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Mark _australia said..^^ I have no idea. Now I know they are skis

- whats wrong with the old style?
Skis went from straight cut to a parabolic shape years ago. The parabolic shape means that the ski pulls itself around a turn a lot more than they did before.
My foggy memory reminds me that when they came out the first year, you could hire them for a premium or just get the regular straight cut skis. The following year there was no option. They were so good that everyone went to parabolic skis. (I can't remember exactly, but maybe around 1994 or 1995?)
Now its very rare to see them in use on the slopes, but I guess if someone can ski okay with them, why change.
They even changed the way skiing is taught. You used to have to lift your skis a lot more and place them where you wanted to go, whereas now you shift your weight and the ski's curved edges dig in and bend the ski into a curve and you go around. Much nicer!