During the summer of 2009, Todd Leach conducted a survey
of slalom skiers about their preferences in settings for the
Zero Off speed control system. The survey asked skiers about
a variety of aspects of their skiing style and situations
to see if any correlations could be found in terms of preferences.
The survey was advertised on several internet discussion boards
and forums related to slalom skiing. Here are the results.
Link
to the full summary in PDF form
Survey Result Analysis:
Survey: 117 respondents
Most Popular Settings: A2 & B2
For all respondents:
Fav Letter: A
Fav Number: 2
Most Popular Setting: A2 & B2 tie
What if we remove those who have only tried 3 or less settings...
Of those skiers who have tried 4 or more settings:
Fav Letter: A
Fav Number: 2
Most Popular Setting: A2
When I combined Fav and 2nd Fav data:
For all respondents:
Fav Letter: B
Fav Number: 2
Most Popular Setting: B2
Of those skiers who have tried 4 or more settings:
Fav Letter: B
Fav Number: 2
Most Popular Setting: B2
Trends and Results by Skier Attributes
By Size
for all respondents:
Lighter skiers preferred letter A, then B.
Lighter skiers preferred number 2, then 1.
Lighter skiers' most popular setting was B2, then A1/C1/A2.
Heavier skiers preferred leter A.
Heavier skiers preferred number 1 or 2.
Heavier skiers' most popular setting was B2, then A1/C1/A2.
Avg Size Skiers showed no significant Letter preference,
but B was highest chosen by 1 vote.
Avg size skiers preferred number 2, then 1.
Avg size skiers' most popular setting was B2 & A2, then
B1/C2.
What if we remove those who have only tried 3 or less settings...
Of those skiers who have tried 4 or more settings:
Lighter skiers preferred letter B.
Lighter skiers preferred number 1 & 2.
Lighter skiers' most popular setting was B2 & A1.
Heavier skiers preferred leter A.
Heavier skiers preferred number 1 then 3.
Heavier skiers' most popular setting was A1, then tie A3/C1/A2.
Avg Size Skiers showed no significant letter preference,
but B was highest chosen by 1 vote.
Avg size skiers preferred number 2.
Avg size skiers' most popular setting was A2, then B1/C2.
Suggestions based upon Size:
Lighter skiers should try B1 & A2 & B2.
Heavy Skiers should try A1, then possibly A3.
Avg Size Skiers should try A2 then C2.
By level of skier:
There was no significant difference in fav letter or number
from ski level group to group.
By Turn Finish Style:
Aggressive, forceful out of the buoy skiers prefer C.
Patient and smooth out of the buoy skiers prefer A.
There was no significant difference in number.
By Wakes, Acceleration:
Long, progressive, strong lean skiers prefer B.
Short, hard lean at/before first wake skiers prefer C.
There was no significant difference in number.
Of those skiers who have tried 4 or more settings; number
3 was the least popular.
Of those skiers who have tried 4 or more settings; short,
hard lean at/before first wake skiers prefer A, and their
least popular was B.
By Edge Change:
There was no significant difference in letter or number.
Of those skiers who have tried 4 or more settings; early,
slow, role to little inside edge skiers preferred letter A,
while all others preferred letter B.
Of those skiers who have tried 4 or more settings; early,
slow, role to little inside edge skiers preferred number 1,
while all others preferred number 2.
By Overall Style:
West coast skiers prefer number 1, everyone else prefers
2.
West coast & Hybrid skiers prefer letter A, Classic, traditional
skiers prefer B.
Of those skiers who have tried 4 or more settings, Hybrid
skiers prefered C slightly over A.
By Max Speed:
36.0 MPH / 58 KPH skiers prefered letter C; all others prefered
A, then B.
There was no significant difference in number.
|
