Light skis
87-91 is where the fun’s at: the lightweigh skis evolution
- Author: Claudio Primavesi
- Photographer: Nicola Damonte
Waist widths as narrow as 76 millimeter have just about disappeared
Now most skis fall somewhere between 80 and 90 millimeters. A few seasons ago, 85 was about the median waist width, but now we are seeing a shift of a few millimeters, at around 87, 90 or even 91 in some cases. Somewhat surprisingly, at ski lengths of around 174-175, it makes a big difference, so this seems to be the hot trend these days. At the beating heart of this category we have the Rossignol Escaper 87 Nano, Atomic Backland 89 SL, Hagan Core Carbon 89 Lite, or even the Salomon MTN 91 Carbon. Take the Atomic, for example. Until last year, the Backland 86 SL, the narrower sibling of the 89 SL, was the undisputed champion of the weight class, but those three extra millimeters make the 89 SL even more fun and performing, without sacrificing on agility.
Not only that, but down closer to the 80 mm range, the gap between the best skis and middle of the pack is greater than at fatter waist widths, where the quality gap closes and the offering gets interesting to say the least. The lightest skis fall within about a hundred grams of the magical kilo and top out at just over 1.3 kilos (about 3 lbs). Strong, lightweight fibers like carbon continue to play an important role, as does Paulownia wood, but there’s also basalt, fiberglass and, in some cases, mixed cores that include somewhat heavier types of wood.
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