2025 Elan Ripstick 108

New for 2025, the Elan Ripstick 108 is now the widest ski in the Ripstick line, taking over from the ultra-wide 116 that went by the wayside, likely due to lower sales numbers. This new 108 fits in quite well with the other Ripstick skis, though, forging its own path through the meat and potatoes sections of the ~110 mm freeride skis of the world. Mainly, the 108 separates itself much in the same manner as the other Ripsticks—light weight and high energy. These skis are very fun and eager to be mobile and playful in a varieity of conditions and terrain, although we’ve found that they certainly have more of a home in softer and deeper snow. With a whole new Ripstick lineup for 2025, Elan is positioning the 108 to be the smeariest, surfiest, and favoritest for skiers who spend most of their time in search of freeride adventure.

Elan uses a lot of the same construction techniques for the new 108 as they have in the past, with some minor tweaks. Between the build and the shape, the shape seems to be the more different of the two. One of the main construction differences is the use of a full tubelite wood core with no vapor tip inserts. This tip to tail wood gives the ski a bit beefier feel while allowing Elan to thin the core to meet the demands of lighter weight. Blending poplar and paulownia, this core is lively and energetic. They use two strips of uni-directional carbon under the core in order to get the ski to come alive under pressure. The carbon rods boost this energy to the nth degree by having the pop of the ski pre-loaded with the 360-degree application of carbon. On top of the core in the forebody, they use a flax layer to dampen the ski and control vibrations. All of this leads to a paltry weight of 1770 grams in the 182. This is pretty darn light for a ski this wide, and we’re here for it. That can, however, lead to a less stable platform either at higher speeds or on firmer snow. We found that it’s not that big of a deal, especially if you’re prepared for it and understand that those types of attributes are normal for skis of this weight.

108 is a great place to be for soft snow that isn’t bottomless. This means that the Ripstick 108 is a highly useful powder ski that is going to be the tool of choice more often than not in the soft stuff. You can use it just fine when it’s a snow day, but also when the snow settles, this thing will hold up just fine. In the 182, the turn radius of 19.8-meters keeps you engaged while allowing the ski to be drifty and surfy. The overall profile of the ski is somwhat lower than it has been in the past, enhancing the smoothness and ease of slashing. Tester Zach Arvin notes about the shape that it excels in “Powder! Steep terrain. It floats super well and is light so some backcountry would do wonders for this ski.” Matt McGinnis states that “They perform well because of how soft they are, meaning they’re easy to smear and butter as you please.” These comments sound like the ski makes a lot of sense for someone who mixes soft snow playfulness and pure adventure.

As such, and due to the width, these skis still fall more into the advanced and expert category. We do think there’s room for progressing intermediates to enjoy their first powder ski here, mainly due to the weight. They’re easy to turn and supremely mobile. Due to the amphibio rocker profile and the left/right specific ski, the smoothness and intuitiveness is all there, making it simpler for advancing and learning skiers to link turns together without having to think too hard about it. That opens the ability range quite a bit, allowing more skiers to enjoy these awesomely mobile soft snow specialists.