Of all the skis in the very well populated All-Mountain East genre, the Völkl Kendo exhibits both the best balance of Power and Finesse properties and the perfect blend of hard snow and soft snow performance. Of course it can’t be as quick as a 72mm Technical ski or float like a 108mm Big Mountain model, but it manages to feel at home in any habitat.

The Kendo kicks butt because it combines a traditional wood and Titanal structure with a modern, rocker/camber/rocker baseline and a shape that favors off-trail conditions. The Kendo name goes back several years; some earlier Kendos lack the adaptations, such as a tapered tip, that have noticeably improved the model’s ease of operation in off-piste territory like trees, bumps and chunder.

Völkl veterans – and there’s an army of them – will find the Kendo possesses a familiar snow feel, an Old School solidity that they can trust to hold a high edge on hard snow. This bears mention because the Kendo is the last of its kind in the Völkl collection, a cambered ski in a classic laminate construction with full-length square sidewalls in an All-Mountain footprint. These are the very elements that make the Kendo such a strong ski in all conditions.

“Carves a clean arc,” confirms Harry Griffith from Salter’s. “Easy transitions from turn to turn. Holds with ease on hardpack. Moves through variable snow with a soothing consistency.” Jim Schaffner from Start Haus concurs, citing the Kendo as “precise, accurate, powerful: a very well balanced ski. I could ski this on 70% of my Tahoe days,” a strong endorsement from a skier who is also well balanced and powerful.