Quattro W 8.0 Ca
Part of the Quattro concept is to offer a choice of waist width, length and sidecut for a given construction and price point. The Quattro W 8.0 Ca has a sister ski, the 7.4 Ca, with the identical build, baseline and sidecut radius for each size, but an overall narrower silhouette. That both skis feel stable yet flexible is partly attributable to Blizzard’s IQ binding system that centers the integrated binding between two shoulders and fixes it to the ski with a single screw in the middle. A shock-dampening suspension system keeps the ride calm but doesn’t inhibit the Quattro W 8.0 Ca’s unusually sensitive snow feel.
Black Pearl
While the 2017 Pearl is assuredly lighter and flexier, it’s essential character hasn’t changed. By nature an off-trail ski, it has enough torsional rigidity to cut crisply into hard snow. Its ability to instantly adapt to changes in terrain and snow conditions make the Black Pearl the perfect pick for the woman who is ready to try off-trail skiing but also expects to partake of an equal measure of groomers.
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.
Cochise
If you drop the reins and put the Cochise in charge, “no terrain can stand in its way,” as Eric from Footloose confirms. This is one ski that won’t back down in the face of adversity, no matter what form it takes, be it wind crust, corn that’s turned to porridge or simply whatever’s still left to plunder after 11:00 AM on a powder day.
If this sounds like the Cochise hasn’t changed much after a couple of make-overs to thin the core and add carbon to the ends of its Flip Core, well, it has changed and it hasn’t. There’s no question it’s become more user-friendly as far as its pilot is concerned, but it continues to want to dominate whatever off-road condition it confronts.