Backcountry unveils a few of the best skis in this week's Editors' Choice Sneak Peek.

Colorado to California, Massachusetts to Montana; more than 40 men and women testers from ten states converged on the slopes of Powder Mountain, Utah for Backcountry’s biggest—and-best ski test ever.

If Editor Adam Howard is a tip man, Associate Editor Jonah Cantor is all about hips. “What’s the first thing you notice about a ski?” Howard asks. “The tips.”

In 2003, we reviewed 35 skis—only one was women’s-specific. This year we tested nearly 80 tele and AT dedicated skis, with 11 designed for women.

With the ski test, it’s the same crisis each year: how to make it better, more inclusive, more answerable to all the variables of snow and terrain that comprise the backcountry. That and get every damn new and second-year ski in every size. And get them mounted on time, with proper adjustments for twin-tips and fatties.

"Enter the next generation of shorter, wider skis...enter the new breed of skis that cruise through off-piste snow with the ride of a Cadillac yet change direction with the alacrity of a Ferrari." Nearly a decade ago when this ran in Backcountry's premier issue, we were talking cutting-edge wide bodies, sporting70mm waists and new cap technology.