2020 Kästle Season

Kästle busted a bunch of moves this off-season, but lest the lede get lost in the shuffle, the biggest by far was the creation of a new FX series. Since its inception, the off-trail oriented FX models have mimicked many aspects of the more successful MX series’...

Liberty Brand Profile

Every mainstream ski brand can trace its roots to a founder, a visionary who nursed a fledgling idea to life. If we’re aware of a brand’s history (a big if), we’ll associate the brand’s formative years with the sepia-toned photos of its first factory. But new brands...

2020 Liberty Season

Vertical Metal Technology may prove to be the tipping point that puts Liberty into the big time; it’s certainly the focus of the brand’s immediate evolution from an off-trail-only collection to something closer to a full service provider. To secure last season’s gains...

K2 Brand Profile

Overview K2 once reigned over the US market for so long, its sales leadership practically became a cliché. The keys to its sustained success were manifold, but from a product standpoint it’s not hard to summarize: K2’s have always been easy to ski. Regardless of your...

2020 K2 Season

Considering how recently Kohlberg & Co acquired K2, it’s remarkable how quickly the brand overturned almost its entire Alpine line-up. There are six new Mindbenders for men and an equal allotment of Mindbender Alliance models for the ladies. To complete the...

Kästle Brand Profile

Overview Kästle isn’t what it used to be, and that’s a good thing. Not to dis the current Kästle’s ancestry, but Kästles of yore could be clumped in two camps: race skis it took a god like Zurbriggen to bend, and kooky creations that should have been euthanized in...