These narrower skis weigh in at the featherweight level and are great for spring steeps, corn and go-far missions. Channel the goddess Nike and skin like the wind.
LA SPORTIVA VAPOR SVELTE
$1,200 – sportiva.com
SIZES: 168, 178, 188
DIMENSIONS: 126/96/113
WEIGHT: 4 lbs. 8 oz. (188)
“Super light, but with guts and a backbone. Super rise tip gives the 95-mm waist tons of float, both in pow and to rise over crud. Surprisingly stiff, so it doesn’t wash out on hardpack and feels confident at higher speeds.”
—Lance Riek | Bozeman, Mont.
5 ft. 8 in. | 160 lbs.
SALOMON MTN EXPLORE 95
$850 – salomon.com
SIZES: 169, 177, 184
DIMENSIONS: 130/95/116
WEIGHT: 6 lbs. 3 oz. (177)
“Everything you would want in a touring ski yet still holds its own on a groomer and hardpack with that extra stability, power and dampness.”
—Miles Kochalka | Smugglers’ Notch, Vt.
6 ft. | 175 lbs.
DYNASTAR MYTHIC
$1,000 – dynastar.com
SIZES: 171, 177, 184
DIMENSIONS: 133/97/113
WEIGHT: 6 lbs. 3 oz. (177)
“They were light on the feet, super quick to edge and very poppy. I wouldn’t call these playful in the sense that you can pop ollies, but they turned regular old laps into a playground of snappy turns, killer edge angles and daring potential for high-speed fun.”
—Mark Rosenberg | Salt Lake City, Utah
5 ft. 8 in. | 165 lbs.
DPS WAILER 99 TOUR1
$1,050 – dpsskis.com
SIZES: 168, 176, 184
DIMENSIONS: 125/99/111
WEIGHT: 6 lbs. 3 oz. (184)
“DPS, you have done it again. The Wailer is the ski I would like to walk away with. You ask, they do. This ski is the fountain of youth—they make everything feel easy; turn initiation is effortless. I would equate the Wailer to my Subaru, the all-terrain vehicle, a true one-ski quiver.”
—Mindy Mulliken | Steamboat Springs, Colo.
5 ft. 5 in. | 120 lbs.
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