2023 Blizzard Hustle 11

The 2023 Blizzard Hustle 11 is the culmination of years of hybrid ski technology fused with modern freeride character. They’ve taken the existing and successful footprint of the Rustler 11, and added a new, light, and responsive twist to the mix. Built with a Trueblend Freeride wood core consisting of 8 beech , 3 poplar, and 5 paulownia stringers, these skis have an excellent mix of energy, lightness, and stability. While Rustler skis feature a titanal D.R.T. laminate, the Hustle 11 features a carbon version, both lightening the load as well as providing excellent bounce out of the turns. The carbon follows the contour of the camber, ending as the rocker lines begin. This gives the Hustle 11 a free and floaty feeling in the soft stuff and nice energetic grip for on-trail activities. While Blizzard is billing this ski as a “touring” ski, the weight doesn’t totally justify that classification. It’s still almost 1900 grams per ski in the 180 cm length, so while it’s a bit lighter than Rustler 11, it’s still heavier than most touring-specific models. We feel fine pairing it with a regular alpine binding and using it in the resort. Conversely, if you wish to put a light tech binding and use AT boots, we wouldn’t argue against that either. It’s the range and versatility of application that truly stands out.

Marcus Shakun skied the 188 and called it perfect. He scored it 5’s out of 5 for overall impression, stability, and flotation with 4’s for versatility, torsional stiffness, edge hold, forgiveness, and playfulness. Lowly 3’s went for quickness and maneuverability, but overall, these are some high scores for such a wide platform. Marcus states that “It sure will Hustle its way down the mountain. Big all mountain twin with a lively playful flex from tip to tail. The tip and tail are a nice mellow flex so it blasts through the thick heavy snow with ease. Allowing the skier to flow down the hill. It’s not too hard to get onto edge as most, but it also feels like it pulls you into the turn. Making the turn engagement more lively or snappy. It’s not overly light, but very responsive for its size. Probably not great in hard bumps, but ok in the soft.” Hard bumps were likely pretty far from the designers’ minds when coming up with Hustle 11, so that’s okay that these skis lack those attributes according to Marcus.

Bob St.Pierre also got to ski the 188, and this was a great size for him. He scored it 5’s out of 5 for flotation, playfulness, and overall impression. Versatility, forgiveness, quickness, and maneuverability all got 4’s so we’re seeing a high spread from Bob here as well. “I’m not sure what they’re getting at from a touring perspective, but it certainly seems that the Hustle 11 is a strong performer from a downhill/resort setting. Sure, you can ski uphill on this thing, and in many ways, it’s a great blend of light weight uphill efficiency and downhill flotation, but I think it definitely leans on the downhill side of the spectrum. I loved the energy and flotation out of this ski, and I don’t think it’s a far stretch to say that it’s a better option than Rustler 11, especially since many skiers don’t need metal in a ski this wide. Still a decent carver, I was super-impressed with the groomer performance, and while that’s not what they had in mind, I’d feel like I was leaving out a big part of the story if I didn’t mention the ski’s ability to carve clean and round turns on the corduroy. It was a very fun ski and I can’t wait to get on it again!”

Skiers are going to have a much better time skiing on this ski if they take the “touring” part out of it and just enjoy it as a wider and lighter option. There’s a million different applications for this ski, so it’s tough to tell people to just choose one, that’s why you have to get on it yourself and see what the fuss is all about.