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86-100 mm All-Mountain Skis
The best all-mountain skis of the year will have you barreling around the resort so fast those “Yellow Jackets” won’t be able to catch you. Some of these freeride-focused planks are built with directional chassis, plenty of camber underfoot and prefer to stay on-edge as they lacerate groomers. Others are built for freestyle riding—offering twinned up shapes with plenty of rocker and a more centered mount point. If hot laps on firm snow and ripping thee resort are your favorite things, pick a pair from the list featured here.
Blizzard Rustler 9
If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it. That’s the philosophy Blizzard took into the Rustler 9 for the third year running. Blizzard’s narrowest freeride ski remains one of the most playful and forgiving options in the all-mountain realm. Snappy turn initiation and reliable carving make it a machine on-piste, but a generous rocker profile and smooth flex pattern drive the ability to make quick decisions in moguls and trees. Blizzard’s Carbon Flipcore DRT construction and shaped Titanal layer is designed to reduce torsional rigidity in the tip and tail while bolstering stability underfoot. This makes for a reliable ride that won’t punish you if your technique gets sloppy after hours of zipperlines. It skis a little short, so don’t be afraid to size up.
Kästle FX96 Ti
Forged deep in the Austrian Alps, the FX96 Ti is back and we’re here to tell you that metal is back on the menu. Not only that, but Kästle (smartly) flipped the order of its wood core, keeping a poplar and beech layup closer to the center of the ski while buffering it with lighter poplar and paulownia stringers closer to the edge. This new construction adds pop and rebound while keeping the ski from getting hingey during a powerful turn. The Hollowtech 3.0 tip decreases weight in the shovel to dampen vibrations before they get under your boot, keeping this ski silky smooth in and out of turns. If you want to feel like you’re driving a Formula 1 car, the FX96 Ti from Kästle will provide the thrill.
Völkl M6 Mantra
With over a decade of heritage, the Mantra is a brand-defining ski for Völkl. The M6 Mantra continues the tradition of all-mountain, fall line performance while building on the M5 Mantra—a notably stiff, powerful ski—to make a more approachable product for a wider variety of skiers… Read the full review in our Deep Dive into the M6 Mantra.
J skis The Masterblaster
Last year, we described the The Masterblaster as having “handling reminiscent of a Corvette, paired with the all-terrain capabilities of a Land Cruiser.” Apparently, that wasn’t enough for the team of designers at J skis. This year, they’ve upped the ante, turning that Land Rover into a certified EarthRoamer… Read the full review in our Deep Dive into J skis The Masterblaster.
Elan Ripstick 96 Black Edition
Elan took one of the most intuitive and best-performing all-mountain skis we’ve tried and gave it some serious juice. The Ripstick 96 Black Edition has all of what we love in the original—the massive shovel, giving it unrivaled float for a ski of its width; the shape which pulls you into a turn; and the lightness that delivers unparalleled versatility—and cranks up the power with what the brand calls QuadRod reinforcement. Just to clarify, that’s neither a Pit Viper product or a sex toy. It’s double the carbon rods of the original ski for astounding rebound and pop. With this construction update, Elan turned a ripping yet super approachable ski into a full-throttle piste cannon. Black is the new black.
Armada Declivity 92 Ti
Skis in the skinny all-mountain class have been getting lighter and lighter, and though we haven’t always loved that trend, the Declivity 92 Ti is a freaking rocket ship for its weight. With Articulated Titanal Banding—two sheets of Titanal surrounding a Caruba wood core—and a tapered shape that makes it wicked maneuverable, this ski is ready to buck. This ski is stable enough to get wild in the bumps and more agile than Simone Biles thanks to an elastic compound that replaces metal in the tip, and it’ll be hard for you to find its speed limit. One of our favorite things to do on this ski is push our weight into its stiff tails in the middle of a deep turn, drop our hip to the ground and blast into the next one like we hit the NOS.
Atomic Maverick 95 Ti
They say in life that you get what you give. In the case of Atomic’s new Maverick 95 Ti, that’s a stone cold fact. Built from the ground up to replace the Vantage series, Atomic’s goal was to build a ski for the North American style of skiing, and they came through with flying colors. A powerful ski for a powerful skier, once on edge, this baby flies. Our testers raved about the power delivered by the flat tail and minimalist OMatic construction, which utilizes poplar wood and lightweight materials in the core, as well as the responsive mix of rocker and camber paired with Atomic’s HRZN Tech tips for a smidge of versatility. You’ll have to stay on them in the moguls, but they’ll reward you with the ride of your life.
RMU Apostle 3.0 Wood
For its 10th production year, RMU’s design philosophy for the Apostle focused on freeride touring. Loyal RMU skiers might balk at a revamp of the Apostle, the Breckenridge-based ski brand’s most popular model. But the new Apostle 3.0 series only improves upon RMU’s longest-standing model… Read the full review in our Deep Dive into the new RMU Apostle.
