Reviewer height/weight: 6'1", 210 lbs
Ski weights (per ski):
Length skied: 190
Actual length (with straight tape): 187.3 cm
Dimensions: 138-112-129
Mounted: -4 cm from true center (1 cm ahead of recommended)
Bindings: ATK Freeraider 15
Locations: Chic Chocs Mountains, Quebec, PEI
Conditions skied: Wind and Solar Crust, fresh snow, heavy, wet snow, groomers
Days Skied: 6
It's wild that we're at a point in skiing where many brands have a separate light "Tour" layup for their all mountain and powder skis, but here we are. It wasn't long ago, when you wanted a touring ski, one option was a ski that was engineered to be light as possible and likely sacrificed downhill performance from a brand that only sold that kind of ski. The other option was any ski you liked the look of, which likely hadn't the slightest notion of going up hill considered in the manufacturing process.
The DW has a pretty funky camber profile, with slight camber under foot, two sections of fairly deep 'micro camber' immediately fore and aft of toe and heel and fairly aggressive and symmetrical rocker in the nose and tail. The skis are beautifully finished, with full sidewall construction and very light for a ski of it's size with a paulownia/ash wood core. The sidecut is not as deep as some skis, with a 27m turn radius at 190. The flex is on the stiffer side of medium. Hand flexing, they feel like 7 - 8.5 - 7 with the flex gradually becoming stiffer from the ends to the middle. On snow, the ski feels stiffer than indicated by hand flexing, without a noticeable difference in flex between the nose and tail.
On Snow
I skied these for a few runs on icy, granular east coast piste and they absolutely ripped. Edge hold was tenacious through every stage of the turn. The skis engaged quickly when rolled on edge and were intuitive between turns. They were a joy to ski fast on, and it was easy to arc turns even on less steep groomed terrain. Taking them off park jumps was disconcerting at first, as it felt like there was nothing on my feet while in the air. They were stable landing jumps and drops on hard snow and maneuverable in some short, bumpy, icy chutes at the ski hill.
I took them out in some fresh snow in low angle trees and open fields near my house on PEI, much of the terrain being just barely steep enough to ski. The DW does not do well cruising at low speed. I felt like I was fighting the ski the whole time. When these get into some real terrain though, hot damn are they fun. This brings me to the time spent in the mountains on these where they really come into their own. The meat of the skiing I've done so far on these was three days in the Chic Chocs, part of the Appalachian mountain range on Quebec's Gaspe Peninsula.
Ski weights (per ski):
Length skied: 190
Actual length (with straight tape): 187.3 cm
Dimensions: 138-112-129
Mounted: -4 cm from true center (1 cm ahead of recommended)
Bindings: ATK Freeraider 15
Locations: Chic Chocs Mountains, Quebec, PEI
Conditions skied: Wind and Solar Crust, fresh snow, heavy, wet snow, groomers
Days Skied: 6
It's wild that we're at a point in skiing where many brands have a separate light "Tour" layup for their all mountain and powder skis, but here we are. It wasn't long ago, when you wanted a touring ski, one option was a ski that was engineered to be light as possible and likely sacrificed downhill performance from a brand that only sold that kind of ski. The other option was any ski you liked the look of, which likely hadn't the slightest notion of going up hill considered in the manufacturing process.
The DW has a pretty funky camber profile, with slight camber under foot, two sections of fairly deep 'micro camber' immediately fore and aft of toe and heel and fairly aggressive and symmetrical rocker in the nose and tail. The skis are beautifully finished, with full sidewall construction and very light for a ski of it's size with a paulownia/ash wood core. The sidecut is not as deep as some skis, with a 27m turn radius at 190. The flex is on the stiffer side of medium. Hand flexing, they feel like 7 - 8.5 - 7 with the flex gradually becoming stiffer from the ends to the middle. On snow, the ski feels stiffer than indicated by hand flexing, without a noticeable difference in flex between the nose and tail.
On Snow
I skied these for a few runs on icy, granular east coast piste and they absolutely ripped. Edge hold was tenacious through every stage of the turn. The skis engaged quickly when rolled on edge and were intuitive between turns. They were a joy to ski fast on, and it was easy to arc turns even on less steep groomed terrain. Taking them off park jumps was disconcerting at first, as it felt like there was nothing on my feet while in the air. They were stable landing jumps and drops on hard snow and maneuverable in some short, bumpy, icy chutes at the ski hill.
I took them out in some fresh snow in low angle trees and open fields near my house on PEI, much of the terrain being just barely steep enough to ski. The DW does not do well cruising at low speed. I felt like I was fighting the ski the whole time. When these get into some real terrain though, hot damn are they fun. This brings me to the time spent in the mountains on these where they really come into their own. The meat of the skiing I've done so far on these was three days in the Chic Chocs, part of the Appalachian mountain range on Quebec's Gaspe Peninsula.
