QST 92
Let the record show that no ski made as giant a leap forward in 2020 as the Salomon QST 92. In its two earlier incarnations it barely met our Recommended minimum standards, barely hanging on the tail end of the Finesse ski standings. Now it resides at the top, and the result is no fluke.
The new QST has more of everything you want – edging power on trail, a better shape for off-trail, a more solid platform – and less of what you don’t want: tip chatter, indifferent grip, overall looseness. Salomon pulled off this coup by reconfiguring how it used its primary components, flax, basalt and, of course, carbon. The basalt and carbon are now woven together in an end-to-end matrix, while the flax gets its own mat directly underfoot. An all-poplar core is reinforced by a patch of Titanal in the mid-section and finished with new cork inserts in the tip and tail.
Power Picks: High-Geared & Gifted
The better your ability, the more you’ll appreciate one of our Power Picks. Not that one has to be a flawless technical skier, but there’s not much point in saddling up a Power ski unless one has the talents to extract its best behaviors. If honest self-appraisal...Ripstick 86 W
Most of our feedback on the Ripstick 86 W came from eastern skiers who had no chance to test it in western off-trail conditions. Considering it was somewhat a fish out of water, its scores are even more remarkable. “I felt very comfortable and confident on this ski, writes one of Willi’s Divas. “For an 86, it carved well on hard pack. Perfect ski for cruising down soft groomed powder as the ski would do most of the work. Nice, light weight too.” A major benefit of a lighter ski is energy conservation, a point not lost on the Diva who wrote, “This was the last ski of the day I tried and I really liked it. Despite being 86 underfoot, I found it skied like a more traditional sidecut ski.”