QST 99
With a forebody that’s both amply rockered and tapered, the QST 99 is screaming, “I wanna go off-trail!” as loudly as a sugar-addled urchin ululating from his parent’s shopping cart. What it’s craving is a large dose of cut-up crud or wind-crusted berms it can chop into mincemeat. Taking it off trail is the best way to get the QST 99’s tips to settle down.
While hefty lads and hard chargers might crave more metal than the dollop Salomon places underfoot, skiers with a slightly more mellow attitude will appreciate how maneuverable the QST 99 is for a ski in this category.
Bonafide
Now in its sixth year, the Bonafide has earned the right to be considered among the greatest all-terrain skis ever made. It rolls to a precise edge with the languid ease of a ballerina, then grips the snow with the tenacity of an arm wrestler.
Best of all, its determination to cut a clean arc is unperturbed by whatever lies in its path. If it’s in the snow/ice extended family, the Bonafide can overpower it with the aplomb of an invincible superhero. If you don’t know what conditions are going to prevail on any given day, or if you’re taking a trip and can only take one pair of rides with you, taking a Bonafide along provides maximum fun insurance.
Cham 2.0 97
One thing that hasn’t changed about the Cham is the shape, which houses a turn-on-a-dime slalom-turn skill set inside a longer frame that assists flotation without inhibiting pivoting. This allows the Cham 2.0 97 to smudge a turn in a tight couloir or gallop headlong down the fall line with equal facility. The way its pintail rearbody is tucked in, the Cham can be counted on to readily release the turn to avoid any awkward hang-ups.
Cham 2.0 W 97
Cham 2.0 W 97 is essentially a fat ski with a slalom sidecut (14m @ 172cm) that skis shorter than it measures without resorting to smearing sideways. As with any of our Recommended models, it can cope with the monotony of groomed slopes, but these aren’t the moments it lives for.
Like its prospective owner, it would prefer to make first tracks down a pristine pasture, but if all that’s left is a mishmash of old tracks with scattered powder pockets, the Cham 2.0 W 97 will make the most of the situation.