Skippress - Index

Skippress - US_2007_2008 - Index

TOP 3 HIGHEST SCORES
Top Top 88
SKI PRESS SKI TEST ''08
HEAD • iSupershape Magnum
PRICE: $1,040 WITH CP 13 • LENGTHS AVAILABLE: 156, 163, 170, 177
QUESTION: How do you measure an
all-mountain ski? ANSWER: By determining
how many things it can do
well. QUESTION: How do you build
an all-mountain ski? ANSWER: By following
the recipe for the iSupershape
Magnum. High speed, low speed,
short turns, long turns, soft snow,
hard stuff, moguls — you name it,
this ski can handle it. “A great combination
of power, performance and
forgiveness,” wrote one tester. He was
describing the ski’s balanced perfection,
its achieving a golden mean of
versatility. Bottom line: The defi nition
of an all-mountain ski.
BEST BUY
STABILITY 8.56
EZ TO INITIATE 8.38
EDGE GRIP 8.56
FORGIVENESS 8.06
ENERGY 8.31
SHORT RADIUS 8.31
LONG RADIUS 8.50
VERSATILITY 8.38
RATING
ATOMIC • MB5
PRICE: $1,295 • LENGTHS AVAILABLE: 152, 162, 172
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85.89
WORLD CUP TECHNOLOGY BUILT INTO AN ALL-MOUNTAIN PACKAGE.
STEERING average to strong • WEIGHT medium • FLEX medium
TESTED LENGTH 177 • DIMENSIONS 122-71-108 • RADIUS 14.7
NORDICA • Speedmachine Mach 3 Power XBi
PRICE: $1,495 WITH 5-14 XBi • LENGTHS AVAILABLE: 154, 162, 170, 178
Making the hard easy is the name
of the Mach 3’s game. Come aboard
for an easygoing cruise, and you’re
riding in a car with perfect suspension.
But when you decide to open
up the throttle and go aggro, the ski
produces the same smooth-riding
results. “It gave me the impression
of skiing on a cloud,” wrote one
tester. Push this ski to its limits
because the more you push, the
more it delivers. Nordica has made
a ski without a weakness — and
that’s not easy.
BEST BUY
STABILITY 8.19
EZ TO INITIATE 8.50
EDGE GRIP 8.38
FORGIVENESS 7.88
ENERGY 8.38
SHORT RADIUS 8.31
LONG RADIUS 8.25
VERSATILITY 8.00
RATING
84.40
PUSH HARD TO TAKE ADVANTAGE OF HIGH ENERGY.
STEERING average to strong • WEIGHT light to medium • FLEX medium
TESTED LENGTH 170 • DIMENSIONS 119-72-104 • RADIUS 15
SALOMON • X-Wing Tornado
PRICE: $1,250 WITH Z12 TI • LENGTHS AVAILABLE: 154, 162, 170, 178
Like Rodin working marble, Salomon
has crafted a ski of almost perfect
balance and proportion. Among the
most versatile skis in this category,
the X-Wing is best at fast, long
turns but has no problem switching
gears. It’s ideal for the one-skiquiver
skier seeking to improve. Ski
it with fi nesse or force — makes no
difference. The ski responds generously
to any skiing style. As one
tester wrote, “The more you give,
the more you receive.”
BEST BUY
STABILITY 8.29
EZ TO INITIATE 8.50
EDGE GRIP 8.50
FORGIVENESS 8.00
ENERGY 8.29
SHORT RADIUS 7.93
LONG RADIUS 8.57
VERSATILITY 8.29
RATING
83.93
NICE ZIP IN INITIATING TURNS.
