The Völkl RTM 81 hasn’t changed since last season, but a few of our far-flung panel re-examined the 2017 edition, so we blended the two years of results and ended up pretty much where we landed last year.

The RTM 81 was made for marauding groomers and while its composition has evolved over the years, its preferred pathways and mode of transport haven’t. The RTM 81 is every centimeter a carving ski; well, make that every centimeter minus a sliver of tip and tail rocker to maintain street cred as a do-it-all model.

At one point in its journey, the RTM 81 was flat underfoot, and flat best describes how it skied. While it’s comforting to have some smear-ability on board even in a carving ski, if drift is its dominant trait then the ski is in the wrong genre. Last year the camber genie re-appeared, granting the RTM 81’s wish to be a real carving ski again. It’s been ripping up the Frontside ever since.

Anytime two models dwell side-by-side in the same product line, comparisons beg to be illuminated. (We’re not supposed to compare children, either, but it happens.) Our experience is the RTM 81 and RTM 84 UVO ski very much alike, only the RTM 81 omits the shock-damping UVO device that helps the wider ski keep the forebody quieter on edge. The UVO isn’t a placebo, but neither is it the Second Coming. Smoother snow and a more moderate the pace is enough to keep the RTM 81 in its traces, comfortably spooling out a variety of turn shapes on command.