SKIS
Salomon has made construction changes to some of the QST freeride skis for winter 19/20 along with introducing a new range of wide body piste skis called S/Force. New S/Pro boots build on the S/Max boot technology.
S/Force wide body piste skis
The new S/Force range of skis for 19/20 uses Edge Amplifier. This technology was was introduced in 18/19 with the S/Max and S/Race skis. The S/Force skis have a new tip construction, called Crossover Tip, with TPU (thermoplastic polyurethane) inserts, to give improved shock absorption, with a layer of carbon/flax (C/FX) in between the TPU inserts for dampening.
There are four models in the S-Force line-up for 19/20:
- S/Force Bold – 84mm, R16m in 177cm, £820
- S/Force 11 – 80mm, R16m in 177cm, £660
- S/Force 9 – 80mm, R16 in 170cm, £560
- S/Force 7 – 76mm, R13m in 160, £400
I have tested the S/Force Bold and S/Force 11.
TESTED: Salomon S/Force Bold piste skis
The S/Force bold is wide and you can feel that width, being slower edge to edge. It’s really easy to pressure the tip and make the ski come round nice and quickly. It felt like a wide slalom ski. As I skied it I found myself asking “why would I want a fat slalom ski?”.
TESTED: Salomon S/Force 11 piste skis
Although the S/Force 11 is only 4mm narrower this does make a big difference on-piste. It’s quicker edge to edge, has tonnes of grip and superb energy coming out of the turn. It’s a ski for someone with good technical ability, who wants a piste ski which can also cope on those chopped up, soft snow days.
If you want something more accessible then the S/Force 9 and S/Force 7 are worth a look.
QST freeride skis
Salomon is making changes to their popular QST range. A new cork inlay replaces the Koroyd (honeycomb structure) inlay in the tip. Cork is light but has better shock absorption characteristics (16 times better at absorbing vibrations than Koroyd). They call this Cork Damplifier.
They’ve also beefed up the C/FX layer with more carbon (twice as much) to give the ski more performance. This is balanced out with basalt to maintain the dampening quality. This construction makes the skis more performance orientated than the 18/19 models. Salomon has also changed the shape of the QST 106. Interestingly the QST 106 is 105mm underfoot (in 181cm – was 106mm last season), and 1mm narrower in the tip and tail too. The radius has dropped by a metre from 20m to 19m for 19/20. The geometry of the QST 99 remains unchanged.
I was fortunate to test both the new Salomon QST 99 men’s ski and QST 92 Lux 92 women’s ski.
TESTED: Salomon QST 99 freeride skis
I own the 18/19 QST 99, so it was interesting to get on the new model. The flex of the new QST 99 is better judged, and it delivers improved grip over the previous year’s model. The flex of the 17/18 QST 99 was superb, and this was compromised for 18/19 model so it’s lovely to see Salomon get it bang-on again for the new 19/20 season QST 99. You don’t get any significant tip chatter in the 18/19 model, but the new ski is even smoother through the tip, without any tip chatter. For £450 flat (without a binding), the 19/20 season QST 99 is a cracking ski.
TESTED: Salomon QST Lux 92 women’s freeride ski
The QST Lux 92 will retail for £400 flat. The QST Lux has a similar feel to the men’s QST 99 – stable at speed and superb grip. Even though I was testing a long ski at 177cm (most women’s test skis are shorter than this), it was still easy to get the ski into quite a tight turn shape. However, it is stiffer than many other women’s freeride skis, so one for strong skiers or those that like to ski hard.
BOOTS
S/Pro boots
Salomon X-Pro boots have been around since winter 13/14 (then replacing the Impact range). 18/19 is the last season for the X-Pro, as the range will be replaced with S/Pro for 19/20.
The new S/Pro boot uses Coreframe, similar to the S/Max boots. You also get a full 360 customised fit from the shell and liner. This gives around 6mm of expansion around the forefoot, 10mm around the ankle and 11mm in the upper cuff. This really does allow for a quick (10 mins) customisation process which will accommodate a huge spectrum of foot and lower leg shapes and sizes. Big calfs? No worries, as 11mm is a lot of extra room at the top of the cuff.
There’s a soft insert over the instep/ankle to make it easier to get into and out of the boots. S/Pro will still be the wider fitting boot range (100mm, which can expand up to 108mm) and it’s 2mm higher over the instep than the S/Max.
The S/Pro boots will come in a range of flexes from 80 to 130 for men and 80 to 120 for women.
TESTED: Salomon S/Pro 120 ski boots
I tested the S/Pro 120 boot and the boot flexes really smoothly. Some two piece boots can flex forward then stop quite abruptly, but Salomon has avoided this with the S/Pro. It’s a roomy 100mm last, so will suit those with a medium to broad forefoot. As you can expand them another 6mm they’ll be a good option if you’ve got a broad forefoot.
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