To give you an idea of what a steal the Bent Chetler 100 was when it was introduced three years ago, Atomic understandably raised its retail price by $100 a year later, and it was still the best value in the category. But the Bent Chetler 100 is more than just a good deal; it’s a wonderfully versatile ski that’s as easy to ski in off-trail conditions as any AMW model at any price.
The key to the Bent Chetler 100’s charms is its Horizon Tech tip and tail which are rockered on both axes. By crowning its extremities, the littler Chetler feels like it can drift in any direction on a whim without losing control of trajectory. When in its element, it’s the epitome of ease, rolling over terrain like a spatula over icing.
The Bent Chetler 100 is all about freedom of expression rather than the tyranny of technical turns. So what if its liberty-loving tip doesn’t want to show up early in the turn? That’s not its shtick. It has talents Technical skis never imagined, like throwing it in reverse off a precipice. It’s light, it’s easy to pivot and it’s wide enough to float in two feet of fresh. If you evaluate the Bent Chetler 100 for what it does rather than what it isn’t meant to do, it’s an all-star in a league of its own.
“These are the top of the heap when it comes to blending playfulness with precision,” observes Boot Doctors’ Bob Gleason, who has been assessing skis for almost as long as your esteemed Editor. “Easy to ski in variable conditions, it arcs and scrubs with dexterity.”
Just this past winter I was privileged to observe at close quarters just how high the Bent Chetler 100’s performance ceiling is. I was invited for a casual ski day that turned out to include one Daron Rahlves. Daron could ski on any Atomic he might fancy, and I could understand if he’d like to take the odd holiday from a race ski. But I didn’t expect to see him on the BC 100, skiing along as if he were on a skiercross rocket. (He hip-checked me on a shallow straight section in a sign of brotherhood I’ll not soon forget.) Even on Mt. Rose, he couldn’t resist dropping into the occasional tuck, folding his body into the shape of a croquet wicket.
If his skis were holding him back, he didn’t show it. For all I know, he was on some experimental race ski disguised to look like the Chetler 100, but I doubt it. Within the recreational speed range we (mostly) respected that morning, Daron’s skis had no problem maintaining a brisk pace, and we were on firm snow, hardly its wheelhouse. I realize Rahlves could make any ski look fast and stable, but still, impressive.
Although the Bent Chetler 100 is a directional ski, its unique design lends itself to omni-directional skiing. This pegs its probable skier profile as a young male with aerial antics on his bucket list. But it would be underselling the Bent Chetler 100 to lump it with Pipe & Park twin-tips. Its preference for soft snow is hardly a character flaw in an All-Mountain West model. Anyone looking for a great value in an all-terrain ski can’t do any better than a Bent Chetler 100.
