Once a brand has star product, the tendency is to extend this concept in every direction as far as it will go.  This is how we end up with a model like the Santa Ana 84, an all-terrain design shrunk down to the dimensions of a Frontside ski. Bear in mind that its five Santa Ana sisters are all broader in the beam than the svelte 84, which suggests that the youngest member of the family may be the runt of litter, with less of whatever made the design popular in the first place.

Ah, but Nordica was prescient enough to realize that a narrow ski will probably spend more of its life on groomers, so it came up with Terrain Specific Metal, a formula that adds more metal as the model’s surface area shrinks. Thus the Santa Ana 84 runs its top metal laminate to within 14mm of the edge, so it will grip the snow surface more tenaciously than its plumper sisters.

“This ski was awesome on the early morning hard-packed snow!” confirms an ebullient Clare Martin from Peter Glenn.  “It promoted confidence right off the bat by delivering a very accurate feeling of what was beneath me.  Fun to turn and held the edge very well.”

“Solid right from the start,” echoes another of the Peter Glenn crew, Nicole Iroff, “Tip the ski over onto the edge and you’re on your way to a successful carved turn. Easy at the top, middle and finish of the turn.  A perfect ski for intermediates up to experts, oh, and by the way, the graphics are killer.”

For the so-so skier who would like to up her game, the Santa Ana 84 is a steal at only $599.99 out the door. Note the extensive size range, so any woman from petite to, well, not as petite, can find her size.