Experience 86 Basalt

The EXP 86 Basalt has been created to serve a new breed of in-bounds skier, which Rossi refers to as “All-Resort.”  Skiing is an important part of the overall resort experience, but it’s not the whole ball of wax for this resort visitor.  While this person is an avid participant, he’s not going to go wandering out of bounds and most of his powder runs will be on the side of the trail.  It’s probably safe to say he’s not going out in the worst conditions (by his definition), nor is he going to push very hard on the performance envelope.

In commercial terms, the EXP 86 Basalt is a “step-up” model, most likely a first-time purchase for a skier who has survived until now on rentals and second-hand fare. Its double-rockered baseline promotes a go-along-to-get-along attitude that encourages skills development without insisting on it. If the skier applies a little tip pressure, its supple forebody transfers energy with gentle insistence, coaching the skier up on an edge that feels confidence-building underfoot.

An aggressive skier who can’t wait to tear up the untamed backside of the mountain is better off looking at the diverse Black Ops family.  The EXP 86 Basalt is the ticket for someone who just wants to enjoy the sport without feeling unduly challenged at every turn.

The true measure of a ski like the EXP 86 Basalt isn’t simply how easy it makes the sport for the target skier; it’s how well it performs once he’s attained a higher level of proficiency.  It’s notable that the EXP 86 Basalt earned identical marks for Power and Finesse properties, just what one would hope to see in a ski intended to help skiers improve in a stress-free environment.

Sender 94 Ti

Like most of the models that populate the All-Mountain East genre, the Sender 94 Ti from Rossignol is a variation on a theme established either by a wider ski or a much wider ski.  Basically, AME models are predominantly shrunken Big Mountain models, so it shouldn’t surprise that that the Sender Ti 94 prefers its snow soft and wouldn’t mind if it were deep.  It’s geared to be accessible to the occasional skier who wants an all-terrain ski with a mellow temperament. “It’s an ideal weekend warrior ski,” notes freestyle coach Alex O’Halloran, “not a full-charger’s ski.”

The Sender 94 Ti’s amply tapered and rockered tip is meant to buffer the blows of uneven crud fields, so it’s never going to find the top of a carved turn like a Technical ski.  But when it does hook up, somewhere around the logo on the forebody, the Sender 94 Ti is simplicity itself to steer.  As long as there’s enough loose snow to engage the base of the ski, the Sender Ti 94 tracks confidently through thick and thin.

The Sender 94 Ti is part of a complete reorganization of Rossi’s off-trail offering into three distinct families: Sender, Blackops and Escaper. Escapers are for backcountry escapades, Blackops are lavishly decorated, New School twintips in narrow, medium and jumbo widths and Sender (Rallybird for women) serves directional skiers who hunt lift-served powder pockets. The star of the series is the Sender 106 Ti+, a perfect match for the strong, skilled skier who knows how to send it.  The Sender 94 Ti isn’t for that guy, but it is the right ski for the skier who wants to be that guy, but needs a little more help to get there.

Maverick 86 C

Lest there be any confusion, the Atomic Maverick 86 C didn’t crack our Recommended ranks because it’s a great ski. It earned our appreciation because it’s a remarkably good deal at its target retail of $549.95, a price plateau mostly populated by dreck.  Atomic has made a habit out of making a superior carbon ski with an 86mm footprint, going back to its first Vantage series. The Maverick 86 C continues in this grand tradition.

The Maverick 86 C is a lot of ski for $549.95. I’m not sure how they pull off this pricing coup; maybe just sharing tooling and most materials (save Titanal) with the Maverick 88 Ti is enough to generate the usual gross margin. I suspect Atomic is able to make this model very efficiently and is passing the savings down the wholesale chain. However Atomic pulls it off, the beneficiary is the typical skier who only ekes out a few days a year and hopes to make the most of them.

For its exceptional cost/value relationship in a ski that accentuates ease, we award the Maverick 86 C a Silver Skier Selection.

Kore 91 W

The Head Kore 91 W is either the best women’s ski for off-trail skiing, or the best off-trail ski for women, take your pick.  Don’t detect a difference?  Neither do we. The properties that make the Kore 91 W a great women’s ski and those that make it ideally suited for off-piste conditions are the same.

No matter which side of this equation you’re on, the Kore 91 W got a shot in the arm two years ago when Head incorporated several new elements into the Kore design. First, it redecorated the interior, tearing out artificial Koroyd honeycomb and replacing it with its blended Karuba/poplar wood core.  The switch to all-wood makes a difference in the feedback the skier receives from the snow, so the ski feels supportive but not fussy about how it’s handled.

Whether you’re taking your first strides into the sidecountry – or perhaps the backcountry? – or you earned your off-trail stripes long ago, the Kore 91 W is a gas to have along for the ride. You’ll be amazed by the amount of energy you can save by skiing the right ski off-trail. The Kore 91 W reigns supreme in this department. For its many energy-saving attributes, we award the Kore 91 W a Silver Skier Selection.

Black Pearl 88

Blizzard already had the best-selling ski in the U.S., men’s or women’s, when it made two changes to the Black Pearl 88 that made the best even better.  The first major sweetener was TrueBlend, a meticulously arranged parquet of lightweight poplar and denser beech that is adapted for every length, and coordinated with modifications to the baseline and sidecut. The goal of TrueBlend is a perfectly balanced flex that feels smooth yet energetic.

The second major booster was a women’s-specific Titanal plate underfoot that spreads its calming effect over nearly the full length of the ski. “Every length is calibrated to create an optimal, round flex that travels well in all conditions,” notes Blizzard tester Cara Williams.  “The latest Pearls are actually slightly heavier (+150g) than the previous model,” she notes, “but I discovered after only 3 or 4 high-speed turns, that once you click in, the function and performance outweigh the literal weight of a ski – it’s more important to be the right weight than light weight.”

“It’s a good single-ski-quiver that’s easy to ski,” sums up Lara Hughes Allen, arriving at the same conclusion as thousands of other satisfied women before her.