2022 Salomon Stance 96

One way to grok the role played by the Stance 96 in Salomon’s line is to look at its counterpart in Salomon’s QST collection, the new QST 98. Earlier versions of this QST included on-trail features like super-wide tips and multiple doses of shock-dampening fibers, but the new QST 98 has a clear bias for off-trail conditions. Salomon can afford to tilt the QST towards side-of-the-trail conditions because the Stance 96 is so rock-solid on groomers. If you want to play with the big boys at the head of the AMW pack, you have to use the same materials, so the Stance 96 sandwiches its poplar core with laminates of Titanal and carbon-flax fiber (CF/X), a double dose of dampeners that keep the Stance 96 planted on the planet. The only acknowledgement that it’s up for heading off trail is a rockered tip that feels a little lost when it hasn’t any loose snow under it to give it something to do. The Stance 96 handles speed well, which is a good thing as it likes to hew closely to the fall line. A rectangular cutout in the Titanal topsheet pares off a few ounces so the Stance 96 feels a little more agile than its girth would suggest, but it imparts a sensation of imperturbable solidity more than playfulness.