Full disclosure; I have a bias toward Atomic and have worked with the local rep off and on for about 7 years. There is a reason though; I love what they do. I don't get free stuff or anything for praising them.
Size tested: 188
I'll start off by saying I never fell in love with the Vantage series after they left the Backbone design a few years back. They just never felt quite right for me. I had the Vantage 100 for two seasons, and while we got along, we never really clicked. When I found out they were redesigning the Vantage line I got really excited for two reasons; they were finally adding a 1-oh-something (107) to the line, and we would finally see a truly flat almost square tail.
I wanted both the 107 and 97, but rationale and a lack of storage made me realize I didn't need something over 100 when I have a 123mm ski. So I ordered the 97.
Fast forward to the end of December after the skis have sat in my hallway for a few months and they have Shifts mounted at 1.5 behind the line. 5-12 inches of heavy Sierra Cement overnight and late start lead us to only take a few runs, but I already am in love with these things. This is not a playful ski, it doesn't like short turns, and it wants to go fast. It isn't the stiffest ski out there, but it is up there, and it's a clean, predictable flex. It handles chop better than anything I've ever skied, and even cut up cement on top of 3 week old bumps didn't phase them.
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After about 16 inches of fresh not-quite-blower, I went up to Sugar Bowl with some of the kids I coach and took both the Bentchetlers and the V97. I skied the Bentchetlers in the morning, partially because it was less cut up, but mostly because I hadn't been on them in a while. It took me a run or two to get used to being on a fat center mounted twin again. After lunch, I switched to the V97 and holy frick I think I'm going to sell the Bentchetlers. My skiing "style" has changed (errr, maybe "developed" is the right word) a lot in the last three seasons, and I don't have a desire to ski switch or surf turns as much as I used to. Everything from the few untouched stashes we found to the cut up stuff on Lincoln, the V97 just demolished it. It floats, but not on the surface (more face shots? I think so) like a wider (115mm and up) ski will. It's like a well-ballasted submarine right at periscope depth.
Something that always frustrated me about the Vantage 100 was that it felt very pivoty and like it wanted to be playful but was still too serious (like someone who had spent their entire career in a very uptight corporate world and was suddenly put into a very easy going tech startup atmosphere) to be enjoyable. The V97 has no identity crisis at all; its all business when it's in/on the snow. But as soon as it's in the air, it is light enough to be maneuverable (no extra effort to move your feet for a shifty or grab).
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After about 15 days with the V97 in/on everthing except western ice, I can confidently say that this ski is as close to a quiver killer as I ever hope to find. I've been having more fun on groomers with this thing than my Vantage x75, and on soft groomers its more fun than the pair of FIS GS(W) that I've had access to the last few weeks. I've debated moving the bindings back 1-1.5cms but I don't think I'm going to mess with it just yet. One thing I have noticed the more I ski them; the tip wants to be driven 110% of the time. They do not react well to heel pushing, and they will downright smack you in the face if you get in the backseat. They will make a skidded turn, but you better be driving the ski all the same.
All in all, if I could only have two skis for the west, it would be the Vantage 97Ti and something narrower for firm days. If I could only have one ski, I would cry.
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A note on the Shifts... They do ski like an alpine binding, without a doubt. I'm beyond impressed. However, they seem to be a little hasty to release. I need to recheck forward pressure. One also switched into tour mode on more than one ejection. I'm not sure how I feel about that, but I have no intention to stop skiing them.
All in all, I'm super stoked on this combination, and it's causing me to significantly rething my need for anything over 110mm, especially somehting as surfy as the Bentchetler.
As I get more days on them I'll keep this updated. I'm especially looking forward to skinning with them.
Size tested: 188
I'll start off by saying I never fell in love with the Vantage series after they left the Backbone design a few years back. They just never felt quite right for me. I had the Vantage 100 for two seasons, and while we got along, we never really clicked. When I found out they were redesigning the Vantage line I got really excited for two reasons; they were finally adding a 1-oh-something (107) to the line, and we would finally see a truly flat almost square tail.
I wanted both the 107 and 97, but rationale and a lack of storage made me realize I didn't need something over 100 when I have a 123mm ski. So I ordered the 97.
Fast forward to the end of December after the skis have sat in my hallway for a few months and they have Shifts mounted at 1.5 behind the line. 5-12 inches of heavy Sierra Cement overnight and late start lead us to only take a few runs, but I already am in love with these things. This is not a playful ski, it doesn't like short turns, and it wants to go fast. It isn't the stiffest ski out there, but it is up there, and it's a clean, predictable flex. It handles chop better than anything I've ever skied, and even cut up cement on top of 3 week old bumps didn't phase them.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
After about 16 inches of fresh not-quite-blower, I went up to Sugar Bowl with some of the kids I coach and took both the Bentchetlers and the V97. I skied the Bentchetlers in the morning, partially because it was less cut up, but mostly because I hadn't been on them in a while. It took me a run or two to get used to being on a fat center mounted twin again. After lunch, I switched to the V97 and holy frick I think I'm going to sell the Bentchetlers. My skiing "style" has changed (errr, maybe "developed" is the right word) a lot in the last three seasons, and I don't have a desire to ski switch or surf turns as much as I used to. Everything from the few untouched stashes we found to the cut up stuff on Lincoln, the V97 just demolished it. It floats, but not on the surface (more face shots? I think so) like a wider (115mm and up) ski will. It's like a well-ballasted submarine right at periscope depth.
Something that always frustrated me about the Vantage 100 was that it felt very pivoty and like it wanted to be playful but was still too serious (like someone who had spent their entire career in a very uptight corporate world and was suddenly put into a very easy going tech startup atmosphere) to be enjoyable. The V97 has no identity crisis at all; its all business when it's in/on the snow. But as soon as it's in the air, it is light enough to be maneuverable (no extra effort to move your feet for a shifty or grab).
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After about 15 days with the V97 in/on everthing except western ice, I can confidently say that this ski is as close to a quiver killer as I ever hope to find. I've been having more fun on groomers with this thing than my Vantage x75, and on soft groomers its more fun than the pair of FIS GS(W) that I've had access to the last few weeks. I've debated moving the bindings back 1-1.5cms but I don't think I'm going to mess with it just yet. One thing I have noticed the more I ski them; the tip wants to be driven 110% of the time. They do not react well to heel pushing, and they will downright smack you in the face if you get in the backseat. They will make a skidded turn, but you better be driving the ski all the same.
All in all, if I could only have two skis for the west, it would be the Vantage 97Ti and something narrower for firm days. If I could only have one ski, I would cry.
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A note on the Shifts... They do ski like an alpine binding, without a doubt. I'm beyond impressed. However, they seem to be a little hasty to release. I need to recheck forward pressure. One also switched into tour mode on more than one ejection. I'm not sure how I feel about that, but I have no intention to stop skiing them.
All in all, I'm super stoked on this combination, and it's causing me to significantly rething my need for anything over 110mm, especially somehting as surfy as the Bentchetler.
As I get more days on them I'll keep this updated. I'm especially looking forward to skinning with them.
- Who is it for? Anyone who wants to charge but doesn't want a two-by-four on their feet.
- Who is it not for: Timid skiers. People who ski on their heels. Anyone who likes making small tight turns (except hop turns)
- Insider tip: Mount them at least a cm behind the line and ski it like you mean it.
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