The story behind the 2019 edition of K2’s Pinnacle 105 Ti is a tale of error correction, optimization and resurrection. The first generation Pinnacle 105 was on the soft side, super easy to steer but showed its frailty at speed. In 2018, K2 powered up the Pinnacle 105 Ti by increasing the Titanal dosage over the edge by 20% and pumping up the camber underfoot. The resulting stability significantly improved both calm on edge and responsiveness.

It’s amazing what a little more mass will do: the new Pinnacle 105 Ti now behaves more like a Power ski than a docile cruiser, although it hasn’t lost touch with the Finesse side of its personality. The combination of more camber and more material gives the Pinnacle 105 Ti more grip and rebound on hard snow, but it’s still a robustly rockered ski, as you’d expect from the Apostles of Rocker at K2.

The Pinnacle 105 Ti is one of the rare Big Mountain skis that feels narrower than it measures, with a little extra kick through the turn transition. The improvement in hard-snow grip, while notable, hasn’t changed the Pinnacle’s predilection for soft snow. It’s still amply rockered, with a tapered tip and tail, all traits geared to off-trail conditions. Erik Korman of Gravity Sports declares, “Excellent new version. One-ski quiver contestant!”

K2 has always placed a premium on ease of operation, and the Pinnacle 105 Ti does nothing to depart from this tradition, yet its carving capability is sharp enough to merit designation as a Power Pick. “Very carvy for the amount of rocker,” proclaims a Boot Doctors’ tester who goes by the handle of Ride Winter. “Holds an amazing edge.”

As noted in this space last year, all the ballyhoo over the Pinnacle 105 Ti’s carving capacity shouldn’t obscure the obvious: this is a superior off-trail ski in a width that optimizes performance in most off-piste conditions. It’s the wheelhouse ski in the Pinnacle family, where the baseline, construction and off-trail sidecut all harmonize their strengths.