[Neither the Intense 12 nor its scores have changed since this review was posted two seasons ago.]
Powerdrive is Dynastar’s name for a 3-piece sidewall which functions as a unique damping system. Stacked on edge alongside the core, it consists of a soft inner layer, a hard center section and a dynamic outer wall. Any time a viscoelastic material, like that used in the inner piece of Powerdrive, is bonded to Titanal (center part), the resulting element will act as a natural shock absorber, so the forebody of the Intense 12, where the Powerdrive feature resides, should stay nice and quiet on hard snow.
But Powerdrive serves another, more vital function: by un-coupling the core from the outer sidewall, the central laminates that dictate the ski’s behavior are allowed to shear, moving as the ski is pressured. This enhanced suppleness allows the ski to respond to subtle variations in the snow surface, maintaining contact, control and speed.
Big as he is, the Rustler 11 will always be the Bodacious’ little brother, and like many baby bros, the Rustler 11 tries hard to be his elder sibling’s antithesis. The biggest difference in the younger’s personality is how he behaves at the point of attack, where the ski meets the snow. Put simply, the Bodacious is a puncher, and the Rustler 11 is a counter-puncher.
Another way to characterize how the Rustler 11 differs from the Bodacious is the latter expects a little more from its pilot – more speed, more skill, more aggression – while the Rustler will happily accept you as you are, warts and all. That it surrenders some support on hardpack only matters if you want it to. Kept to the pow, it’s as easy as pie and a perennial recipient of a Silver Skier Selection.
When Nordica introduced the original Enforcer five years ago, it already had a 100mm-underfoot model in its line, the NRGy 100, and the more acutely rockered Enforcer could have been misconstrued as redundant. Yet the Enforcer immediately earned a name for itself as a new breed of all-terrain ski that disguised a fully cambered baseline – and all the power it entails – between rockered extremities. As the Enforcer family grew, first wider, then skinnier, the arrival of an Enforcer 88 became inevitable.
Now that the long and winding road between the first Enforcer and the last has reached its destination, one can only wonder, what took them so long? This ski is a marvel, stable enough to navigate scoured wind crust yet ready to pounce turn to turn on hardpack with barely a transition between the two contrary conditions. Its score for short-radius turns is off the charts, yet it can lay into a big-bellied arc as comfortably as a cat curling up on a sofa.
The Nordica Enforcer 93 is only three years old and already it’s a legend. It debuted to instant acclaim and has since maintained its position among the top models in this most competitive of categories. It continues to earn accolades for one all-important reason: the Enforcer 93 takes the term “all-terrain” very much to heart.
The quintessential characteristic of any great all-mountain ski is the ability to transition from one terrain extreme to another and always feel like its the right ski for the job. Jim Schaffner filed this report after taking the Enforcer 93 through mixed conditions at Snow Basin, Utah. “Conditions: about 8 inches of slightly compact powder. A super well-balanced ski, so it’s really easy to find home base in terms of positioning.
“Super predictable and not in a negative way,” Schaffner continues. “Very good at transitioning from powder to cut-up to previously groomed, back into the powder, so I think so I think this ski remains fairly high up in the category. A great all-rounder that worked really well for today’s conditions.”
The Enforcer 110 is so good at motoring through crud that it jumped to the top position among Big Mountain models in its debut season. Its reign would have certainly continued had Nordica not fashioned an Enforcer 104 this year, which usurped the throne so briefly held by the model from which it was cloned.
Just because the narrower and lighter Enforcer 104 Free feels more maneuverable than its stouter big bro doesn’t mean the Enforcer 110 Free suddenly morphed into a lugubrious tanker. It’s still remarkably agile for its girth and its camber pocket delivers a lively turn finish that makes it ski lighter than it actually weighs. “This is the most versatile wide profile ski I have ever used!” gushed Boot Doctor Bob Gleason. “An uncanny blend of big ski float and directional fortitude, with a quickness and rebound that will have you tap dancing in the tight spots.”
