The 100 mm-ish underfoot lightweight backcountry ski is quickly becoming the go-to quiver of one for many backcountry skiers. They hit a sweet spot between float in powder, edging in the steep and variable, and light weight for the skin track up. Go skinnier for a mountaineering stick and powder becomes tougher, go fatter for float and edging gets trickier and the uphill gets harder.

Three of the best in this category are the K2 Coomback, the Black Diamond Drift and the Dynafit Stoke. Each is a variation on the formula: 100-ish waist, some camber underfoot, lightweight construction and some early-rise or rocker in the tip – so you can’t really go wrong with any, but the subtle differences might help you pick the perfect one for you.

K2 Coomback
First off, the K2 Coomback – a classic favorite in the backcountry dating back to its origins with legendary backcountry skier Doug Coombs. K2 has put this ski through an incremental evolution over the years, never totally overhauling it. Flat tails for anchor building, skin attachment holes at tip and tail, and dependable performance have been hallmarks of this ski for some time.
On top of last year’s additional tip rocker and a hydrophobic top sheet that aims to keep your skis lighter by carrying less snow on top, this year K2 adds a “carbon web” they claim adds more responsiveness without weight penalty.
Here at Tahoe Mountain Sports, we see the Coomback as a dependable workhorse we’d happily ski in-bounds and out.
“Although it isn’t the lightest in the group, it will stand up better against your day-to-day abuse at the resort,” said our Hardgoods Manager, Kevin. “It has quite a bit of rocker in the tip, which makes it a very easy ski to get used to.”
He thought the ski had good edge hold in firmer conditions after skiing with both Fritschie Freeride bindings and 22 Designs Axl telemark bindings.
TMS owner Dave also gave the Coomback the best all-around award.
“The Coomback is easier to ski, a bit damper and tends to absorb the crud more due to its softness,” Dave said. “I recommend the Coomback as a 1 quiver ski for anybody spending 50 percent of their time in the backcountry and 50 percent in the resort.”

Specs:
Weight: 3600 g per pair (174 length)
Dimensions: 134/102/121
Turning radius: 22m (174 length)
Construction: Triaxial Braided, Cap, Fir/Aspen

Black Diamond Drift
The Black Diamond Drift was a new ski for the well-known mountain sports company last year, and carried forward into the 2011/12 season. We think Black Diamond nailed it. A 3D CNC’d paulownia wood core with carbon fiber reinforcements keeps this ski ultralight without making it torsionally flexible. It’s a soft ski, so it’s going to flow through soft snow beautifully, but get bounced around in harder conditions.
Like the K2s, these have flat tails, and have a metal notch for the climbing skin clip.
“These skis preform like a dream in powder. I’ve had them on groomers at the resort a few times, and while they’re not meant for that, they did the job” Dave said. “This ski is better suited to somebody who spends 80 percent (or more) of their time in the backcountry. Otherwise, it is a 2 quiver ski with this one being a backcountry-specific tool and then a second pair of skis as your big powder slaying, hard charging resort ski like the Zealot or Amperage.”

Whereas the heavier Coombacks were damp and didn’t get tossed around in crud, the lighter Drifts tended to flutter more. Still, with sharp edges, Dave was impressed with edge hold in hard conditions in the backcountry.
“I thought they would be more like noodles and not hold an edge very well, but I admit, I was wrong,” Dave said in an earlier review.
He also said the Drift was the quickest to turn (the shortest turning radius of the group). In summary, this is a backcountry specialist that’s quick, turny and playful in soft snow conditions, and superlight for the hike up.

