Monster 88
Much about the Monster line from Head is contrarian in nature: they want to engage early (the tips aren’t tapered), the tail holds onto a carve (they’re only rounded enough to avoid hang-ups), they use absurdly light materials but don’t obsess about overall weight, and every ski is built the same and priced the same despite wider skis having higher material costs.
Every Monster could also give a hoot about what’s it’s flying into. The Monster 88 would make a good ski for a Marvel™ Avenger: it’s not afraid of conflict. Aim it at snow with the consistency of fluff or foie gras; it could care less.
Monster 83
[The test results and review for the Monster 83 are from 2016; its only changes for 2017 are cosmetic.] All of Head’s new Monster models are allegedly built with the same construction and materials (they share a mutual price tag of $800 MSRP), but they don’t ski that...Power Instinct Ti Pro
This year’s jury was unequivocal: the Power Instinct Ti Pro belongs on the Power podium. Its everything-including-the-kitchen-sink construction isn’t impressed with any snow condition found on this planet, tearing into terrain like piranha with edges. A wide circle of skier types is able to steer it, in part because it adds a dab of Graphene™ – how do you measure a material reduced to atoms? – through the midsection of the ski, making the tip and tail more pressure-sensitive.