 112RPC,
138. Praxis GPO and Protest



Home Area: Silver Mtn Idaho, Crystal Mtn
and Alpental WA.



Preferred Terrain: off-piste, trees,
steeps




1 (worst)
to 5 (best) star ratings

$ Value: *****







Durability: unknown at this
point but they still look good







Edge Grip: considering the 117mm
under foot *****







Maneuverability:****-







Performance:*****



From another fan of the Hang5 earlier in the winter:



"It's a bit of a charger, eh? Good skiers seem to love them. Not so good ones, not so much. You gotta stay on top of them. If youget in the back seat they'll throw you around. It's a way different ski than the Hi5. Is strange, but at 117 underfoot it was really more of an everyday ski for me this past winter. I can ride it inbounds all day and; then take it BC too. Much more versatile than the Hi5 IMO. Yeah, Iwassurprised at the lack of fanfare for this ski. It's my favorite."





I agreed whole heartilywith thoseobservations. Same things I saw. My favorite ski as well of the 4 GTR/Lo5/Hi5/Hang5.Although I now think the GTR is the other unsung ski that should have a cult following. It does with me anyway. Obviously all the la Sportiva skis are intended for different purposes. And I try to make that comparison to each ski in class.GTR fairs well. I put the Hi5 in the same class as the DPS 112. People love them. I am just not a big fan of either after a season on each.



Skiing the Hang5late this winter and Springin comparison with the Huascaran (same length), longer DPS RPC,and a Dynastar Cham 107 (184) and my Lo5s. Best comparison was the DPS RPC (192cm). The RPCskied very similar for me in our current spring conditions. Bothadd huge confidence under foot. Says even more for a 178cm ski I think. I found the Hang5 to be the ski I wanted to be on as we rotated through the day.



That is some dang good company for a 1st year ski.

Funny this: by late Saturday my legs were cooked and was skiing the Dynastar (which has gotten some rave reviews). I was hating them..really hating them. Decided if I skied so badly it was time to wrap it up. I got the Hang5 back on top of the hill and headed home. Much to my surprise, even with worn out legs the Hang5s still skied very well and seemingly made me stone sober.

They certainly make light of some terrible snow conditions, ice crust or boot deep slush.



Enough fluff :) Thought about this a lot over the first week I skied the Hang5s and bought a pair asap in the same 178 size.









Thoughts for the guys who also got a turn at my demo pair.



"I take them out for almost any moderate touring day. I find it to have less of a

new-school slarving personality as it needs to be stepped on to really charge. Lots of> energy return and super fun. Makes tight enough turns and is stable at speed."



"uncomfortable, too unbalanced front to back. Always felt like I was on a teeter totter."



"Too heavy and slow in tight conditions, not a ski that is much fun in jump turns"









"Nice ski, could easily be my all mountain ski, all winter ski even at 117 under foot."



My own take was interesting after forcing them off on friends. Most of them ski better than I as well so I valuetheir opinions even if it is notalways my own experience.






Scarpa Maestrale RS






The Hang5 is not a ski I like skiing in my TLTs. Although Jerry had no problem skiing his TLT Mountains on the Hang5.I much prefer a Dynafit One or the Scarpa Maestrale RS for the Hang5 even in the short 178 version. It is a lot of ski for me at 117mm under foot and 145 at the tip with no real or imaginative foo-foo design work to make it ski shorter or lighter.



That said I don't look for the Hang5 as my "first take" back country ski. It is fine in a skin track and booting as long as I am not doing a lot of either. If so I want a lighter ski. But on the down these things simply rock for me. They are ultimately stable, No teeter totter for me. Likely the one ski in my dozen ski quiverthat has a perfect mount point sorted out. And it makes a difference. For me this ski gives a 5 star ride in any conditions, powder to Spring ice and anything in between. I really, really like this ski. Enough so to over look its' weight. Mind you it still weights less than the vast majority of skis of this size and attributes by a fair margin.



