Sections
- Categories
- Expert All-Mountain
- Adventure All-Mountain
- Big Mountain
- On-Piste Cruisers
- Easy Cruising
- Powder
- Recommendations
- Data
- The Testers
INTRODUCTION TO SKI CANADA TEST 2010 from Buyer’s Guide 2010 issue
From all corners of the country, the Ski Canada Test returned to Big White last March. The atmosphere was charged— something was up and the ski patrol was nervous. Truth be told, there were nothing but smiles and the usual banter: How many skis? What are the categories? Who has a forecast? When do we start? Man, I thought you were dead! We were soon ready to get on with the task: the 30th annual Ski Canada Test was about to begin.
The program is simple: testers review the skis’ category as well as the appropriate test criteria and ready themselves to ski early each morning. Over the week, the team will put in more than 40,000 vertical metres to make it through the long list of test skis. True to form, Big White lived up to its name and provided Ski Canada with a vast selection of terrain and snow conditions—including a nice, dump of fresh pow.
This year our testers were apparently given the best ski offerings ever. A common phrase at the end of the day was “the manufacturers have really nailed it this time.” Ski design has become so refined that certain skis were off the chart for skiers of a specific style and weight. So be sure to review the tester profiles at the end of the report, since the comments from a powerful race-oriented tester were often different from that of a light, agile athlete. As always, don’t look for the “winner” so much, instead find the tester who best pairs up to your likes.
The first step to a great match between you and ski is to review this year’s test data on the pages of Ski Canada. We’ve updated our test to make comparison shopping even easier. With this issue, tester recommendations are now tabulated comparatively in a handy chart form. If your weight and snow conditions are important, for example, start your matching here, then move on to the individual writeups. And when you’re done reading, it’s up to you and your ski shop to choose from the huge selection of new product out there the ski that’s just right for your ability, size and terrain.