The Völkl Secret 92 has sufficient surface area to qualify as an off-trail specialist, but temperamentally she’s a carving kind of gal. Far from being a bit loosey-goosey in the tip, like many skis meant to travel off-piste, the Secret 92 is built to keep its slightly rockered tips and tails from inhibiting the prime directive: stay connected.
The Secret 92 has the highest score in the All-Mountain East genre for hooking up early, and it’s well earned. The biggest and thickest metal sections in its unique Titanal Frame construction wrap around the tip and tail. (A little extra carbon in the tip adds a little more buffering with minimal mass.) By moving the most weight to where the core is thinnest, its effectiveness at maintaining snow contact is maximized.
The way the Titanal Frame breaks the customary top Ti laminate into three parts allows the glass laminate below it to flex and rebound more freely. This injection of liveliness offsets the potentially ponderous effects of so much metal. The Secret 92 hits the sweet spot between pure power and playful pouncing. “They’re a great balance of lightness to performance,” agrees Stacy from the Squaw Valley squad. “These skis can crush all types of terrain and still felt super stable and confident at high speeds, despite a little chatter.”
Maybe the Secret 92’s little secret is that she would rather be carving. With a 16m-sidecut radius in a 163cm, short turns are easily summoned with a modest application of edge angle. Because the Secret 92 craves snow contact, it’s good at following the fragmented terrain found in today’s moguls. Should the off-piste beckon, the Secret 92 can take its carving tools off-trail and let its broad beam take care of the occasional need to drift.
Despite its high-octane performance level, the Secret 92 has a soft spot for skiers of lesser skills who can use its superb balance to help them find their wings. Julie Matises from the Squaw Valley Ski School found the Secret 92 to be “playful and easy. You can be easy-going or more aggressive entering the turn and still get performance,” according to the longtime instructor.
