The Black Pearl 88 is the most popular women’s ski of its generation, but there’s a new gal in town itching for an off-trail showdown. The contender, the Sheeva 9, comes from another branch of the Blizzard model tree, one with a history of making softer off-trail skis that emphasize ease and liveliness over bulldozer strength.

The Sheeva’s signature feature, dubbed D.R.T. for Dynamic Release Technology, is visible in outline just below the topskin. It’s a partial sheet of Titanal that’s edge to edge through the midsection and tapers to a narrow tab before reaching either end. Wherever the Titanal isn’t, the Sheeva 9 is more free to twist. D.R.T. allows the forebody to roll with punches delivered by off-trail terrain, leaving the reinforced middle to power its way through the rubble. The rockered tail smears the turn exit so as not to interrupt the downhill flow.

McKenzie Coles from Sturtevant’s of Sun Valley admires the Sheeva 9’s flexible attitude, calling it a “Great all-mountain ski. Fast and reliable on groomers. Light and powerful off run.” Jolee from Footloose is on the same page, “Great balanced ski. It does great turning on groomers but also charging through the choppy snow.” Penelope from Boot Doctors in Telluride was also tuned into the same wavelength, sketching the Sheeva 9 as “light yet smooth all-mountain ski. Balanced. Easy-going.”

Stacy Kellner from Squaw dictates this candid profile. “Conditions: mashed potatoes. I didn’t get a chance to ski a lot of different terrain with these, but I loved them from what I can tell! Perfect balance of waist width/sturdiness and lightness/playfulness (even with those clunky demo bindings). Super forgiving and fun on groomers and moguls alike. Despite the short time I had with these, they’re the ones I’m most excited to ride again.” If the Sheeva 9 can hang with a Squaw ripper in soft spring slop, imagine how much fun they’d be in winter snow. As we mentioned, the Black Pearl better not slow down or the Sheeva 9 is going to catch it.