We’ve updated our list of the best all-mountain skis – check it out here. Otherwise, here’s our list of the best all-mountain skis for the 2021 winter season.
We’ve updated our list of the best all-mountain skis – check it out here. Otherwise, here’s our list of the best all-mountain skis for the 2021 winter season.
Best For: All-mountain charging
Sidecut: 138-99-123 (184 cm)
Radius: 18m (184 cm)
Price: £575
Featuring a full-spanning Titanal layer, a 99 mm waist width and moderate tip and tail rocker, the K2 Mindbender 99 Ti is as happy laying down trenches on the pistes as it is cutting through fresh off those pistes – an all mountain thoroughbred in every sense of the term.
Given this metal build, capable skiers will get on extremely well with the Mindbender 99 Ti, with damp, yet energetic, power being felt throughout the ski. Beginner or intermediate skiers might want to look elsewhere though, as the additional weight and strength of the metal might make this ski a bit of a beast to control in the wrong hands.
This product was selected for our Ski 100. Read our review of the K2 Mindbender 99 Ti here.
Best For: Buttery smooth all-mountain playfulness
Sidecut: 129.5-100-120 (180cm)
Radius: 19.5m (180cm)
Price: £450
Younger brother of the now legendary Bent Chetler 120, the Bent Chetler 100 brings the buttery-smooth factor of the 120s into an all-mountain friendly waist width. Echoing design hints from the 120s, the Bent Chetler 100 features a beveled base in the tips and tails. This bevelling – like the hull of a ship – is said to increase surface area of the Bent Chetler 100s by up to 10% and reduce hooking up in the tips and tails for soft snow manoeuvrability.
If you’re an advanced skier looking to combine freestyle and freeride, this is pretty damn close to a perfect one ski quiver. The directional rocker and flex transform the Bent Chetler 100 into a far more versatile ski than the 120s.
This product was selected for our Ski 100. Read our review of the Atomic Bent Chetler 100 here.
Best For: All-mountain versatility
Sidecut: 138 / 100 / 120 (180 cm)
Radius: 15.8m (180 cm)
Price: £540
Not too wide, not too narrow; just a touch of stiffness, yet no wet noodle – Armada have achieved that goldilocks blend of just enough performance with a hint of playfulness for resort ripping in the all new Stranger. No matter where on the mountain you manage to find yourself, the Strangers are going to leave you with a permanent grin on your face.
Their lively (15.8m) sidecut has been paired with what Armada are calling their ‘Springboard Tails’, which offer up extra pop for when you’re launching booters or wheeling down groomers. When this sidecut is added to the medium stiffness, you’re left with a pair of fantastic all-mountain sticks for those that love to play about with their turn radii or speeds no matter where on the mountain you find yourself.
This product was selected for our Ski 100. Read our review of the Armada Stranger here.
Best For: Full throttle all-mountain rippage
Sidecut: 138 / 92 / 118 (180 cm)
Radius: 17.5m (180 cm)
Price: £540
Another ski that fits into the highly competitive all-metal sub 100 mm waisted all-mountain category, the Armada Declivity 92 Ti’s are nothing short of a blast across the entire mountain. The Declivity series is one of Armada’s first attempts at making a shift to the directional side of skiing – certainly a shift away from their freeskiing roots.
The ‘Ti’ in the name is a reference to the Titanal layer, which spans the full length of the ski. This layer has been cut out in the tips and tails. These cutouts have been filled with a dampening material to help reduce weight, and chatter. Although the metal sheet features cutouts, it hasn’t been at the detriment of performance – the Declivity 92 Ti really are the perfect tool for those who love to lay trenches across the piste.
This product was selected for our Ski 100. Read our review of the Armada Declivity 92 Ti here.
Best For: All-mountain playfulness
Sidecut: 127 / 98 / 119 (183 cm)
Radius: 20m (183 cm)
Price: £470
If you were plonked onto a random mountain, in the middle of nowhere, without a clue where you were, there’s a pretty good chance you’d reach for the Prodigy 2.0s to get you down – no matter the conditions in store. A stiff flex throughout the length of the ski is blended with a playful shape and twinned tails, resulting in a ski that’s happy to take on just about anything on the mountain.
Oh, and don’t even get us started on those topsheets. Partnering with Paris-based Parade Studios for another year, Faction have once again smashed things out of the park with the new Prodigy series topsheets.
This product was selected for our Ski 100. Read our review of the Faction Prodigy 2.0 here.