STEERING average to strong • WEIGHT medium • FLEX medium
TESTED LENGTH 170 • DIMENSIONS 124-75-107 • RADIUS 14.5
Multi-Condition HIGH-PERFORMANCE
TOP 5 ALSO BEST BUYS
BEST BUY ATOMIC BLIZZARD VÖLKL K2 MOVEMENT
STABILITY 8.50 8.40 8.50 8.50 7.69
EZ TO INITIATE 8.14 8.47 8.30 7.88 8.25
EDGE GRIP 8.79 8.33 8.30 8.44 7.81
FORGIVENESS 7.36 7.53 8.10 7.75 8.13
ENERGY 8.43 8.27 8.00 8.25 7.44
SHORT RADIUS 7.71 8.00 7.90 7.50 7.88
LONG RADIUS 8.64 8.67 8.40 8.50 7.88
VERSATILITY 7.71 8.00 7.90 7.88 7.94
RATING 83.73 83.66 83.05 82.50 80.85
You’ll want to take this bull by the horns — it’s a power ski that, when
driven hard, produces powerful rewards. You need to stay alert and on top
of the ski, because this bull can turn bully, and it doesn’t forgive mistakes.
But if you’ve got the skills, the MB5 has got the goods. “A great toy for
strong, technical skiers,” is how one tester put it.
TESTERS OVER 200 POUNDS WERE LESS IMPRESSED THAN THE LITTLER GUYS.
STEERING strong • WEIGHT medium • FLEX medium
TESTED LENGTH 172 • DIMENSIONS 133-76-116 • RADIUS 12
BLIZZARD • IQon 7900 Magnum
PRICE: $1,065 WITH IQ 4.12 TC • LENGTHS AVAILABLE: 158, 165, 172, 179
Give it space — that’s the mandate for the IQon 7900. If you’re someone
who likes a Rolls ride in long, fast turns, hop aboard these boards. If, on
the other hand, you prefer little squiggles in tight spaces, you might feel
like an elephant in a closet. “A good, solid cruising stick,” is the way one
tester summed it up.
STICK TO LONG TURNS AND GO FOR A COMFY CRUISE.
STEERING average • WEIGHT light to medium • FLEX medium
TESTED LENGTH 172 • DIMENSIONS 120-79-105 • RADIUS 17.5
VÖLKL • Tigershark 12 Foot Power Switch
PRICE: $1,375 WITH IPT 12.0 TIGERSHARK • LENGTHS AVAILABLE: 161, 168, 175, 182
In the never-ending pursuit of all-mountain versatility, Völkl has come up
with the Power Switch, enabling the skier to change the ski’s fl ex according
to conditions or skiing style. The question is: Does it work? After trying both
positions on the switch, testers concluded — the answer is yes. “Tigersharks
will eat anything, and this one is no different,” wrote one tester.
CHANGE THE SKI’S FLEX WITH THE POWER SWITCH.
STEERING average • WEIGHT medium • FLEX medium
TESTED LENGTH 175 • DIMENSIONS 124-79-108 • RADIUS 17.1
K2 • Apache Recon
PRICE: $1,200 WITH MARKER M1 12.0 • LENGTHS AVAILABLE: 160, 167, 174, 181
And they’re off! From a company better known for lighter freeride skis comes a
beefy big-turning brute that could fi nd happiness in a GS race course. “A big
horse that likes to gallop,” wrote one tester. That means long turns trump short
turns, and the faster the better. Another racy feature: confi dence-building
edge grip on hard snow. Summed up one tester: “At speed, this ski rocks.”
A POWERFUL SKI THAT LIKES LIFE IN THE FAST LANE.
STEERING average • WEIGHT medium • FLEX medium
TESTED LENGTH 174 • DIMENSIONS 119-78-105 • RADIUS 18
MOVEMENT • Yaka
PRICE: $625 • LENGTHS AVAILABLE: 157, 166, 175
You know what it’s like when a door is perfectly hung — just touch it with
one fi nger and it swings open smoothly and quietly. That’s the feeling you
get on the Yaka. So easily does it enter a turn that one tester called the
feeling “calming,” as if meditating rather than skiing. High-speed musclemen,
stay away — this is a fi nesse skier’s special.
A LIGHTWEIGHT DANCER FOR SOFT-SNOW CRUISING.
STEERING average • WEIGHT light • FLEX medium
TESTED LENGTH 175 • DIMENSIONS 126-75-107 • RADIUS 13-15
BUYER’S GUIDE 2008 61