Last season the Stormrider 88 perched atop our All-Mountain East Power rankings; this year it slipped a bit, a sophomore slump attributable to the initial euphoria inspired by 2017’s significant improvements wearing off. The giddy scores of last year were inflated by the excitement of skiing a model that was more than a pound lighter than its predecessor of the same name, yet still retained Stöckli’s legendary stability. No matter how you parse the data, the fact remains the Stormrider 88 is an extraordinary ski.

If you’ve ever driven a high performance luxury sedan, you know that 85mph feels as mellow as 45. That’s the Stormrider 88. Even though it has a first and second gear, nobody stays in low gear for long. The speed is just too delicious.

Tyler from California Ski Company describes his experience putting the Stormrider 88 through its paces. “Very surprised that this ski was manageable at low speed. Could do shorter turns, but of course it loved being steered into big, fast turns. I’ve never felt more confidence at 40mph.”

If the Stormrider 88 sounds like a muscle-bound carver, well, there’s some truth to that. But the Stöckli dares to tread where other AME skis tremble, tearing into set-up snow as if it were rice paper.

You could argue that it’s less forgiving because it begs to be driven å toute vitesse. On the other hand, a case can be made ease derives from ironclad stability, which the Stormrider has in spades. If a ski is so quiet on edge that 40 feels like 20, what’s the harm as long as the skier is in complete control? Control equates directly with confidence, which in the case of the Stormrider 88 is the audacity to take it anywhere.