Line Blade
At first glance, the Line Blade’s massive shovel and tight sidecut looks pretty funky, huh? But what fun would skiing be if the brands didn’t keep us on our toes? Line is no stranger to creative shapes and the Blade is just a continuation of the company’s quest to shake up the status quo… Read the full review in our Deep Dive into the Line Blade.
4FRNT Switch
Ever since Shane McConkey predicted the future of freestyle would involve using the entire mountain as a terrain park, ski manufacturers have been obsessed with the idea of the perfect all-mountain freestyle ski. 4FRNT’s newest entry, the Switch, drives us one step closer to that ideal. With a near-flawless twin tip shape and progressive mount point, carving switch is easier than ever. A maple-aspen core paired with carbon stringers gives the Switch ample pop for boosting side hits and park jumps, and prevent it from chattering when you’re back on the ground. Our testers felt the Switch was a total workhorse and were particularly impressed with its stability underfoot given the buttery nature of its tips and tails. If you grab ‘em, be sure to do a McConkey turn for us.
Dynastar M-Pro 99
With a shape built for speed on softer snow, it’s no small wonder our testers were enthralled with the M-Pro 99. Having little in common with Dynastar’s M-Free line, these M-Pro skis were a rocket headed straight for the Send-O-Sphere. The combination of a tapered tip that knifed through light snow with a super-stiff tail that powered through long and fast turns had us whooping through soft chop and screaming down groomers. Dynastar added what they call a Titanal Rocket Frame on top of the ski’s hybrid poplar and polyurethane core to deliver uncompromising stability at speed for its relatively low weight. Speaking of, that low weight allowed us to pivot and hop turn through the steeps like a dream. This ski rips and we mean it.
Nordica Enforcer 100
Nordica’s Enforcer 100 is a certified crud-buster with a balanced feel that’ll ride with you anywhere on the mountain—thick or refrozen chop, death cookies and even end of day slush. Although this is one of the beefier options in this category, don’t expect some dead two-by-four: The Enforcer 100’s extended length, carbon-reinforced poplar-beech core and two-layer Titanal layup provide tremendous pop and energy out of a turn. An all-around 100 mm at the waist, it’s ideal for trenching groomers and then venturing beyond the piste. Ample tip rocker, with ABS plastic in the tip, allows easy pivots and a smidge of tail rocker means you can break free and smear turns when things get hairy. Can you say one-ski quiver?
Salomon QST 98
The all-new Salomon QST 98 marks the third generation of popular QST line, improving on its more directional predecessor, the QST 99, by reworking the rocker profile and adding a few key updates in its construction. The result? A ski with all the qualities of its QST forerunners, like stability and reliability in soft snow, but with an added layer of playfulness… Read the full review in our Deep Dive into the Salomon QST 98.
Blizzard Bonafide 97
For over a decade, Blizzard’s Bonafide has been tearing it up in-bounds, a bona fide charger—sorry, we had to—for skiers who know how to lay down turns. But while the Bonafide has a reputation for keeping up with the most aggressive skiers (just ask Marcus Caston), an updated construction makes this ski more approachable than ever for experts and intermediates alike… Read the full review in our Deep Dive into the Bonafide 97.
K2 Mindbender 99Ti
The K2 Mindbender line is back for another season of stiff-edged dominance with waste widths ranging from 85- to 116-mm underfoot. While each ski in the line offers solid edge grip on the corduroy and notable all-mountain prowess, the Mindbender 99 Ti is undoubtedly the most adaptable. Appealing to a wide range of skiers, this ski is the line’s most versatile… Read the full review in our Deep Dive into the Mindbender 99Ti.
Head Kore 99
After a friend and fellow ski tester first clicked into a set of Kore 99s and ripped a lap down the mountain, he looked at me bewildered. “These skis are from the future” he said as we got back on the chairlift. A few laps later, after I had taken them for a spin, I knew what he meant. The Kore 99s charge through crud, are easy to lay over and damp enough to stabilize chop. His hot take was wasn’t so hot at all… Read the full review in our Deep Dive into the Kore 99.
Atomic Maverick 100 Ti
Few doubt the Austrians’ ability to build excellent skis. So, when one of the most established ski companies in the world—one that’s built its reputation on a history of performance-driven craftsmanship—turns its R&D process on its head to design a new line of skis, we take note. Especially when the collection is built specifically for North American skiers… Read the full review in our Deep Dive into the Maverick 100 Ti.
Black Crows Camox
The Black Crows Camox is a surefire standout—its stiffness throughout the length of the ski is unlike just about anything else on the market. It’s no noodle, so butter-fiends might want to stay away, but the Camox’s shape and flex pattern lends it to be an unrivaled all-mountain/ park ski. We’re talking stable landings. The Camox drives in the same lane as the Enforcer Free series, a modern freestyle shape in a serious freeride package. Where does this ski shine? Side hits, for sure, but also in the steeps. The classic camber underfoot, longer turn radius and firm flex are perfectly at home ripping chalky steeps and hitting natural features high on the mountain. Let’s see a noodle do that.
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