2023 Rossignol Black Ops W 98

The 2023 Rossignol Black Ops W 98 gets a slight re-brand from the previous year. Now with updated graphics, but still the same build as the outgoing Blazer, the Black Ops W 98 is still the same great wide twin tip that so many skiers know, love, and appreciate. Built with a poplar wood core and full vertical sidewalls, this is a real ski that loves to shred. At 98 mm underfoot, we’re right in the sweet spot for having a true one-ski quiver that borders on the freeride side of the spectrum. Skiers can use this in a freestyle, freeride, or all-mountain application—it has a progressive personality that loves to be used in playful manners all over the mountain. Available in sizes 154, 162, and 170, ladies who love to rip around the whole mountain will get the chance to feel the strength, power, and agility of these amazingly versatile and fun-loving sticks. In the 170, the skis generate a 17-meter turn radius and weigh about 1900 grams, so they’re not the lightest skis out there, but they do have the stability of much heavier skis. Great in the trees, bumps, groomers, and park, there’s not a whole lot the 2023 Rossignol Black Ops W 98 cannot do.

Diane Ashworth skied the 170 and noted that “this is about the length I would choose for a powder ski and it skied true to size.” She scored the Black Ops W 98 all 5’s out of 5 with the exception of 4’s for torsional stiffness and edge hold. These are some consistently high scores for the Black Ops W 98, and we’re stoked to see it. Diane notes: “I have skied a Rossi Scimitar for years and this is a fantastic update. It had the stiffness to charge through the corn today yet with a dampness and float that meant the ride was always smooth. It had enough rocker to be quick and playful but when I took it down a firm and scraped off Liftline it had excellent edge grip. At 98 underfoot it’s a little wider than I’d choose as a daily driver type ski but I would happily ski this on all but the hardest snow days in Vermont. This ski is very forgiving and would be a great ski for intermediate to expert skiers who like trees, bumps and soft snow. An intermediate would find it challenging to make this ski grip on icy groomers but it should be pretty easy to handle in soft snow for anyone.” I like hearing that Diane found the 98, which she considers to be on the wide side of the Stowe spectrum, to have ample edge grip for the firmer snow that we so often encounter here in northern Vermont.

Allison Kozar calls the 170 “long enough but not too long” and she gave some high scores, too. Not quite as high as Diane, but still consistent. All 3’s and 4’s from Allison, with the 4’s going for flotation, quickness, maneuverability, playfulness, torsional stiffness, and edge hold. Like Diane, it’s great to see scores that are consistent with each other, and that’s what we mainly expect from a well-rounded and high-end ski like this. Allison notes that the Black Ops W 98 “handled well on the hard pack, but when it came to the mashed taters, I felt like I was being tossed around. The core didn’t feel hollow, but something was lacking.”

We’ve really been enamored with this style and type of ski for quite some time now, and it’s pretty clear that they have a lot to offer a wide berth of skiers. If you’re looking for something playful and fun, that also has grip and pop, the twin-tipped Rossignol Black Ops W 98 has a whole lot to present. Now with updated graphics technology to take this ski to the next level, it should be at the top of most advanced and expert’s all-mountain list.