This was my first year at the SIA Snow Show and it didn’t disappoint. I already showed you the 10 HOT New Products from the show floor and now its time to let you in on all the on snow action from the demo days at Winter Park Resort. Instead of just going out there and playing with all the new products and exploring the mountain I decided to buckle down and really test as many skis as possible. Below are the 16 pairs of skis I managed to take down one run at Winter Park for one lap each over 2 days, trying to duplicate each run in an effort to do the best comparison review in the limited time while getting on the most skis. I tried to focus on 100-110 under foot all mtn one ski quiver style skis and give as many different brands a try as possible. I also managed to try out a few pairs of boots, but they really don’t make samples of next years boots in US mens size 13.
Vokle Katana VWerks 184:
$1,250* 143/112/132
For sure the Formula One of skis. No expense was spared to make these the best all mountain ski you can buy. Somehow these things even ski better than they look! Super light, super damp, carve hard and hold an edge at speed sooooo well. You really have to try these to understand how awesome they are. I’d hate to hit anything with them or empty my bank account to afford them, but if you got the cash just do it.
Line Blend 178:
$599.95 132/100/122
The Blend is a fun all mountain freestyle tool that is super forgiving and better at speed than you’d think. If you spend at least half your time in the park/pipe than this might be the perfect all mountain one ski quiver for you.
Icelantic Nomad RKR 181:
$699 140/105/130
The Nomad RKR is the do everything ski in the Icelantic quiver. The ski is pretty stiff and is designed to be just as comfortable on the groom as in the backcountry. I found that the skis really required you to stay way forward to drive them hard in order to get the best performance. Made in Colorado and super high quality artistic graphics are for sure what Icelantic is known for. The tune was really poor on my demo pair, so they hooked easily and I can’t give them a proper review.
RMU Apostle 185:
$849.99 126/132/105/120/114
The Apostle is a true all mountain ski. It is plenty light for backcountry use and skis many conditions well with its unique shape that allows 5 points of contact with the snow, instead of 3 in a traditional ski. These skis are made in Colorado with a poplar core, hold speed well, are fun to carve and really handle diverse conditions well. Overall a really fun all mountain tool.
Tip for this ski: detune the tips and tail to make them more playful and less hooky when carving on the groom.
Blizzard Peacemaker 186:
$700* 134/104/124
The “flip core” technology sounds like a marketing gimmick, but it really seems to work! The 2014 Peacemaker is cambered under foot with lots of “natural” tip & tail rocker from the “flip core” tech. The ski is s super forgiving, fun rail to rail and is an excellent resort ripper.
Rossingnal Soul7 180:
$800* 126/106/116
The Soul7 has had a lot of hype and I figured they would be okay, but nowhere near live up to all the hoopla. I was wrong! These skis are super fun, super forgiving and excelled in every condition I could throw at them. They have no metal and utilize a honeycomb tip and tail structure that makes them incredibly light weight and have a super low spin weight. Try these skis! They really might be the best value in an all mountain do most things well ski.
Armada ARB Ti 188:
$? ?/99/?
With a titanal stiffening sheet, camber under foot and just a little early rise in the tip the ARB Ti is super fast edge to edge, confident at speed, and handles mixed conditions well. Bottom line is that this is a great resort ripper.
Scott Rock’Air 183:
$700 ?/105/?
With a Paulowinia wood core and carbon stringers the Rock’Air is a light and stiff ski. It loves groomers as it is stiff, quick edge to edge and very controlled at speed. I found the tail to be a bit wide for my liking and the stiffness and rigidity to be a bit unforgiving in variable conditions. This is a great ski for charging groomers 80% of the time and still having the float you need for those resort pow days the other 20%.
Whitedot Ranger 186:
$1,100/$1,300 for CarbonLite 138/108/119
Whitedot Skis are a relative new comer to the North American market, but are making a splash on the Freeride World Tour and have been well established in the EU for many years. The Ranger is new for the 2014 season and are the do everything backcountry solution with an early rise tip and flat swallow-tail/clip tail for skins. The ski is super fun and holds an edge at speed with grace. They are relatively stiff, but are also pretty forgiving. If you want the ultimate backcountry weapon pay the extra $200 and get the CarbonLite version.