Best For: Extremely versatile all-mountain planks
Sidecut: 139-108-125 (184 cm)
Radius: 20m (184 cm)
Price: €690
Leader of the Black Crows squadron of skis, the Atris’ 108 mm waist width is starting nearing the chunky side of a pair of all-mountain planks. Even considering the oversized (for an all-mountain ski) waist width, we here at Mpora were left blown away by the versatility on offer from the Atris. From carving clean lines on the piste, to ripping wide open powder bowls in the backcountry – there seemingly wasn’t any side of the mountain the Atris couldn’t take on.
The versatility on offer is partly thanks to a pretty stuff build, combined with a touch of playful shaping – such as a nearly twinned tail and progressive rocker. The tip and tail rocker has also been paired with 3.5 mm of camber underfoot, helping to give you bite on the firm stuff.
This product was selected for our Ski 100. Read our review of the Black Crows Atris here.
Best For: All-mountain responsiveness
Sidecut: 120/90/107 (184 cm)
Radius: 15m (184 cm)
Price: $1,299
In an all new range from DPS Skis for winter 2020 / 2021, the new Pagoda series of skis bring a few more all-mountain shapes, in a shift away from DPS’ previous focus on soft snow performers. And, as we’ve come to expect with any other DPS ski, these new Pagoda builds come with a bucket load of R&D development behind them.
For the Pagoda Piste 90 RP, DPS has added a second wooden layer that’s been laminated horizontally to sit on top of the vertically laminated core. This additional core helps to massively boost the torsional stiffness of these skis. The double wooden core is then combined with a pre-preg carbon layup that’s sandwiched above and below, resulting in a lightweight and snappy ride that’s a blast across the entire mountain.
This product was selected for our Ski 100. Read our review of the DPS Pagoda 90 RP here.
Best For: All-mountain ripping
Sidecut: 130 / 92 / 113 (177 cm)
Radius: 19.8m (177 cm)
Price: £550
Volkl certainly knows a thing or two about making flat tailed, all-metal, all-mountain chargers. Their legendary Katana 108 is testament to this metal craftsmanship. Another range of skis where Volkl have brought their metal expertise to success is in the narrower Kendo series. The Kendo series blew onto the market with the Kendo 88, but new for this year is the Kendo 92, giving you a slightly more soft snow focused tool that’s still more than capable of hacking it on the hard stuff.
The Kendo 92 feature two 0.3 mm and 0.7 mm sections of Titanal that have been specifically cut and sandwiched together to cover areas of ski that require high amounts of power transmission. These sheets run for pretty much the full length of the ski. As if you’d expect nothing less from a ski with this much power, the Kendo 92 features full sidewalls that stretch for the entire length of the ski.
This product was selected for our Ski 100. Read our review of the Volkl Kendo 92 here.
Best For: All-mountain versatility
Sidecut: 132-104-122 (180 cm)
Radius: 22.5m (188 cm)
Price: £450
The Revolt series of skis was the product of Volkl’s head engineer Lucas Romain and the Volkl athlete team getting their heads together and knocking up a ski. It’s pretty safe to say that Volkl smashed things out of the part with the Revolt 122, and new for this year, Volkl bring a Revolt in a more all-mountain friendly package, in the Revolt 104.
As much as brands love to remind us that their skis are able to slash through powder, carve the corduroy all while being more than capable when throwing it down in the park, we’re always left a little sceptical of these claims. These skis however, are more than happy of doing all of the above, to a pretty impressive standard. After taking them for a spin during the ski test circuit, our testers were constantly left stoked with the amount of versatility on offer from this playful number.
This product was selected for our Ski 100. Read our review of the Volkl Revolt 104 here.
Best For: All-mountain charging
Sidecut: 136-102-126
Radius: 18m
Price: £450
New for 2020/21 Fischer are offering the Ranger 102 FR with two different (but non-gender specific) top sheets to offer “skis for skiers” because “passion has no gender”. We’re impressed by Fischer’s approach to the gender question in ski construction, and we’re even more impressed by the performance and versatility of their hot pink ski.
Take the Fischer Ranger 102 FR on a hunt for untracked powder lines, for a trip through the treelines, for an afternoon park shred, or to rip the corduroy. If you’re a fan of hip to snow carves, but don’t want to be limited to the piste, the Fischer Ranger 102 offers you the best of all worlds.
This product was selected for our Ski 100. Read our review of the Fischer Ranger 102 FR here.
