Of all the skis in the very well populated All-Mountain East genre, the Völkl Kendo exhibits both the best balance of Power and Finesse properties and the perfect blend of hard snow and soft snow performance. Of course it can’t be as quick as a 72mm Technical ski or float like a 108mm Big Mountain model, but it manages to feel at home in any habitat. The Kendo kicks butt because it combines a traditional wood and Titanal structure with a modern, rocker/camber/rocker baseline and a shape that favors off-trail conditions.
While 3D.Glass upgraded every model it touched, none rose higher in our test team’s collective appreciation than the RTM 86. The model went from being a good on-trail ski to being an all-world carver. The cambered zone underfoot is supple, allowing the midsection to bow so it matches up with the baseline of the rockered tip and tail. This makes edge-to-edge carved turns a treat, with a little energy boost from the compressed camber to carry some speed through the transition.
The Kenja doesn’t require aggression, but it rewards it. Most women back off the gas pedal when they transition into cut-up off-trail conditions, but they only way to subdue irascible old snow is to motor through it. If your skis don’t have the guts to resist the resulting vibration, you’ll be compelled to curb your ambitions. You’ll never have to hold back on a Kenja.
3D.Glass would be nothing fancier than another base layer of glass were it not for a clever modification: in the binding area the glass extends vertically up the sidewall and over the top of it. It’s sort of a demi-torsion box, with much the same effect as this time-honored glass molding technique: the ski becomes both more torsionally rigid and livelier, as the hard-wired memory of the glass will dominate the rebound characteristic.
If you’re fortunate enough to catch first tracks, it almost doesn’t matter which All-Mountain West model you’re on. They all offer approximately the same flotation, and fresh snow is so consistent that skis sustain relatively little shock. It’s on runs 2 through 20 that you’ll be particularly pleased you’re on an Aura. Cut-up snow is utter bliss if you ski it right and pure hell if you don’t. Whether you spend the day upright and smiling or upside down looking for your goggles depends a great deal on the tool you use.