SkiLogic Ullr’s Chariot TT 178:
$750* 145/101/131
At only 4,400 grams for the pair these skis are light. The Ullr’s Chariot Twin Tip ski is designed to carve on the hard stuff and still float the soft stuff. In the end it is a dream ski on the groomer through as it is pretty stiff, but still damp enough to eat up variable terrain. I’m also not sure how you can go wrong with the custom inlaid wood graphics!
Meier Skis The Doc 180:
$790 140/108/133
Meier is a cool company that hand builds skis in Glenwood Springs, CO using locally sourced wood (including local beetle kill) and as many environmentally friendly methods as possible. The clear top sheets are a nice touch that lets you see the quality of their craftsmanship and the beauty of the natural materials. The Doc is an all mountain shredder that has a very unique feel compared to other skis. They are SUPER damp and light weight which makes them playful, great in the backcountry and eat the crud with ease. I found that you could carve them hard, but it required some serious effort. My only complaint is that they weren’t confidence inspiring at speed.
Voile Buster 186:
$625* 142/120/129
This ski is a big mountain soft snow straight line charger. It is relatively backcountry specific and doesn’t work very well on the grooms. The ski probably doesn’t belong in this review, but is a sweet light weight beautiful backcountry pow tool for a great price.
Salamon Quest 105 188:
$599 136/105/128
The Quest is a full new line of all mtn twintip skis from Salamon for 2014. The skis have a ton of tip rocker and utilize honeycomb in the tip and tail to lower the swing weight. They also offer a “hook free tip” that basically means the metal edges end short of the tip. These skis are super playful and relatively forgiving. They carve well but really shine in the soft stuff.
Head Collective 105 181:
$700* 145/105/128
The new Collective skis from Head bring you all mtn twintip performance in a rockered package. The ends are a super unique light weight honeycomb material that gives you torsional rigidity in the rockered area of the ski. These skis are meant to tackle the whole mtn in a playful way while still being able to charge hard.
Faction Agent 100 179:
$799* 132/102/122
The new Agent 100 wants to charge hard and carve fast. It is an aggressive ski with a flat tail and utilizes a superlight core made of balsa and flax fiber stringers. This is a great ski for most resort skiing and is floaty enough to enjoy the soft stuff on pow days.
Dynastar Cham High Mtn 107 184:
$699 122/107/137
The High Mtn version of the Cham is the light weight touring version. As such it is designed to get you out into the backcountry with less energy expenditure, allowing you to charge fast straight lines in deep pow down the mountain. I found the ski to have lots of tip chatter and not be very forgiving on the groom. Take this ski into the backcountry and charge.
Apex MC-2 Ski Boots:
This is a very innovative boot that basically combines a soft “snowboard like” boot with a hard exoskeleton to create a relatively stiff ski boot. They are especially nice when you need to walk any distance as you can just walk around in the comfy soft boot. I have to say that I was skeptical but in the end found them to be very comfortable and way higher performance than I would have thought. The double boa system also allows you to get a comfortable custom fit every time and the soft boot nests into the exoskeleton with little to no play. The boots actually skied quite well, although I wasn’t able to get as much shin pressure as I like to have when skiing hard.
Scott Cosmos Boot:
$750
Scott bought out Garmont and is introducing a full line of ski boots for 2014. Many of the boots are Garmont models with sweet new integrated technologies from Scott. The Cosmos is the super light tech backcountry boot in the lineup and offers a Grillmid plastic shell, shock dampening insert in the heel, a 100% heat moldable EasyFit liner and a full 60 degrees of cuff articulation. The boot is really comfy, quite warm and offers a roomy toe box. I found that it was a bit soft for super hard charging on the groomers and a bit big in the toe box for my feet. In the end a super solid light weight boot that will get you way into the backcountry with ease.
1st Degree ST1 “Stromtrooper” Boot:
$599
The ST1 is a medium flex do everything 3 piece ski boot with 3 buckles, a power strap, walk mode and 5 forward lean options. This is a popular boot that you’ll see all over the mtns of Colorado. Besides its killar looks it has a super comfortable lining. I found that the boot didn’t fit my feet very well and that the forward lean/walk mode adjustment was a bit of a pain to operate. The adjustment works great, but is just a bit of a pain to set where you want each time you change from walk to ski mode.
(* by the prices represent best guess estimates, as I did not get full pricing for many of the 2014 skis.)
