2024 Volkl Secret 96
1

Ski Stats

Sidecut 135/96/119
Radius 27m/16m/22m @ 170cm
Lengths 149,156,163,170,177
Weight 1840g @ 163cm
MSRP $749.99
FIND
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Völkl takes product development very, very seriously, testing nearly 1,000 different skis a year, in every length it will manufacture. It uses a team of both in-house product designers and a dozen or so “externals” - top instructors and racers - to evaluate every design aspect. Their task is made trickier in that key design elements like Tailored Titanal Frame, 3D Sidecut, Tailored Carbon Tips and the Secret 96’s double-rockered baseline, all need to blend together for the magic to happen. I mention this because the Secret 96 is essentially the same ski as the M6 Mantra, which sounds like a short-cut way to gin up a women’s ski.  Far from it. One of the essential design goals of both new skis was to precisely tailor all aspects for all sizes, a process particularly beneficial for the largest and smallest sizes. Every decision was challenged in service to the main goals: more liveliness when pressured; accessible, tighter turn shapes; and smoother behavior in the turn transition, the “drift-to-carve” moment.  The intent was to open up both the M6 Mantra and the Secret 96 to more skiers, especially in the shorter lengths, i.e., those made for women. Völkl has a long history of developing strong women’s skis, like the Kenja, Aura and Kiku. With the Secret 96, Völkl has created another fabulous, benchmark model able to provide extraordinary performance that’s accessible to larger swath of the women’s market.

Völkl takes product development very, very seriously, testing nearly 1,000 different skis a year, in every length it will manufacture. It uses a team of both in-house product designers and a dozen or so “externals” – top instructors and racers – to evaluate every design aspect. Their task is made trickier in that key design elements like Tailored Titanal Frame, 3D Sidecut, Tailored Carbon Tips and the Secret 96’s double-rockered baseline, all need to blend together for the magic to happen.

I mention this because the Secret 96 is essentially the same ski as the M6 Mantra, which sounds like a short-cut way to gin up a women’s ski.  Far from it. One of the essential design goals of both new skis was to precisely tailor all aspects for all sizes, a process particularly beneficial for the largest and smallest sizes. Every decision was challenged in service to the main goals: more liveliness when pressured; accessible, tighter turn shapes; and smoother behavior in the turn transition, the “drift-to-carve” moment.  The intent was to open up both the M6 Mantra and the Secret 96 to more skiers, especially in the shorter lengths, i.e., those made for women.

Three design features unique to the Secret 96 work especially well for the lighter skier. Tailored Titanal Frame is a big deal because extra weight in the shovel can make a ski feel hard to initiate for the petite. Now every size in the line has its own Titanal Frame part.  Tailored Carbon Tips allow the designer to put carbon in exactly the formation desired, overcoming the limitations of prepreg weaves that only come in fixed patterns. It’s one of the secrets to the Secret’s sublime turn entry. A third subtlety is a 5cm slit in the .3mm-thick central Titanal platform, to reduce the ski’s torsional stiffness just ahead of the binding. It’s this sort of attention to every detail that makes a great ski great.

Völkl has a long history of developing strong women’s skis, like the Kenja, Aura and Kiku. With the Secret 96, Völkl has created another fabulous, benchmark model able to provide extraordinary performance that’s accessible to larger swath of the women’s market.

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Women’s Test Data Advisory

Please be advised that our 2022 women’s ski reviews do not show any test data, on either our public or members’ sites. Due to circumstances beyond our control, we haven’t been able to collect sufficient test results to justify showing a statistical summary.

While Realskiers members won’t be able to see stats on women’s reviews, they will see a longer, more in-depth narrative than what’s posted on our public site.

We appreciate your continued support through these troublesome times.