Men's Freeride midfat ski reviews 2011

With the Nomad Crimson TI, Atomic has come up with a very good midfat freeride ski that gives excellent performance both on and off piste. Our reviewers were impressed, and we recommend it for good freeriders who want a ski that's both versatile and powerful, capable of cutting through the piste and floating a wall of powder. The size we tested (186cm) is somewhat rigid, making it suitable for very good and/or strong... Read on

The Sultan 85 is a very good, well-balanced mixed ski, 50% freeride/50% piste. Dynastar has developed a true all-rounder here, a "4-wheel drive" that's able to adapt to all situations. It's suitable for a wide range of skiers, from competent freeriders who want to make progress to pro riders. Just make sure you don't choose one that's too short.

The Rossignol S86 is a really excellent freeride initiation ski and is suitable for intermediary to good skiers looking for a user-friendly and enjoyable tool that will help them progress both on and off piste. Expert freeriders and the more aggressive will probably prefer a more technical ski.

Despite Fischer's excellent reputation, and the fact that its products regularly get top marks in Winter-Sports.com ski tests, this year we noted a number of shortcomings in the Watea skis tested in the "Versatile Freeride" and "Midfat Freeride" categories, and the Progressor 9, tested in the "Advanced" category. We found it very difficult to get a handle on the skis delivered for the... Read on

Just occasionally we get a ski that makes skiing difficult and unenjoyable. Unfortunately, we don't know if this was simply a production fault on the skis we were sent to test, or a more general production or design weakness. If you're tempted by the ski's look and the mythical reputation of the "VR77" name, we strongly recommend you try out the ski before buying. As far as we're concerned,... Read on