The fate of Blizzard’s new Phoenix R14 Pro epitomizes the plight of the entire genre: although it’s almost certainly the highest performing Women’s Technical ski Blizzard has ever made, neither it nor its stablemate, the Frontside Phoenix R13 Ti, will make it to our shores this season.
What a pity, as we can infer from its unisex incarnation, the Thunderbird R15, that the Phoenix R14 Pro would be a ripper. This is not a design intended to tiptoe down the hill; its shape and its construction are made to fire down the fall line and blast off the edge. The Phoenix design is a product of Blizzard’s Women-2-Women program, but remember, the women concerned are ex-racers who haven’t forgot how to arc ‘em and spark ‘em. This is a ski the testers made for themselves. Maybe we’ll see it next year…


