The Liberty V82 is a carving ski that thinks it’s an all-mountain model. It doesn’t know it’s supposed to be a specialist, laser-focused on maintaining snow contact as it stitches an endless braid of medium-radius turns. Of course it can do that if that’s what you like, consider the box checked, but if that’s all you ask of it, shame on you. No other ski in the category is as open-minded about turn shape. Not only will the V82 make short-radius turns, it will make them to order. It has the same as-you-like-it attitude towards turns medium and long. Whatever the V82 does, it does with distinction. It matches its pilot’s moves as if it were his shadow.
As we have often observed, the interests of the off-trail skier and the preferences of the fairer sex converge in that both parties want lighter weight that doesn’t compromise performance. And so we find the Liberty Genesis 90 perched among the leaders for Finesse properties in a genre that prizes off-piste proficiency. Even though the Genesis 90 earned estimable Power scores as well, it’s fair to say that its principal appeal is the ease with which it travels off-trail. Liberty founder and ski designer Dan Chalfant made a few tweaks to the Genesis 90 for 2019, most notably a lower tip rocker “for more immediate tip edge engagement,” and the substitution of Paulownia for poplar. The modifications make the Genesis 90 the lightest ski in the women’s AME genre.
The new Liberty V76 resists easy classification. It certainly has the shape to qualify as a pure carver, but lacks the my-way-or-the-highway attitude. It’s also missing its own plate and binding system, passing on the opportunity to add damping and standheight. Its baseline, on the other hand, is pure Frontside, almost fully cambered and made to stay connected with snow. Its average score of 8.63 for the principal Power properties attests to its technical capabilities. The behavior that earned the V76 a succulent 9.0 for Forgiveness/Ease is its large performance envelope and therefore suitability for a considerable slice of the skiing public. It transitions from short, sinuous tracks to medium to long without the slightest indication it prefers one over another.
