Gone are the days of 105-115mm underfoot daily drivers. Finally, the ski industry is wising up and making skinnier, longer skis again. Thank god.
Related: Salomon Debuts Revolutionary ‘SHIFT’ Binding
Whatever the conditions, these revamped, refined and slightly narrower skis are all good choices for nearly every mountain and every skier. That said, if you’re one of those skiers who goes backwards more than 75% of the time– we can’t help you.
*This year in keeping with the ski industry trend, we’ve decided to only include skis whose underfoot width ranges from 90mm-105mm underfoot.
Salomon QST 99
Last year we professed our love for the QST 106 and this year we’ve downsized. The QST 99 is an incredibly versatile ski that can handle almost everything save for a historic snow storm. The rocker profile is gradual yet pronounced enough to keep the hollow tips from diving in deeper oncditions. The tail performs like a front-side ski on hard snow and really helps load and unload turns on the way to the lift. As far as a do everything ski for the widest variety skiers– This is our Unofficial pick for the 2018/2019 season.
- Dimensions:138/99/102 [181cm length]
- Sizes: 167,174, 181, 188
Black Crows Camox Birdie
The Camox Birdie is billed as a “playful” ski on the Black Crows website and our female reviewer agrees completely with that conclusion. The ski likes to make turns, is nimble in bumps, and is the perfect set of planks for the lady who likes to spin through the park in between powder laps. This ski is a great option for the east coast skier who wants a ski that performs well on hardpack while also bounding through powder filled tree-stashes.
- Dimensions: 125 /97 /112 [174cm length]
- Sizes: 156, 165, 174
Volkl Mantra
Remember when Volkl didn’t just make reverse camber skis? Yeah, we missed those days too and we’re happy to report that the all-powerful combination of camber and early rise is back in action with the newly redesigned Volkl Mantra. Can’t say much else about this ski than it rips harder than the legendary Mantra’s of old.
- Dimensions: 134/96/117
- Sizes: 170, 177, 184, 191
Blizzard Bonafide
The Blizzard Bonafide is a repeat winner here at Unofficial and that’s because there is a lot to like about this ski as a daily driver. A stiff pair of boards with a subtle amount of camber and a passive rocker profile, the Bonafide is straight up awesome.
- Dimensions: 135/98/119
- Sizes: 166, 173, 180, 187
Head Great Joy
Head’s R&D department should be proud. They’ve created some game changing ski technology over the course of the past half-decade. Their core (*Kore) technology with graphene is something to behold and as far as their Head Great Joy goes, a 90-100mm underfoot ski doesn’t get much more versatile.
- Dimensions: 140/98/123 [163cm length]
- Sizes: 153, 158, 163, 168
Head Kore 105
This ski was an instant favorite in Europe and it’s finally catching fire in North America. Touring or strictly alpine, the Head Kore 105 handles a variety of conditions in a way that is particularly strong for being so light. (*See technology above).
- Dimensions: 135/105/125
- Sizes: 171,180, 189