To understand whom the Dynastar Menace 98 is for, think male adolescent. Since some men retain a dominant adolescent streak until, well, death, this target market definition is a little vague, but assume fun-factor trumps technical precision, that its twin tips are actually likely to aim backwards periodically and soft snow is vastly preferred over hard. There’s a touch of Titanal underfoot, but don’t mistake this as a secret urge to arc and spark on groomers. Groomers are where geeks convene; one look at the Menace 98’s retro Hawaiian graphics tells you only the cool are going to get it.

As is the case with many twins, the Menace 98 isn’t an example of cutting-edge tech, relying instead on a simple glass/popular lay-up to deliver the goods. With no extra dampening agents to douse its lively disposition, the Menace 98’s glass laminates behave like big leaf springs, propelling the pilot across the fall line into what one hopes will be a soft landing in the middle of the next turn. Put hard, flat snow underneath it and it will be as uncooperative as any teen when pressed to do something he intuitively dislikes.

With a name like Menace, this Dynastar sounds like a handful, but it actually takes instruction well. (As long as we’re not talking about hard snow carving, which lies outside its definition of “fun.”) It’s simplicity itself to pivot, which is essential if you’re going to ride it like a beast with two heads. Even if your intent is to always face downhill, this putty-knife smear-ability comes in handy in lumpy off-trail conditions where a narrower twin-tip won’t move sideways with equal facility.

And when the snow is light and fluffy and you can set your own line, the Menace 98 bounces off the base of a bottomless turn and uses that energy to surface and slash to the other side of the fall line. Whether you prefer your powder turns to be forward, backward or sideways, the Menace 98 is ready to accommodate.