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Reviewers' score
15.3

Völkl 90Eight review 2020

PROSKILAB™ reviewers' comments

While we asked Völkl to put the Mantra M5 in the competition this year, the manufacturer wanted to offer us the 90Eight in this category. It is an excellent ski, but a little light in this rather demanding programme. The Mantra M5 has not changed and we recommend our reviewers interested in a more performance-oriented ski to refer to the test carried out last year.

The 90Eight shines when you leave the pistes. Its considerable waist width, its lightness, and its very-well-distributed flex work wonders: the ski proves to be at ease on all terrains, in all circumstances. It switches to choppy snow well, floats in powder, pivots well. It's a delight…

On the piste, its behaviour is generally good, but the ski, which is rather flexible, lacks a little manoeuvrability as well as high-speed handling. It is not the ideal ski to attack an aggressive scull on hard snow, but it is comfortable in "cool" handling such as large turns at moderate speed.

The 90Eight from Völkl is a versatile ski, capable on all terrains with a preference for off-piste. We recommend it to good to excellent skiers who want a ski that is really at ease off-piste, but also to freeride touring fans.

Review: Pros

  • Excellent off-piste behaviour in all conditions
  • Ski that absorbs the terrain well
  • Good buoyancy
  • Comfortable on the piste in cool handling

Review: Cons

  • Lack of character; expresses itself mainly on the piste
  • Less responsive than some of its competitors
  • Fairly flexible, limited at high speed on the piste

The ski review scores

Turn initiation
☆☆☆☆☆
15.5
Stability
☆☆☆☆☆
15.2
Stability/turning performance
☆☆☆☆☆
16.4
Grip
☆☆☆☆☆
15.8
Short turn performance
☆☆☆☆☆
12.4
Long turn performance
☆☆☆☆☆
16.4
Skid turn performance
☆☆☆☆☆
13.2
Handleability
☆☆☆☆☆
15.2
Comfort
☆☆☆☆☆
16.4
Snow contact
☆☆☆☆☆
15.2
Soft snow fluidity
☆☆☆☆☆
16.4
Freeride - Flotation quality
☆☆☆☆☆
16.4
Handling in powder
☆☆☆☆☆
16.4
Performance on hard snow
☆☆☆☆☆
14.6
Freeride - Performance on hard snow
☆☆☆☆☆
14.6
All-terrain comfort
☆☆☆☆☆
14.6

Who's it for?

Good → Excellent+

Manufacturer's remarks

There is the 3D construction, present on the V-Werks, for a perfectly formed ski that reveals its assets from the first descent. Its shape, with a rocker in the nose and tail (Tip & Tail Rocker), means it lies well in your hand and has a good grip on the piste while remaining efficient in powder. Stability and liveliness describe the 90Eight with its 98 mm waist; it is the ideal ski to have fun on any terrain: bumpy slopes, crusted snow, groomed snow, powder, runs through the trees… Due to its light weight, it can also be mounted with a Freeski binding (Squire, Griffon, etc.) or a binding with inserts such as the Marker Kingpin, for example.

Features of the 90Eight

Brand : Völkl
Model : 90Eight
Year : 2020
Family : All-mountain/Freeride
Size tested : 184 cm
Tip size : 133 mm
Waist size : 98 mm
Tail size : 116 mm
Radius for the size reviewed : 22 m

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Reviewed by PROSKILAB™

in La Clusaz, France, March 2019