Fischer Transalp 80 (2017)

Rating: / 5
Price: $
Year: 2017
Level:
Gender: Female
Waist Width: 80
Tip/Tail/Waist: 118-80-104
Lengths: 156, 163, 170, 177

The Transalp 80 is a skinny and lightweight touring ski designed to take on a variety of terrain. It has a 114-mm tip, 80-mm waist, and weighs 950 grams. Unlike some of Fischer’s wider touring models, this isn’t a full-on powder ski, though it is built to take moderate powder on when it needs to. It’s mainly intended to succeed through more hardpack conditions, because touring isn’t always just about finding powder. Its 17.5-meter radius (at 170 cm) is relatively long, designed to promote big swooping turns after earning them on the way up.
Fischer’s Tour series, comprising seven backcountry skis ranging in width from 65 to 100 mm, specializes in the constantly evolving world of ski touring, from speed-oriented rando racing to powder chasing freeriding. Every model in the series features a variety of technologies designed to keep them light yet powerful: AirTec Ti wood cores are milled with empty channels to reduce weight; Aeroshape profile features a slimmer, lighter profile with a rounded top surface; lightweight materials like paulownia wood decreases the skis’ weight (which ranges from 650 to 1,500 grams, depending on model and length), while Titanal strips, rather than full sheets, adds stability and durability. Tour Rocker get the ski up and over powder and other varied conditions while the tail stays relatively flat, for secure turn finishes. For the most part, these skis are built to tackle off-piste terrain, and if you enjoy skinning up mountains as much as you enjoy skiing down them, this is the best series Fischer has to offer you. -C.D.