When Blizzard introduced the Brahma 82 in the 2019/2020 season, there must have been some concern that the brand had over-extended itself. Its All-Mountain collection was a runaway hit, already running on all cylinders and blanketing the All-Mountain East, All-Mountain West, Big Mountain and Powder genres. The series’ Flipcore construction seemed to optimize all the preferred qualities of an all-terrain ski. But the double-rockered Brahma 82 had now moved into Frontside territory, competing against shorter, cambered carvers with a completely different bundle of behaviors. Would the dealer community – and further down the food chain, the skier population – accept it as a viable option? After all, an earlier experiment in line extension, the Latigo, had fallen flat. Would the direct genetic link to the popular Brahma 88 be enough to coax a few Frontside skiers into adopting it?
The Brahma 82 turned out to be one hell of a ski that earned enough adherents to keep it in the line until the Anomaly 84 came along. The main reason the Brahma 82 could compete in the Frontside genre is that Blizzard didn’t skimp on its construction, as is often the case in step-down line extensions, so when it dug into crystalized corduroy it held its course. It didn’t make the same sort of turn as a shorter, cambered ski with an elevated binding platform, and you might not choose to ski it the same way as you would a wasp-waisted carver, but the Brahma 82 could mimic a carver’s edge grip and had the added value that it went off-trail without complaint.
So, when Blizzard completely overhauled its All-Mountain collection this year, the Brahma 82 had already carved out a spot for the Anomaly 84. Having learned from the Brahma experience to keep the performance standard high, the Anomaly 84 uses the same FluxForm construction as its three beefier brethren. The key to FlexForm’s magic lies in how it deploys its Titanal elements up, down and across its chassis. What would normally be a single, .4mm Ti laminate on top is replaced with a .6mm central Ti plate that is independent of two end-to-end Ti ribbons positioned over the edges. A .4mm bottom Ti laminate runs wall-to-wall, giving the Anomaly the strength to grip early-morning groomers. The multi-part top dose of metal allows the ski to flex under less pressure, giving the Anomaly 84 a smooth transition from turn to turn.
Even though the Anomaly 84 is manifestly the tightest turner in its family, it’s still a long-turn lover at heart. It is also perforce the quickest Anomaly edge-to-edge, although tiny, C-shaped carves aren’t naturally in its repertoire. The Anomaly 84 feels right at home motoring along on well-compacted boulevards, despite a baseline that begs to be taken off-road. In other words, the Anomaly 84 lives up to its name, displaying a bundle of anomalous behaviors.
All of its anomalous virtues notwithstanding, if what you’re looking for is an off-trail aficionado, why get an 84 when there are so many wider options better suited to the assignment? The question is perfectly valid, but it’s looking at the issue through the wrong lens. What the Anomaly 84 provides is an on-trail ski that isn’t fixated on short turns, buried edges and slingshot exits. Its off-trail DNA is always available to draw on if you care to dabble in the crud at the edge of the trail, but it doesn’t need new snow to calm it down or give it a sense of purpose.
However one cares to categorize the contradictions embodied in the Anomaly 84, it’s a ton of fun to ski for a broad swath of skiers. It’s also a relative bargain (and the least expensive Anomaly) at $649.99. Pair it with a top-shelf binding and you’ll save a few shillings compared to most system skis in the Frontside category.