As an all-terrain tool, the Legend X 88 is expected to perform at an elite level on groomers as well as off-piste. The basic design is already optimized for off-trail antics, so Dynastar elevated its hard snow chops by adding metal laminates for good measure. (The 88 is the only Legend X model so equipped.) The increases in horsepower allowed the Legend X 88 to slip in among our Recommended Power models.
While the inclusion of metal indubitably makes the Legend X 88 a better ski than its mates, it still shares with them a fundamentally easy-going disposition. “It’s a great all-around ski,” confides Bobo’s Theron Lee, an admitted Dynastar admirer. “Smooth and stable at speed, easy to turn. Tip does move a lot, but not as distracting as it sounds. 88 width makes it good in both firm and soft snow.”
The co-author of Snowbird Secrets, “Guru” Dave Powers, skis on a Dynastar Legend X 96. Its entire forebody serves as a shock-sucking buffer, due to a 3-piece segment of sidewall that frees up the laminates in the core to sheer. This allows the ski to conform to terrain it would otherwise ram into, and is a particular pleasure in powder as it lets the ski bow without having to charge the fall line.
The absence of end-to-end Titanal laminates also plays to Powers requirements. (The Legend X 96 has a Ti insert underfoot to stabilize this critical zone.) No metal slabs means less weight onboard, means less stress on his ravaged knees. Absent the torsional rigidity of full Ti laminates, the 96mm Legend X skis narrower than it measures, which is a significant blessing for skiers with little to no cartilage left. For providing a smooth, easy-flexing ride that won’t buck its rider, we again award the Legend X 96 a Silver Skier Selection.
Twenty years ago Dynastar produced a signature ski for Jeremy Nobis – then regarded as the game-changing big mountain skier of his generation – called the Inspired. The point behind this oblique introduction to the Legend X 106 is that the Legends of today aren’t made for the Jeremy Nobises of this world. Instead of being stiffer than the norm, the Legend X 106 gets its silky ride by deliberately softening the forebody so it will conform to irregular terrain when driven at recreational speeds. What makes the modern Legend X 106 more malleable than its ancestors is a 3-piece sidewall called Powerdrive.
Developed for its Speed Zone race skis – albeit with a different mix of materials – Powerdrive breaks up the bond between the laminates in the core and the rigid outer sidewall. Without heavy Titanal laminates to cast a cloud over its inherently peppy personality, the Legend X 106 feels quicker to the edge than the norm among Big Mountain models.
Blizzard’s Flipcore baseline, the heart and soul of the Black Pearl 98, has probably been the most commercially successful execution of a double-rockered baseline since rocker first reared its ugly head (and tail) over a decade ago. Flipcore certainly has left a mark on the women’s market, where the Black Pearl franchise is a well-oiled sales machine.
The Black Pearl 98 isn’t the sales phenom that it’s little sister is, but then nothing can match the records being set by the Black Pearl 88. The reason for the sales imbalance is simple: the BP 88 is an everyday ski, the proverbial one-ski quiver if ever there was one. While the BP 98 could be the regular ride if the pilot is a strong skier, both physically and technically, but more often than not it’s going to a second pair reserved for powder and powder-ish days.
Whether or not the Black Pearl 98 is right for you is answered by a simple equation. If you spend half your ski day (or more) as far from groomers as you can get, the Black Pearl 98 is your ideal mate. If you’re spending more than half your time on prepared slopes, hook up with its little sister.
