In a Finesse field infiltrated by a slew of flashy new models, the returning Salomon QST 106 still secures a podium finish in our rankings. It continues to exude the ease that is the most sought-after trait in a Finesse Big Mountain ski.

I confess I was so smitten by the QST 106 last spring that I adopted a pair as my regular deep-snow ride. I even took them to AK for a spot of heli skiing at Girdwood, where they were brilliant. To remove my obvious bias from this year’s results, I didn’t write up a card on the QST 106, so this year’s scores are unaffected by my affections.

If the QST 106’s qualities were limited to being light and floaty, it wouldn’t be such a standout. It’s the stability on edge when back on piste that knocks our test panel’s socks off. “Stable in all conditions,” coos a member of The Sport Loft coterie. “Carves well for a big ski; holds edge very well.”

After a season on the QST 106, I not only concur with this assessment, I can expand upon it. I was so confident in the QST 106’s capabilities that I took them to the MasterFit Boot Test, where they skied all manner of chopped-up powder, from the wind-hammered moonscape of the upper mountain at Bachelor, to the stash-filled glades that were on our regular route, they delivered the sort of even-tempered support that made them such a solid reference ski.

And that wasn’t the only sort of off-trail exotica they faced. There was the breakable crust at Alyeska, the wind-affected rolls buried under the powder at Mt. Rose, the rain (ugh) at Mammoth, heli-skiing in the Chugash and typical Sierra powder during a storm day at Squaw. The QST 106 didn’t care where we went or what we skied; it handled it all with consummate ease.

The reactions from our regular testers echo my experiences. Bob Kuehn of Gravity Sports writes, “The 106 certainly seeks and prefers the off piste. Still it’s a solid performer on groomed runs. An excellent choice for those who mostly ski powder and are looking for one ski to cover most options.”

For the way it handles every off-piste condition with aplomb, we again award the QST 106 a Realskiers Silver Skier Selection.