No Frontside ski can make the cut as a Power Pick if it can’t cope with speed. This isn’t an issue for the Hero +, which can trace its tech roots back to the Rossi Race Department. That’s where Line Control Technology (LCT) was born, a vertical strip of Titanal (named Power Rail) buffered in an elastic laminate. LCT has big shoes to fill. It’s playing the role usually reserved for twin laminates of Titanal, but with far less mass. A little lighter weight (the Hero + has an all-poplar core) and Prop Tech, which allows the ski to deflect slightly torsionally to preserve edge contact, help this quintessential carver feel quick edge to edge. It’s a gas to make short turns that are as tightly connected as pearls on a choker.
When it comes to ski design, Salomon is confidently contrarian. It’s been like that since the beginning, when Salomon rocked the ski world with its monocoque shell construction. The French brand’s latest tack against the prevailing wind is a new generation of lightweight skis that uses flax interlaced with carbon stringers to provide the flex resistance and damping roles previously occupied by fiberglass and Titanal. It’s a formulation that works best when all dials are set to Medium: average speed, normal turn radius, modest edge angle and moderately firm snow produce secure turns with a little pep in their step.
The Völkl Yumi isn’t meant for the best skiers, but it may be the best ski for anyone hoping to become one of the best. The Yumi isn’t your typical Frontside ski. Völkl has a full line of Frontside system skis (sold with a matching binding) called Flair meant to serve the full spectrum of ladies who prefer on-piste skiing. The Yumi is more like a transition ski where the next anticipated step will be a decisive move off-piste. The Yumi is often a first-time ski purchase but not by a first-time skier. The prospective Yumi skier currently rents her gear, has out-grown a kid’s set-up or has had it with hand-me-downs. The Yumi won’t be just her on-trail, groomer ski; it will be her all-terrain, ski-whatever-is-open ski.
Whoever at Völkl came up with the model name “Deacon” deserves some recognition, like a better parking spot perhaps, for applying a moniker that matches the demeanor of the new series. The Deacon 76 moves with a serenity that comes from inner peace, one way to describe the calm that pervades every move the Deacon makes. All the Deacon models (there are four), use 3D.Glass, giving them a deep energy reserve that can be tapped by more aggressive skiing, and Titanal to amplify edge grip. Full sidewalls assure accurate communication with the edge. So the Deacon has all the power a smooth cruiser could ever need, but it doesn’t flaunt it.
