Women who bought a pair of Luvs when this nameplate was first adopted by K2 a couple of product generations ago may be scarred by memories of how heavy they were.  The old Luvs earned your affections by driving with the stability of a Coupe de Ville, with about the same feel for the road.

K2 heard the collective groans of their countless faithful followers hefting their skis to their shoulder and took decisive action.  The new Luvs, like the Luv Sick 80 Ti, have had several operations to improve responsiveness.  First, K2 liposuctioned all the dampening goop off the top layer.  Then, taking a page from the new Konic technology, they trimmed the Titanal laminate down to a thin strip outlining the ski’s perimeter, to create extra edge bite without extra lbs.  Finally, they created the Channel Light Core. Made from aspen, Paulownia and bamboo, the Channel Light Core would be featherweight even it weren’t whittled on, but K2 takes the extra step of milling material out of the ski’s mid-section.

If you elect to mate the Luv Sick 80 Ti with its matching Marker binding, you’ll add $200 to the MSRP but you won’t be adding a lot of extra weight, as K2 has worked with Marker to trim excess fat from the binding, too.  The new Markers feature a fresh heel design that improves ease of entry, always a bonus.

The payoff for all this dieting is a ski that flows effortlessly edge-to-edge.  The accent still falls on ease, the quintessential K2 trait.  The Luv Sick 80 Ti is more concerned about making the ski simple to guide into a slow, controlled, short-radius carve than it is with staying calm beyond the recreational speed range.  The Luv Sick 80 Ti has more than enough moxie for the 20-day-per-season skier and best of all, won’t remind her if she’s skipped a few off-season work-outs.