VÖLKL RISE BEYOND 96

$799

BEST FOR: Crushing vertical and ripping the down.

LENGTHS: 156, 163, 170, 177, 184

DIMENSIONS: 136/96/119 @ 177

RADIUS: 17 @ 177

WEIGHT: 1,300g @ 177

OTHER MODELS: Rise Beyond 96 W, Rise Above 88, Rise Above 88 W

Weighing less than 1,300g per ski, we fully expected the Rise Beyond 96 to feel great on the skin track. What we weren’t ready for was how well it performed on the way down. Whether it was 15 cm of fresh, spring slush or an icy couloir, it ripped like a much burlier ski. And it wasn’t just one or two people saying that: short and thin, tall and fat, experts and intermediates, all came back shaking their heads and smiling. Inside is a complex mix of poplar for stability, paulownia for lightweight flexibility and beech underfoot for strength. The combo adds up to a ski that holds an edge and pushes through chunder with the stability of a much heavier ski. “I was surprised it ripped through everything like a meaty alpine ski because on the skin up it was feather light,” said Editor Iain MacMillan.“I’m, literally, giving this one an Editor’s Choice. ” Völkl gave the ski tip and tail rocker and its 3D sidecut, with longer arcs at the tip and tail and a slightly shorter one underfoot. We found the ski performed just as comfortably jump-turning down a couloir as it did carving big turns down a bowl. If you’re in the market for a dedicated backcountry ski, start here.