Volkl ski reviews 2012

After K2, if research is to be believed, corporate sibling Volkl sells the most skis and the brand certainly enjoys legions of devoted fans. The 2012 line is well balanced, with several successful models from 2011 unchanged except for cosmetics and other updated or new models debuting to strong reviews. Volkl offers something to almost any and every kind of skier.

Check the drop-down list on the right for a list of 2012 models reviewed on our subscription site: more information here

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Racetiger SL Speedwall

"This ski will teach you retraction turns! Be a hero on the groomers!"

Solid beer league and masters slalom, great fun in the fall line; not for casual cruising.

And, it is important to note, race skis—indeed many frontside skis from most brands—may, in The Age of Phat, be difficult to find, except from dedicated race shops and through special order.

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Fuego

 

Our favorite female-specific frontside ski from Volkl.

Great for teaching, great for learning, great for cruising at almost any speed on almost any surface.

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RTM 80

Roughly fills the AC 30 slot, but as a full rocker, which biases it more toward off piste than was the AC 30. Should be a big hit for Volkl.

"Awesome as ever," commented one obvious Volkl Fan. "Easy to turn, but no loss of stability or edge power."

"I think it has early rise," said another tester.

That is interesting, as it is a full rocker that doesn't seem to some to ski like the typical rocker on hard snow.

"Extremely versatile and a lot of value for the $"

or, simply

"Excellent!"

Technical skiers commented on the late hook up, but that is apples to oranges. This is not the ski for high edge angle carvers and ice fiends.

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Kenja

Analog to the Kendo. Our female testers made similar comments on this women's version, but the words "fun" and "easy" appeared more often and the scores suggest slightly less top end performance.

"Great for the woman who likes to ski the whole mountain."

"For easy skiing fun."

"Super for skiers who want a 1-ski-quiver. Versatile!!!"

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Gotama

Updated.

Likely slightly improved for some skiers. Not on the order of the Mantra improvement.

"Better and more stable than previous version, still a little shaky at low edge angles. Total lack of camber requires the skier pay attention."

"Best in pow!"

"Fun even for someone who doesn't like rockers."

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Mantra

Upgraded and slightly tamed; should appeal to a wider spectrum of skiers.

"Small amount of early rise has helped skis performance; still not short turn friendly."

"Way easier to ski than the old Mantra."

"Early rise had made this ski take a 180° for the better!"

"Very well balanced - still made for speed."

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