100 Eight
The Völkl 100 Eight didn’t change between last season and whenever you’re reading this sentence, but it did the year before, and therein lies the tale. Prior to its transformation, the 100 Eight already was sculpted into Völkl’s signature 3D.Ridge shape that seems to pare away every extra atom of ski. 3D.Ridge first appeared on the V-Werks Katana, where it was – and continues to be – pressed from layer upon layer of carbon. As applied to the 100 Eight, 3D.Ridge is formed from fiberglass, with carbon relegated to the role of stringers through the wood core. The original 100 Eight mimicked the Katana’s structure, but didn’t match its gripping power. Last year Völkl added 3D.Glass to 3D.Ridge and a perfect union was formed. The transformation couldn’t be more dramatic, like the nerd in high school who overnight evolves into a rock star.
RTM 86
The Volkl RTM 86 is at heart an XL Frontside ski that outgrew the rest of its class, landing it in the All-Mountain East genre, where it’s a little out of place. It tries to fit in with the rest of the AME family, adopting the de rigeur tip and tail rocker that is deemed essential for off-trail skiing. But just as fat skis with floppy tips beg to be taken off-piste, the RTM 86 longs to gallop down groomers where it doesn’t have to worry about irregular terrain breaking up its beautiful carves. If we were to classify skis by their predilections instead of their dimensions, the RTM 86 would be a Luxury Carver, with the silky ride of a six-figure sedan. If it acts uninterested in slower speeds and shorter turns, it’s because it can’t wait to get up to speed and show off what it does best. After all, who buys a car with five forward gears based on how it performs in first?
Kendo
The Völkl Kendo has been around so long it should be considered the founding father of the All-Mountain East genre. True, it hasn’t always been the same ski, evolving over the years from a fully cambered, hard-snow centric model to a double rockered affair with a wider waist and tapered tip, all accommodations to improve its off-trail aptitude. The Kendo of today is indeed much more amenable to maneuvering in tracked-up powder than its ancestors of the same name. It’s become more than just a wide carving tool; it’s now the paradigm of the all-condition ski. The 2019 Kendo is a powerful ski, but not in a showy, take-no-prisoners style.
RTM 84
The RTM 84 uses Völkl’s signature 3D.Ridge construction, essentially a thin fiberglass shell draped over a central, wood-core plateau. Last year Völkl added a bottom layer of glass that latches onto the top of the sidewall, converting the RTM 84’s laminate construction into a 2-part torsion box. What this tech mumbo-jumbo means is the 2019 RTM 84 is livelier, stronger on edge, holds better on hard snow and is more resistant to getting batted around in sloppy bumps. The edging power and stability at speed that are practically Völkl trademarks are evident in every turn. Its tip and tail are rockered to take out any ruffles in the turn transition, but it’s the cambered area underfoot that gives the RTM 84 its distinctive bite.