Reckoner 102
One of my favorite bump skis that wasn’t intended to be a bump ski was the K2 Shreditor 102 (circa 2105). Of course it couldn’t be as quick a real mogul ski edge to edge, so it did most of its navigation by slaving through the troughs and slinking around the lumpy bits. The new Reckoner 102 is in several respects the same ski, albeit embellished in ways its ancestor was not.
The similarities are hard to miss. The shape of the 184cm is identical save for a tip that’s 3mm wider on the Reckoner, giving it a marginally (.7m) snugger sidecut radius. Both Shreditor and Reckoner rely on K2’s patented Triaxial braid for its basic structure, but the latter reinforces it with lengthwise carbon stringers for added resilience and rebound. Both vintages use Aspen in the core, although the Shreditor complemented it with featherweight Paulownia while the Reckoner uses Aspen in concert with denser fir. Both have relatively low camber underfoot, use a reinforced sidewall for added resistance to ski-on-ski damage and both, of course, are twin-tips. Mercifully, the Reckoner 102, like the Shreditor before it, doesn’t need to be skied upside down and backwards to be enjoyed. If you like a ski that’s playful, poppy and super simple to drift, it can serve as an all-mountain ski for some who is aerially inclined. If you want to take your Pipe & Park skills to the sidecountry, the Reckoner 102 wants to come with you.
Mindbender 88 Ti Alliance
Tester: Emma Whitelande
I hop on the chairlift, three other women next to me, yet we don’t speak a word. We are all utterly focused on the run we just took and getting our thoughts down on our test cards while they are fresh in our mind. Now as I glance down, I see four different versions of what is to ultimately become the Mindbender 88Ti Alliance. This is the first test of many to come with the goal of creating one of the most versatile skis for women.
With each subsequent test and discussion, we all agreed we sought to create a ski that felt stable, balanced and confidence inspiring to a range of skier types. Too heavy of a ski would steer many women away, but too light meant the ski would constantly deflect and bounce around. An overly stiff ski would require too much muscling and race technique to get the ski to bend.
Titanal Y-Beam construction evolved through the process of developing the desired weight and stiffness for the women’s 88Ti. Titanal is laid over the ski in a ‘Y’ shape creating the flex profile, producing precise turn initiation while allowing for easy release out of a turn. Having the metal laid out in a ‘Y’ allows for a weight savings while maintaining desired stiffness. The Titanal Y-Beam created for the Mindbender 88 Ti Alliance became the design that was applied to the rest of the Mindbender collection, both for men and women.
Mindbender 90C Alliance
Tester: Kim Reichhelm
When we design a new ski the first thing we do is develop the chassis (the shape of the ski including sidecut, camber and rocker) that will be the basis for each women’s mold. At K2, all women’s skis have their own, length-specific mold.
My days of being a big mountain ripper are past. I have a closet full of trophies and a body covered in scars. My goal these days is to be the most fluid skier on the mountain. I want my skis to complement my style and not punish me when I make a mistake. The Mindbender 90C Alliance is my go-to resort ski and the most popular ski for my Women’s Ski Adventure clients. The C stand for carbon; there is no metal in this ski making it more flexible tip to tail, which allows it to engage into the turn easily and be more forgiving coming out. The carbon adds torsional rigidity that keeps the ski from chattering on hard snow and adds some snap for carving and in bumps. The versatility of this ski is what makes it so fantastic. It carves, it skids, it’s fun in the bumps and even has some float in a little bit of fresh snow. The best part is, I don’t have to work hard to ski fluidly on this ski.
Mindbender 98 Ti Alliance
Tester: McKenna Peterson
The first time I skied on what is now the Mindbender 98Ti Alliance was during our second round of testing at Crystal Mountain, Washington. It had snowed a bit up high but had rained down low on the mountain so conditions were variable. I’m a big mountain skier and have always preferred fatter skis for float and stability at speed, but there was something about this 98mm underfoot ski that made my jaw drop. Up high, the 98Ti floated through the powder, perfectly balanced between riding on top and diving too deep. The ski carved through the nasty re-frozen wet snow of the lower mountain as if it were butter. The ski was both confident and playful. We had a winner.
So much so that the engineers ended up adapting the new Torsion Control Design as finalized for the 98Ti for the entire men’s and women’s Mindbender collection. Torsion Control Design allows the ski to be stable and confident throughout the turn while also giving the option to release on a dime and playfully maneuver. This quality makes the 98Ti my ‘go to’ resort ski for any and all conditions. Fun fact: this ski graces the cover of the 2019 December issue of SKI magazine and the photo was taken after an unusual 40” dump at Sun Valley. Yeah, she’s skinny but she rips in the powder.