We usually judge a race ski for its Power properties and let the Finesse chips fall where they may, but the new Rossignol Hero Elite ST Ti stands out for its easy-going temperament in a field of more finicky rides. For example, both the Hero ST Ti and Atomic S9 can be described as “quick” and “agile,” but they go about their business in different ways. The S9 practically detonates at the end of the turn, while the Hero is more mellow, even allowing a little drift between turns. The Hero ST operates comfortably from a centered stance, slinging short turns side to side with the reliability of a metronome.
The 2019 Rossignol Hero Elite LT Ti is a new ski in several significant ways, but it remains the same model in spirit. The new elements begin with a deeper sidecut and a wider chassis overall, making the ski less true race-like and easier to tip into a tidy turn. The new model’s tighter sidecut radius feels all the quicker due to a lighter poplar core and most importantly, Line Control Technology (LCT), that uses far less Titanal than the usual two sheets to maintain snow contact. LCT consists of a central, vertical Ti laminate in a viscoelastic shell that runs end-to-end, resisting the ski’s natural tendency to counterflex.
A woman’s first turns on a Big Mountain model can feel like steering a tanker. Some have a way of swimming around when flat, others seem to wander all the time. Then there are skis like the Rossi Soul 7 HD W that provide all the benefits of extra buoyancy without feeling fat or sluggish. The reason the Rossi feels narrower than it measures is the energy housed in the glass and carbon that arches over the camber pocket underfoot. From a loaded position at the bottom of the turn, the Soul 7 HD W rebounds up and out of whatever off-piste porridge you’re in, ferrying the skier across the fall line and into another energized arc.
The Super 7 HD’s behavior is perfectly in synch with how most advanced to expert skiers prefer to ski fresh snow: set a rhythm from the first turn-and-rise cycle and keep that beat going with the regularity of a pulse. The Super 7 HD is essentially a giant spring with soft ends. The tapered and rockered tip and tail act as buffers to ease turn entry and exit, setting the stage for the powerful midsection to generate the energy that propels the ski up and over the turn transition.