The 178Hang5 is afull pound more per ski @ 4.25# than a 177Huascaran @ 3.25# . And the weight and ski stiffness/flex relates that as well. The 178cm Hang5 is a 1/4 pound per ski less than the 182cm Praxis GPO @ 4.5#. Good company imo all all three skis.



The Hang5 skis more like the Praxis GPO than the Huascaran or even my 192 RPCs..No question with numbers like 145mm/117mm/ 135mm teh Hang5is a BIG ski with a rather traditional flat tail, decent side cut and a slightly rockered tip. Nothing here really to give away the performance that I came to really value in the Hang5.



I skied them on the morning ice of a good Spring day and the resulting slush of a warm spring day. I skied them in a few tight rock lined gullies, soft bumps that were huge and everything in between. On typical cold Spring snow with its wash board effect fro a surface I loved them. For me once I had some speed going they were effortless and turned on a dime..exactly where I wanted and when I wanted. No effort involved. Not everyone one liked them 2:2 was the consensus I think. With 3:4 bias in most conditions on the plus side. But some what grudingly. Even the lone doubter was swayed soemby the end of the day.



It is a ski that likes to be driven. If you are comfortable on the ski and willing to work them I think the Hang5offers a lot of feed back and is super fun. And I don't work any ski very hard. More importantly to me it seems very confidence building and super stable even in the 178 size I first demoed and then bought.



The 177cm Huascaran was the first ski to turn me on to this size of ski (short 177cm and 115+/- under foot). I now have 3 pair of them, the Praxis GPO, the Huascaran and the Hang5. I generally prefer (or thought I did until recently)a 192 or bigger ski. I have and ski on several including a longer 196 Huascaran,192 DPS 112RPC, the 192 GPO, Protests and DPS 138.



But I don'tthink I own a more fun ski than the 115+/-mm under foot by178 cm. The Hang5s just reinforced that idea. Give them even a little bit of room to make a turn on, in any kind of snow,and this ski will rip and put a smile on your face allat the same time.









Of the "big" skis La Sportiva offers I think this is the sleeper of the bunch. By far my favorite ski between the Lo5, Hi5and Hang5 Series and does everything better than either of the other two imo.

At least two new skis coming from La Sportiva. A more resort driven Lo5 call the Mega 5 and a totally new lwt fattyI am really interested in,.



IMO the Hang5 best balanced ski in my own quiver of a dozen or so skis. The mount point is squared away for a very neutralride in my size 28/29 boots.Others were not so impressed with the ski. Preferring a few of the other offerings I have. I was impressed enough to buy a pair of Hang5safter just a couple of days of skiing on them. For me this is a "any mission ski". I wish it weighted less for packing around or skins. But I can live with the ski's weight. The performance is so high and so very predictable in any snow condition the weight is generally unnoticed unless it needs to be carried or skinning. Typical shite days at the lift when the snow is chopped up and only OK...this is going to be one of my "go to" ski.



I really like this ski. And the color as well :)



Hard to find a decent review on this ski or anyone that has skied it. If 117 under foot sounds like something that might interest you...the Hang5 is more than worth making the effort to try out. Be prepared to open the wallet if you do. I wasn't and had to pry the cash out for these after skiing them.



I'd like to say more. I cna't seem to do justice to what I really liek about this ski. The Hang5deserves it in spades.It does quick turns down the fall line easily and big ripping GS turns on any slope with ease for me. Saving a lot of effort in the process by being so stable under foot. And I do find it a stable ski. Enough tip rocker to fillet the crap snow you always run into on-piste and wide enough to slay any sort of pow or crust off-piste. What is not to like. Icy narrow gullies? Have to admit they are not the best ski there. Takes some speed to get them to turn around. But I will willingly ski them there just because they are so stable and forgiving.



One reviewer complained about turning a short Hauscaran short of Mach1!!?? Ha, ha, the short Huascaran is a gully ski for me. And I ski sloooowwwwwwwwwlllllllllyyyyy i nthe no fall zone..



I really like this ski! Few skiI can really say that about with some conviction. The reward of owning a Hang5was some of the best Spring runs off a lift and boot packing I had this year. Gotta give credit where it belongs. In this case it goes to the Hang5.