Blizzard already had the best-selling ski in the U.S., men’s or women’s, when it made two changes to the Black Pearl 88 that made the best even better. The first major sweetener was TrueBlend, a meticulously arranged parquet of lightweight poplar and denser beech that is adapted for every length, and coordinated with modifications to the baseline and sidecut. The goal of TrueBlend is a perfectly balanced flex that feels smooth yet energetic.
The second major booster was a women’s-specific Titanal plate underfoot that spreads its calming effect over nearly the full length of the ski. “Every length is calibrated to create an optimal, round flex that travels well in all conditions,” notes Blizzard tester Cara Williams. “The latest Pearls are actually slightly heavier (+150g) than the previous model,” she notes, “but I discovered after only 3 or 4 high-speed turns, that once you click in, the function and performance outweigh the literal weight of a ski – it’s more important to be the right weight than light weight.”
Nicole Iroff from Peter Glenn was smitten from the get-go. “What can I say this ski has it all,” she raves. Click into your bindings and off you go. Super early to the edge, super easy to turn. They’re so easy to ski and so much fun they are completely effortless. This sweet weight is so easy to go from one turn into the next. I highly recommend this ski for a solid intermediate to advanced intermediate skier.
While I agree with Nicole that the Black Pearl 88 provides a great ski for an average skier to progress on, this underselling its virtues. I skied the Pearl 88 in a 177cm, at Jackson Hole, no less, and I can attest it wasn’t made for intermediates. Don’t get me wrong, it’s not a Bonafide, but nor is it meant to be. (Blizzard once made such a ski, the Dakota, and it bombed.) It’s meant to react to light pressure and conform to terrain rather than crush it. I agree with Nicole that it’s not too much ski for an intermediate, assuming it’s properly sized, but she puts too low a ceiling on its possibilities. “It’s a good single-ski-quiver that’s easy to ski,” sums up Lara Hughes Allen, arriving at the same conclusion as thousands of other satisfied women before her.
