The Head Monster 88Ti is a top of the line ski from Head’s “Allride” category. A ski that should be able to charge on the slopes and work really well if you go off-piste; hard and soft snow it should be able to handle any terrain. Our most experienced rider Matthijs tested the limits of this ski.
Circumstances
Compact but not icy slopes on the higher parts of the mountain in the morning. In the afternoon the snow became softer and lower on the mountain became chowdery.
Review
The first thing Matthijs says about the ski, and the first thing he noticed, was a feeling as if he could fall over the front of the ski. As if the distance between the binding and the nose of the ski was too short. But after a couple of runs, he got used to it and it quickly felt as if he had been riding the ski for a week.Especially great where the stability and stiffness, which of course both help with skiing with the throttle way open. Long carve turns at speed remained stable. Only on a few really steep black runs at higher speed did the ski seem to reach its limits in terms of stability.
With 88mm under the binding, the ski is a bit on the wider side for a piste ski, and that is clearly meant to give that float when you go off-piste. But the wider the ski, the nimble it usually becomes. And also stiffness (or less stiffness i.e., flex) has an influence on agility and responsiveness. So you could think that on paper the Head Monster is less nimble. During a few mogul runs however, Matthijs noticed that the ski really bend well with him and danced smoothly through the moguls.
Target audience
The ski is for the advanced to very advanced skier. A ski that you have to ride actively, which can handle most everything, as long as you are willing and able as well.
Conclusion
The Head Monster is a stable and stiff all mountain ski with which you can carve on the slopes. With 88 mm under the binding enough float for off-piste, but still agile enough for deep moguls.
Head Monster 88 Ti 18/19
Retail price (incl binding): € 700,-[vc_empty_space]
