2023 Elan Ripstick 106

On one hand, it feels like we’ve been talking about the Elan Ripstick 106 forever, and on the other, we’re stoked to have a ski as good as this to talk about for years. The Ripstick 106 gets a graphics update for 2023, but remains the same internally awesome ski that we’ve raved about for a few seasons now. Built with Elan’s Tubelite wood core, the skis have a light and energetic core that’s bolstered by innovative carbon applications. With two carbon rods inserted along the edges of the skis, you get a 360-degree use of carbon that makes the behavior of the ski stand out from a wide variety of other ~106’s out there today. These rods are inlayed in the ski, under pressure, so they have energy stored in them. When you get them up on edge, they become even more active, providing excellent feedback and agility. It works in all the Elan skis, but in the 106, it really comes to life. The other carbon application is their Carbon Line Technology, which is a partial carbon laminate used in a more traditional, horizontal manner. This gives the ski more stiffness, and since it goes on the inside edge of the ski, provides more edge grip and torsional stiffness. In the 180 cm length, these skis come in at 1830 grams per ski and produce an 18.1-meter turn radius. This is right where you want to be for a blend of all-mountain and freeride skiing for advanced and expert skiers.

On the 188, Bob St.Pierre was impressed by how strong the ski felt for not having metal in it. The length was great for him, right in the sweet spot for his size and ski style. Bob gave the 106 top scores of 4 out of 5 for overall impression, versatility, torsional stiffness, edge hold, playfulness, stability, and flotation. Quickness, maneuverability, and forgiveness all got 3’s. Bob notes that the Ripstick 106 is “A very impressive ski, once again, that operates on a slightly different level than a lot of other ~105's out there. The carbon usage is effective with the rods and the half-laminate on the inside, effectively mimicking metal in terms of performance but not weight. Great carver for the width, and floats like a dream, as one would expect. This ski continues to impress and to be a big player in the category.” There are a lot of skiers out there who need to get on these asymmetric skis and see what the fuss is—they are certainly very smooth in both deep and soft snow as well as the more on-piste conditions.

Dave Hatoff and Dave Carter both skied the 180, and both found them to be true to length and good sizes for them. Dave Hatoff scored the ski 5’s out of 5 for flotation and overall impression, with 4’s going for versatility, torsional stiffness, edge hold, forgiveness, playfulness, quickness, maneuverability, and stability. That’s a nice spread of scores on the top end of the spectrum for sure. He calls it “Really responsive for 106 waisted ski. Easy to turn. Great floater, crud buster and soft snow slayer. Nice edge grip on hard pack too.” The ease of turning for such a wide ski should not be overlooked—very simple and easy to get this bigger ski up on edge for sure. Dave Carter gave it 4’s for overall impression, versatility, forgiveness, playfulness, quickness, maneuverability, and flotation. Stability, torsional stiffness, and edge hold each got 3’s, so like Hatoff and Bob, we’re seeing a nice and high baseline for the Ripstick 106. He calls it “Gretzky through plowing through the soft snow, with a bit of the flexion on the chunky hard stuff.” We’ve noticed that too, over the years, that the vapor tips, while great for flotation and easy turning, do flap a bit with the firmer snow.

As a wider set of skis in your quiver, or as a one-trick pony for skiers who ski in snowier zones, the 2023 Elan Ripstick 106 is here to suit your all-mountain and freeride needs. It’s certainly on the more directional side of the spectrum for the shape, but that just makes it very smooth and stable, while keeping the fun factor at an all-time high.