On the lighter and narrower side of the all-new Elan Ripstick Tour line, the 88 W falls more to the tour-specific side of the spectrum. Built with inspiration from athletes such as Glen Plake, the Ripstick Tour line has a light weight, snappy energy, and efficient personality that is super-appealing to ski tourers all over the world. As the narrowest in the line, it’s going to be the lightest, and that has a lot to do with the construction for sure.
ROCKER PROFILE
Rocker / Camber / Rocker
CORE MATERIALS
Carbon Reinforcement, Fiberglass
PREFERRED TERRAIN
Touring, All Mountain
Built with Elan’s laminated wood core, they insert one carbon rod that runs the central chord of the ski. A single carbon reinforcement laminate runs tip to tail and edge to edge in this ski, providing stiffness, responsiveness, and grip without adding much weight. Carbon Bridge Technology in the ski adds yet another partial carbon laminate to the mid-section of the ski making it strong and stable underfoot. In the 163 cm length, all of this adds up to a paltry 1150-grams per ski, putting it squarely in the touring-specific weight class. We also see a 15.6-meter turn radius in the 88 W, and that’s on the long/tour side as well—not hooky or grabby—ready to allow the skier to dictate the shape and duration of the turn, especially in a backcountry setting where you want to put your own mark on the snow. For advanced skiers who are looking for an efficient ski for uphill travel, but still want to have some clout for downhill performance.
Alix Klein was on that 163, and while we were only able to use the ski in a resort/downhill setting, we’re taking the feedback with a grain of salt, as the intended application of the ski far differs from how we were able to test it, and that’s okay. Just good to keep in mind regarding the scoring and feedback. We see top scores of 4 out of 5 for torsional stiffness, edge hold, quickness, and maneuverability. Versatility, forgiveness, playfulness, stability, and flotation all got 3’s while overall impression was a lowly 2. Alix notes that in a downhill format, the Ripstick Tour 88 W was “Chattery in the tips, they wanted to cross at high speeds. Very light, great for uphill travel. Carve well, holding an inside edge well, especially when on the correct feet since they are foot specific.”
Better in an uphill setting than riding the lifts at the resort, the Elan Ripstick Tour 88 W is a great choice for those who are looking to put a lighter tech binding and will be using lighter boots to complete the ensemble. Thanks to Elan’s fun-loving ski building personality, you’ll have a blast on the downhills as well, mainly due to the carbon applications, but also the shape and profile of these light sticks.
