Photo Credit: Three Peaks Media
As the weather grows colder and the days grow shorter, a sort of primal frenzy descends upon the staff and customers of The Outdoor Gear Exchange here in Burlington, Vermont. The weather in the mountains is checked incessantly, skis are tuned, gear is scrutinized, and all the while there are fevered whispers of, “The Big Dump.”
And what better to stoke the fires in the minds of all these powderhounds, these champions of the gnar-gnar, then a spotlight on some of the hottest skis in our selection this season? Read on…
FOR THE DAWN PATROL
DPS offers the all-around Wailer 99 in the Tour1 construction layup, an ultralight build utilizing a balsa core and a prepreg carbon/glass laminate, to greatly enhance the touring experience (the 184cm length weighs just 1410g). With a 99 mm waist and DPS’ versatile rocker profile, the Wailer 99 can handle hardpack and crud, as well as soft snow. The narrow waist provides maneuverability for technical lines, tight trees and bumps, while the rocker profile allows the ski to float and smear. This is a great option for East Coast touring on hardpack and minimal powder or if you prefer a slightly narrower touring ski.
THE QUIVER OF ONE
Float in powder, slice through crud, rip groomers and more with the Blizzard Cochise. Built with carbon flipcore construction and a new shape that features a slight taper in the tip and tail, the Cochise slays terrain no matter what the conditions are. The full sidewall construction guarantees impeccable control and stability when carving, and the bidirectional carbon fiber woven into the rockered tip and tail greatly reduces vibration and reduces swing weight, improving maneuverability. Having 108mm underfoot and a rocker-camber-rocker profile ensures good flotation and easy handling.
TO THE BACKCOUNTRY
For those of you who enjoy the hike more than anything, who want to get way off-piste and into the trees, the Voilé V6 BC’s are for you. Built with Voilé’s fish scale-esque Traction Pattern Base, theses skis are perfect for long approaches over undulating terrain. Does this textured base replace skins entirely? Unfortunately, no. They do however greatly lessen the need for them, and, as Voilé says, who’s going to argue against the tedium of applying and removing skins too often? Featuring Voile’s lightweight Aspen core and carbon fiber construction, as well as Voilé’s hybrid rocker, they can still charge down the steeper pitches with aplomb, despite their cross-country accoutrement.
THE RESORT CHARGER
Kastle calls this ski, "The Sword." Wield it to slice through deep powder, late season corn, hardpack, and whatever else the mountain can throw at you. Damp, powerful, and undemanding, the Kastle FX95 HP is a hard-charging, all-around resort ski that performs admirably on and off-piste. Constructed with a combination of ash and silver fir in the core, two 0.5 mm sheets of titanal, durable ABS sidewalls, and Hollowcore 2.0 technology, the FX95 HP is strong, stable, and highly resistant to chatter no matter what the conditions.
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