When it comes to ski design, Salomon is confidently contrarian. It’s been like that since the beginning, when Salomon rocked the ski world with its monocoque shell construction. The French brand’s latest tack against the prevailing wind is a new generation of lightweight skis that uses flax interlaced with carbon stringers to provide the flex resistance and damping roles previously occupied by fiberglass and Titanal. It’s a formulation that works best when all dials are set to Medium: average speed, normal turn radius, modest edge angle and moderately firm snow produce secure turns with a little pep in their step.
Salomon’s revised QST 92 is a great model for the first-time ski buyer who is ready to dabble in off-trail skiing. The upgrade applied to the 2019 iteration consists of crosshatching the strands of carbon/flax fiber – Salomon calls it C/FX3 – so the superlight material runs both laterally and longitudinally. The improvement in edge grip is instantly evident, which contributes to an impression of greater agility, rebound and vibration damping. From a terrain preference perspective, the QST 92 is more attuned to life off-trail where its drift-ability helps smooth out the ruffles in irregular terrain. While its on-trail performance is much improved, the QST 92’s more shallow sidecut and lightweight chassis are better adapted to untamed snow than groomers.
The Salomon XDR 88 Ti delivers what the All-Mountain East skier is looking for: easy navigation in any condition. Its behavioral profile fits that of a full-figured Frontside ski with a penchant for medium to long turns. Its relatively deep sidecut and noticeable light weight contribute to an overall impression of agility. Because it feels at once snappy and secure, it embodies some of the best properties of both Power and Finesse skis. The XDR 88 Ti gets its even flex and damp suspension from a cross-hatch carbon/flax weave and the addition of basalt to the construction recipe. Alert readers of these pages may note that last season’s XDR 88 Ti didn’t rise to the ranks of the Recommended, but that was before Salomon doubled the dose of carbon and flax and folded basalt into the lay-up.
