QST is an abbreviation of Quest, Salomon’s umbrella label for off-piste gear, the first tip-off that the QST Stella 106 comes from a family of off-trail tools. While the Quest name and its various abbreviations have been part of the Salomon lexicon for over a decade, the skis that bear the QST mark have evolved considerably over that span.

The current Stella 106 uses a trifecta of technical fibers to get just the flex and torsional rigidity that works best in choppy terrain, which sounds like it’s trying to be as light as possible, but that’s not really Stella’s calling card. Her core is all poplar, not Paulownia, balsa or Karuba, and her secret sauce is a Titanal mounting plate that influences the ski’s entire mid-section.  If you’re looking for a cross-over model you can put a Salomon Switch binding on and toddle off into the backcountry, there are lighter options available.

But if you’re a resort skier who would sell her brother for a spot on the first chair on a powder day, the QST Stella 106 is killer.  It stomps on crud, its mass helping it to shoulder clumpy snow aside when one’s first tracks are no longer discernable.  Its fall-line orientation favors the skilled skier, but in its shorter lengths it can serve as a woman’s first second pair of skis.