Salomon took an interesting tack with their all-new QST line. They wanted to up the performance ante without losing two traits that have become identified with their ski line: lighter than average weight and lower than average price compared to other models in their respective genres.

So the designers at Salomon pared weight wherever they could spare it yet still managed to magnify edging power by switching to square sidewalls. (The preceding Quest family used Salomon’s signature monocoque construction.) Every tester agreed the QST 99 is a more substantial and responsive ski than the Q-98 it supplants in the line.

With a forebody that’s both amply rockered and tapered, the QST 99 is screaming, “I wanna go off-trail!” as loudly as a sugar-addled urchin ululating from his parent’s shopping cart. What it’s craving is a large dose of cut-up crud or wind-crusted berms it can chop into mincemeat. Taking it off trail is the best way to get the QST 99’s tips to settle down.

While hefty lads and hard chargers might crave more metal than the dollop Salomon places underfoot, skiers with a slightly more mellow attitude will appreciate how maneuverable the QST 99 is for a ski in this category.

Dave Garner, a wily veteran of the ski trade and a Masters’ racing champion many times over, found the QST 99 to be perfectly balanced between Finesse and Power properties, penning, “The most versatile of the new [QST] family, with plenty of power for the aggressive skier, yet forgiving enough for the progressing intermediate.”

Returning to the “lower than average price” point, expect the QST 99 to retail for around $100 less than the norm for flagship models in the AMW category.