2021 Fischer Ranger 99 Ti
1

Ski Stats

Sidecut 130/97/121
Radius 18m @ 181cm
Lengths 174,181,188
Weight 1950g @ 181cm
MSRP $799.99
FIND
Power Score:

Finesse Score:

3
0
0
Fischer has been tinkering with its off-trail Ranger collection over the span of several seasons, searching for the fine line between lightweight, with its attendant ease of operation, and elite carving capability that can handle the transition to hard snow. The Ranger 99 Ti tilts the scales in favor of stability, amping up the carving power by reverting to square, ABS sidewalls straddling a classic, wood-and-Titanal sandwich. A carbon inlay in the tip lowers swingweight and overall mass, which is substantial enough to keep it calm on corduroy, yet feels comparatively light when tearing through crud. By tweaking everything – core, baseline, sidewalls – Fischer transformed this commercially important model from a lightweight who got beat up by mean conditions like hard snow or chunky crud into a lean machine that doesn’t take any crap from any kind of snow, no matter what the Eskimos call it. Realskiers testers lauded the Ranger 99 Ti’s agility for a ski of its girth, calling it “nimble and quick to turn,” “light and playful,” and “best short turns of the big mountain, soft snow skis.” Its relatively zippy reflexes belie a sublime stability at speed that eluded the previous generation of Rangers but is inbred in the new 99 Ti. “It’s a solid edition to the Fischer family,” vows Jack Walzer of Jan’s, who has been an aficionado of Fischers for a generation.

Fischer has been tinkering with its off-trail Ranger collection over the span of several seasons, searching for the fine line between lightweight, with its attendant ease of operation, and elite carving capability that can handle the transition to hard snow. The Ranger 99 Ti tilts the scales in favor of stability, amping up the carving power by reverting to square, ABS sidewalls straddling a classic, wood-and-Titanal sandwich. A carbon inlay in the tip lowers swingweight and overall mass, which is substantial enough (+150g vs. 18/19 Ranger 98 Ti) to keep it calm on corduroy, yet feels comparatively light when tearing through crud.

A veteran tester from Joe’s Ski Shop [MN] summarizes his impressions of some of the Ranger 99 Ti’s more subtle changes: “The current model has a slight construction change from the previous one (18/19) – a change in the core materials and a bit less tip and tail rocker. Makes the ski a bit better at tip engagement with a bit more all-mountain feel to it over last year’s ski. Overall, I’d say it makes what was a very good ski even better, especially for in-bounds skiing out West where you can go from powder to groomed to crud all in one run.”

Other testers laud the Ranger 99 Ti’s agility for a ski of its girth, calling it “nimble and quick to turn,” “light and playful,” and “best short turns of the big mountain, soft snow skis.” Its relatively zippy reflexes belie a sublime stability at speed that eluded the previous generation of Rangers but is inbred in the new 99 Ti. “It’s a solid edition to the Fischer family,” vows Jack Walzer of Jan’s, who has been an aficionado of Fischers for a generation.

By tweaking everything – core, baseline, sidewalls – Fischer transformed this commercially important model from a lightweight who got beat up by mean conditions like hard snow or chunky crud into a lean machine that doesn’t take any crap from any kind of snow, no matter what the Eskimos call it. A look behind the scenes at Fischer reveals the hand of Mike Hattrup, yes, the same Mike Hattrup who starred alongside Plake and Schmidt in Blizzard of Aahhh’s 30 years ago. Hattrup has been at Fischer long enough to positively influence the direction of the venerable Austrian brand’s Ranger series of skis and boots, a development that bodes well for all parties.