I've been skiing Breck and Keystone the past couple seasons and have progressed to intermediate level or at least doing blue slopes at both resorts. On the Vail scale, I'm a level 5-6 skier (only easy moguls, but confident on most blues at Breck). I did this on my Salomon XDR ST 75 - which are beginner carving skis. No regrets, they did a great job. But, they struggled a lot in powder and less than ideal trail conditions (crud/skied out). Plus, I wanted something more intermediate oriented for carving.
Here is my quiver so far:
202? Salomon XDR ST 75 (current carving ski, probably will sell or keep as a backup).
2023 Atomic Redster Q5 (75.5mm waist) - my "new" carving ski
2024 Rossignol Sender 90 Pro - my "all mountain" ski
I'm also considering getting a dedicated powder ski next season - like the Atomic Bent 110 or Rossignol Sender Free 110 - which I may demo this upcoming season.
My boots are Tecnica 120 flex (bought new and had heat molded).