blyatfuli didn't even know that volkl produces in china.. so which ski would you recomend?
Here's my list of touring skis that I've owned/own and feel happy with in the field...
Fischer Watea 88
White Dots Carbonline R.108
Armada TST
Dynastar Cham 97 HM
Icelantic Vanguard 97
Black Diamond Warrant
Fischer Ranger 108ti
Dynafit Manaslu
Black Diamond Havoc
almost all of them besides the TST (and the havoc ironically) were built with touring in mind, being that they are constructed to be lighter weight, or at least have a tail-slit or flat bumper for touring skins.
Yeah. I
mostly omit the twin tip in the backcountry. flat tails are more useful when you're touring, and unless you plan to build a backcountry booter or you just looove to land switch in pow, then it's more of a pain in the ass than anything. You'll need to get a specific tail for your skins to make sure they don't shift around or anything, and that's not the most fun thing.
And that's the thing, you need to
assess what your goals are for the backcountry and what the terrain youre most likely going to be skiing will require. If you want to summit 4000m peaks, then lighter and more efficient is usually better. If just you want to access that sidecountry mini golf zone just out of bounds at your local, and tour back to the lift, then you don't need too much different than what you're already using inbounds.
I generally tend to suggest something light, but not
TOO light. You don't want a straight up ski-mo ski unless you're really wanting to peak-out on stuff. If your goal is to enjoy your skiing more than your type 2 journey, get something perhaps a bit more solid. For example, my Vanguard 97's and my White Dots are pretty damn lightweight, and ski a bit soft due to it. the Vanguard has a really soft squishy washy tail.. which can be annoying if the conditions ask for a stronger ski, but if you're used to a washy twintip, then it fits alright. They dont make that ski anymore, but if you wanted to have something similar, just try to find a ski with a softer tail.
If you want something more solid, it might be worth trying a ski that's a full wood-core throughout the whole construction - meaning no PU tips, or other ultra lightweight faff. When the conditions warrant going with something stronger, longer, and more bold, I generally pull out my Armada TST's because, though they aren't the lightest, or the most touring oriented, they're absolutely the strongest ski I have in my touring quiver, and theyve taken just about anything i've thrown at them.
In any case, I like a lot of the touring oriented skis with lightweight cores that are out there these days...
and there's a lot of good options.
Armada Tracer. Atomic Backland. Line Vision. Icelantic Natural. Black Diamond Helio. Volkl Blaze. K2 Wayback. Dynastar Vertical, Head Kore, Blizzard Zero G, Black Crows Freebird, shit just about everyone is making a decent touring ski these days.
You're going to get a ton of different recommendations from people. Do your own research and think critically before you dump your cash.
That said...
If I had to pick a quiver of 3 from the list above, I'd probably go with the
Black Diamond Helio 88 for spring days or longer tours in old, average, variable snow, the
Icelantic Natural 111 for deep japowder days, and probably the
Armada Tracer 98 as my every-day touring ski that I'd take out at least 50% of the time that can handle absolutely whatever you throw at it..
The Helio 88 is super lightweight, reactive, and has the right construction for spring days. They also make a 95, 104, and 115 width in this ski, and if weight savings sounds good to you, you could swap this out for any of those as well.
The Armada Tracer 98 is durable, lightweight, damp because while it has a lightweight core, it also has a titanal laminate, and works both inbounds and out of bounds just fine. super fucking versitile. The 108 and 118 would also do great if you wanted them to be more powder oriented.
The Icelantic Natural is one of the more tough options of the list above -fairly lightweight without being flimsy or anything- and I'd also highly suggest the 101 width as an everyday touring ski.
**This post was edited on Mar 1st 2021 at 9:54:01pm