Atomic Vantage X 80 CTI W (2017)
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Rating: 3.09 / 5
Price: $850.00
Year: 2017
Level: 2
Gender: Female
Waist Width: 80
Tip/Tail/Waist: 122-80-103.5
Lengths: 151, 159, 167
Stability at speed: 3.54 / 5
Hard snow performance: 3.65 / 5
Crud performance: 2.61 / 5
Flotation: 1.59 / 5
Forgiveness: 3.21 / 5
Overall: 3.09 / 5
In a category of hard-snow carving specialists, the 80-mm-wide Vantage X succeeds with its versatility. It holds its own on firm groomers and even ice, plenty ready to tip and rip for a skilled expert who knows how to use its sidecut. But it enthusiastically ventures off the groomed as well. It’s easy to stay on top of in chopped-up snow, with a playful demeanor that’s fun and energetic and never throws you off balance. Carbon fiber keeps it light; a little metal reinforcement gives it just enough heft for high-speed calm and stability. Testers loved the overall blend and the go-anywhere attitude. Barnes: “Handles many types of terrain like a champ. A very solidly performing ski in both big GS turns and short, quick ones.”
The 2017 Atomic Vantage X WMN 80 CTi is the top model in Atomic’s new Vantage X line of frontside all-mountain skis. It’s also the widest, with a waist width of 80 mm that offers just a bit of soft-snow flotation for off-piste adventure. It’s designed for expert skiers, with metal reinforcement for high-speed calm. And it comes with a high-end binding, the 11-DIN Warden MNC DT. Warden MNC (Multi-Norm Compatible) bindings can be adjusted to accommodate any boot sole type (alpine, AT, or the new rockered-alpine WTR format); the new DT versions can be adjusted to any boot-sole length without the need for tools.
Atomic’s new Vantage X series of narrow-waisted frontside all-mountain skis includes four women’s models, all with groomed-snow-dicing waist widths ranging from 80 down to 74 mm. The Vantage X line replaces the Affinity series (Storm, Sky, Pure and Air), but is similarly targeted at all-mountain skiers who spend the majority of their time carving on groomed snow. The carve-optimized Vantage X line borrows from the light-yet-powerful design philosophy of the wider Vantage freeride models. The top women’s models (Vantage X WMN 80 CTi and Vantage X WMN 77 CTi) are reinforced with Atomic’s Ti Backbone, a sheet of metal that extends wall-to-wall underfoot, where its needed for edge grip and power, but tapers toward tip and tail, to keep things light and manageable. The lower two models are lighter, livelier metal-free layups. All but the novice-friendly Vantage X WMN 74, which is built on a light and economical foam core, are wood-core constructions, for durability and responsiveness. The top three models are reinforced with a layer of Atomic’s Carbon Tank Mesh, a wall-to-wall weave of carbon fibers that adds strength while reducing weight. Unlike the Vantages, which are sold flat, the Vantage X skis are sold only as systems, with bindings ranging from a high-performance 11-DIN in the top model down to an economical 10-DIN binding on the other models. The flat tails (non-twin, non-rockered) of the Vantage X series give them a more locked-in feel and more powerful turn finishes than the smearier, slight-twin Vantages. And the Vantage X models feature Atomic’s new Exo Profile, in which the top corers of the ski are beveled inward fore and aft to reduce swing weight.
Atomic, founded in 1955, is based in Altenmarkt im Pongau, Austria (near Salzburg), where the majority of its skis are made. Along with sister brands Salomon and ArcTeryx, it is a division of Amer Sports of Finland, which acquired it in 1994. Its U.S. headquarters are in Ogden, Utah. -J.C.
The 2017 Atomic Vantage X WMN 80 CTi is the top model in Atomic‘s new Vantage X line of frontside all-mountain skis. It’s also the widest, with a waist width of 80 mm that offers just a bit of soft-snow flotation for off-piste adventure. It’s designed for expert skiers, with metal reinforcement for high-speed calm. And it comes with a high-end binding, the 11-DIN Warden MNC DT. Warden MNC (Multi-Norm Compatible) bindings can be adjusted to accommodate any boot sole type (alpine, AT, or the new rockered-alpine WTR format); the new DT versions can be adjusted to any boot-sole length without the need for tools.
Notes: Atomic’s new Vantage X series of narrow-waisted frontside all-mountain skis includes four women’s models, all with groomed-snow-dicing waist widths ranging from 80 down to 74 mm. The Vantage X line replaces the Affinity series (Storm, Sky, Pure and Air), but is similarly targeted at all-mountain skiers who spend the majority of their time carving on groomed snow. The carve-optimized Vantage X line borrows from the light-yet-powerful design philosophy of the wider Vantage freeride models. The top women’s models (Vantage X WMN 80 CTi and Vantage X WMN 77 CTi) are reinforced with Atomic‘s Ti Backbone, a sheet of metal that extends wall-to-wall underfoot, where its needed for edge grip and power, but tapers toward tip and tail, to keep things light and manageable. The lower two models are lighter, livelier metal-free layups. All but the novice-friendly Vantage X WMN 74, which is built on a light and economical foam core, are wood-core constructions, for durability and responsiveness. The top three models are reinforced with a layer of Atomic‘s Carbon Tank Mesh, a wall-to-wall weave of carbon fibers that adds strength while reducing weight. Unlike the Vantages, which are sold flat, the Vantage X skis are sold only as systems, with bindings ranging from a high-performance 11-DIN in the top model down to an economical 10-DIN binding on the other models. The flat tails (non-twin, non-rockered) of the Vantage X series give them a more locked-in feel and more powerful turn finishes than the smearier, slight-twin Vantages. And the Vantage X models feature Atomic‘s new Exo Profile, in which the top corers of the ski are beveled inward fore and aft to reduce swing weight.
Atomic, founded in 1955, is based in Altenmarkt im Pongau, Austria (near Salzburg), where the majority of its skis are made. Along with sister brands Salomon and ArcTeryx, it is a division of Amer Sports of Finland, which acquired it in 1994. Its U.S. headquarters are in Ogden, Utah. -J.C.