Every February our team of testers gets to demo next year's skis. We always hope for a mix of snow conditions so that we can have a really thorough test. This is very important, as we feel that versatility is the single most important trait in any ski, especially for skiing on Mammoth Mountain. Of course, we expect a mid fat like the Volkl Mantra to be pretty good in just about any snow condition, but we like to see how well a 110mm waisted rockered Elan Olympus holds up on ice, or a K2 Superburnin (72mm) does in mush.

For the third year in a row, we upped the ante, and sent the "A Team" (Preston, Susan, Wes and Cara) to the Alpine Meadows Trade Fair, where they teamed up with Kittredge alumni Michael L. who now tests for North Star. We really like going to Tahoe, because the snow there is always "different" i.e., worse than here in Mammoth. Sorry Tahoe it's true and you know it! This year Alpine Meadow was weeks into a strong melt/freeze and stay frozen cycle that made for some really firm conditions especially in the Alpine Bowl Area. To be fair though, the west facing Scott chair softened nicely on the first day, and provided the softest turn of the test. The second day was overcast with flat light and very firm conditions.

The mid season drought did not affect Mammoth as much as the lower elevations (like Tahoe!), and the snow here was firm but rippable. The show is based in the Chair 2 parking lot, and we spend most of our time skiing off Chairs 2, 3, 23, and Gondola 2. At Mammoth our team reached full chaos level with Preston, Wes, Cara, Aerin, Ray, Michelle, Tom, Nick, Hunter, Pete and Brian all getting some ski time!

Before we introduce our testers, here are some thoughts about skis, and how you probably want more than one pair.

Skis are more versatile than ever, which is good, as airlines are charging more and more to transport skis. If you spend your ski time exclusively on groomed runs, than you probably only need one pair of skis. But most of us like a bit of variety, and every ski is a compromise in certain conditions. We had our test team pick out a "one-ski-to-do-everything" and a two pair mini quiver to "do-it-all-better". We could have included three, four or even ten ski quivers, but two is a good start.

Quiver of One
A one-ski quiver is an oxymoron, but most of us have a budget, so here it is. We like the versatility of a ski with a waist width of around 85-95mm, moderate rocker and metal laminate construction. This width is a good compromise between on and off piste skiing. The metal keeps it grippy on hard snow, and gives it power. A ski without metal layers is more playful and forgiving, but has its limits at speed on firm snow. At the 85ish side, you get a ski that carves well on the groomed, but is also quite apt at moguls and crud. The wider end of the spectrum is not as nimble or carvey, but has better crud and powder performance. Of course, if you rarely leave the groomed runs, prefer quick turns or just live for moguls your choice may lean towards a carve ski with a waist in the 75-85mm range. Conversely, if you spend all day in search of off piste adventures your ski of choice might be over 100mm wide underfoot. Either way, you may want to travel with one versatile pair of skis, and demo if conditions warrant.

Things get better when we have two skis. Most of our team prefers to complement their all-mountain (85-95mm) ski with a more rockered fat (105+mm) ski. This gives us a very versatile main ski, with a true powder ski to maximize the fun factor on those epic freshies. Some of us ski our fat skis as often as our all-mountain skis, while some just break them out for the big days. The rockered fat ski is also very useful in soft spring conditions and backcountry skiing. Some testers, especially those who love moguls or carving would go for a narrower (75-85mm underfoot) ski to complement their rockered fat ski. Three skis are really where a real quiver begins. This is where most testers would add a carve ski, or an all-mountain twin tip.

Click Here  for a quick look at our testers and their favorite skis for 11-12.

Most people spend more time on the groomed runs than off, and enjoy the edge-to-edge quickness of a narrower ski.... Click here to read more

Big mountain skis are true go-anywhere/do-anything tools for big mountains with plentiful natural snow, ... Click here to read more

We are calling skis with a waist over 100mm “Powder Skis”, but don’t think they are one trick ponies.... Click here to read more

Twin Tips are any skis with a prominent turned up tail. This allows backwards (called switch or fakie) skiing, and helps the ski release at the end of the turn. .... Click here to read more

Junior skis are finally catching up modern ski design in terms of width, rocker, and all mountain capabilities.... Click here to read more

Ski pricing is just about as bad as car pricing. Every ski manufacturer has several prices for their skis; MSRP (Manufacturer Suggested Retail Price) is a very high price that nobody ever pays, MAP (Minimum Advertised Price) is the lowest price that a retailer can advertise, display on the sales floor, or quote over the phone. This includes the Internet. MAP expires around the end of February, and then anything goes. There are ways for shops to get around these pricing policies, the most common being a package price with a binding, or other gear. However, the bottom line is that the ski companies cannot tell us at what price to sell our skis, only what we can advertise. Also, be sure that when you are shopping for skis to compare apples to apples, as ski lines can be confusing. All K2 AMPs are not created equal, nor are all Volkl RTMs. Also, some skis like K2 AMPs can be sold with or without an integrated binding system. Having said all that, please come in the shop and ask us for prices. You will find our prices to be extremely competitive, even more so if you plan on demoing before purchase.