The Elan Amphibio 84 XTI is a Power ski conscripted into the ranks of our Finesse Favorites lest its ultra-silky moves be misconstrued as hard to extract. If you can stand up under your own power, you can ski the Amphibio 84 XTI. Any pressure to the inside edge and it’s “Look, Ma, I’m carving!” The Amphibio 84 XTI’s acts like a turn conductor, indicating when to tip, how long to hold the beat and when to snip off the end of each note to make room for the next. The sidecut acts as its metronome, cambered for early contact on the inside edge and subtly rockered on the outside edge. The shape of the top surface reinforces the to-and-fro rhythm, convex in the forebody to accentuate pressure on turn initiation, a concave tail to lubricate release.
The Amphibio 88 XTI’s scorecard looks like that of a straight-A+ student, with marks well above the field average in all criteria. Considering that this ski is clearly oriented to carving on a corduroy carpet in a genre that prioritizes versatility, it’s apparent that our testers didn’t care if the Amphibio 88 XTI was predisposed to carve; it was so damn silky and easy to steer, why wouldn’t it be a kick to ski in light pow, bumps and trees? Because of its intuitive ease of operation, neck-rein response to pressure and security on edge, we award the Amphibio XTI a Silver Skier Selection.
Beneath the SRC’s burly Marker WC Piston Plate is an edge-to-edge layer of bi-directional carbon Blizzard calls C-Armor that turbo charges the ski’s power and stability through the middle of the turn. To augment acceleration across the fall line, two vertical carbon laminates, dubbed C-Spine, trisect the core from end to end. Working in unison with the Firebird SRC’s traditionally cambered baseline, C-Spine generates propulsive rebound that translates the dissipating energy of one turn into an aggressive entry into the next. “It’s very quick edge to edge” confirms one of the California Ski Company crew.
What a lovely ski. This was the first season that Realskiers engaged with Liberty, catching the brand just as it debuted a new series of Frontside models with a fresh technical story. VMT stands for Vertical Metal Technology, a process that uses two strips of 5000-series aluminum alloy laid vertically between bamboo laminates that straddle the core’s centerline. Two full-length carbon sheets and a central carbon stringer create a powerful platform that’s reinforced with steel mounting plates. While other brands are busy trying to make their tips lighter, Liberty has tacked on metal tip and tail protectors that add mass and damping. Put it all together with a cambered baseline with just the slightest tip rocker and a 92mm waist and you have the V92.
There must be something to this Amphibio deal, an asymmetric forebody that’s rockered above the outside edge and cambered over the inside edge. The Ripstick 96 flows over whatever run lies ahead, be it a rutted backside bump field or the pristine pinstripes of Deer Valley-quality groomage. It never loses its I-can-carve-that attitude, always striving to lay down twin tracks as if every run was down the frontside of Vail. A ski doesn’t attract above average scores unless it brings something extra to the party, which in the case of the Ripstick 96 is a little kick in the tail that scoots it through the turn transition. The boost into the next turn helps establish a rhythm that feels as natural as a waterfall.
