Blizzard has been serving up one home run product after another since their launch of the Flip Core construction for the 2011/12 season. Except in one department: over that span of time they’ve wrestled with the right formula for a woman’s Powder ski.  They began by giving womankind every chance to go big by creating a woman’s Cochise called the Dakota, metal laminates, 108mm waist and all.  The first generation Dakota was such a fall-line bomber that it bombed at the box office, failing to match the market momentum enjoyed by the similarly built boys in the Blizzard band, such as the Bonafide.

Two years ago, the Dakota dropped the metal laminates but kept the same shape.  The ski was softer, but with a 27m radius (177cm), still reluctant to stray far from the fall line.  Now with the Sheeva they’ve finally found what they’ve sought for 3 seasons, a strong ski that doesn’t require abnormal strength to steer.  A confidence-building carver, the Sheeva can just as easily throw it into a four-wheel drift when so summoned.

Yvette from Bobo’s, a strong young racer, was lucky to try the Sheeva on an all-too-rare powder day during (another) low snow year. “Really good for the powder and garbage in the trees,” she crowed, giving it perfect scores for off-piste performance and low-speed turning, two qualities that come in particularly handy in tight glades.  Yvette gave the Sheeva the tester’s ultimate accolade: “I’d consider buying these for myself.”