Specs:
Weight: 3050 g per pair (176 length)
Dimensions: 136/100/122
Turning radius: 21m (176 length)
Construction: 3D CNC paulownia wood core, carbon fiber reinforcements, Formula One Tech, Torsion Box, Racing Edge

Dynafit Stoke
Dynafit went in a different direction with the popular Stoke ski, developed in partnership with Greg Hill, who climbed and skied 2 million vertical feet in one year. They blended a wider powder ski with the design of their skinnier ski-mountaineering focused sticks that have made them famous, making for a stiffer ski with surprising edgehold in variable conditions, while staying ultralight (only very slightly heavier than the Drift).
Like K2, Dynafit has notches in the tip and tail that work with their proprietary skins and construction is similar to the other two, combining light wood, fiberglass and carbon fiber. Unlike the other two, it uses traditional sidewall construction, instead of cap, and it ends up being the stiffest of the three skis. That mean’s it’s less forgiving and more aggressive, but not punishingly so. It demands technique, so this one wouldn’t be the best for beginners. But what you get from that stiffness is unflappable performance in variable snow and serious edge hold when the snow is hard – perfect for that icy couloir that never saw the sun. If you’ve got the legs and technique, this ski gives you the width and early rise tip for serious powder skiing, along with the edge hold for less than ideal conditions you sometimes encounter out of bounds.
Another difference is the slightly kicked-up tail, it doesn’t seem to be enough of an upturn to make it hard to plunge into the snow, but if your side-slipping back and forth down the neck of a couloir, it’ll help keep the tails from digging in.
The least sidecut in the group also adds to tenacious edge hold but takes more work to swing the skis around on the way down.
“I found myself buttering these skis around more than carving when I needed to turn quickly – once I figured that out, the low swing-weight made these pretty responsive,” said TMS Web Editor Greyson. “The lesser sidecut also made them less hooky in variable snow, and the most confidence inspiring while side-hilling on the way up. If you think of the Drift as a playful ski, the Stoke is more business-like.”

Specs:
Weight: 3100 g per pair (173 length)
Dimensions: 129/105/119
Turning Radius: 34.5/20.1m (173 length)
Construction: Isocore paulownia ultralight wood with stringers in beech and bamboo with biaxial prepreg, fiberglass and carbon reinforcement

The Bottom Line:
Like we said, you can’t go wrong picking any of these three skis for a great all-around backcountry ski. They blend aspects of more traditional backcountry skis with a powder ski in their own ways, making them super-versatile. That being said, we’ll line it up this way: We’d say the K2 Coomback is the ski that’s going to do the most for most skiers – a jack of all trades, master of none. The Black Diamond Drift becomes more specialized as a soft-snow surfer for the backcountry committed. And the Dynafit Stoke is a serious mountain ski that can take serious skiers over the widest variety of terrain.

Black Diamond Drift
MSRP: $699.00
Buy Now

K2 Coomback
MSRP: $649.95
Buy Now

Dynafit Stoke
MSRP: $799.95
Buy Now

Pam skinning up under early grey skies with Mt Rose ski area in the background

Who ever knew you could get a babysitter to come over at 6am? Well, now I do! My wife and I were lucky enough to experience this crack-of-dawn babysitter who was as happy as could be at 6 am, certainly more awake than I was, which was good because soon she was going to have a 2-year-old to deal with while I was out schralping the powder in the Mt. Rose backcountry with all sorts of new gear. While the conditions were a bit wind crusted in spots, it was a great morning to be out with my beautiful wife for a dawn patrol ski during one of our busiest weeks of the year and to be testing some of our new arrivals. As you can see here, I was using all stuff that we sell here at the shop and here is my expert review of all this great outdoor gear for your reading pleasure. I will go head to toe.

Head to Toe in TMS Gear

Smith Variant Brim Helmet with Smith Phenom Goggles – This is a superb combination that I got it last year. If I had waited until this year, I would have the Smith Vantage helmet instead, but that’s how it goes. The Variant Brim is well ventilated, adjustable and fits my head with ease. The Phenom goggles go hand in hand with the Smith helmets. They fit great, no gaper gap at all and no fogging up due to the efficient air system that works between the helmet and goggles. I would go with a Vantage now, simply because it is lighter and has a better vent system.

Balconi Polar Visor Hat – I use this on the way up and I love it.

Sporting the Balconi Visor

First, it is a visor so it keeps the snow off your face or the sun, whichever the weather gods decide to provide. I love visor hats when I am hiking because it allows my head to breathe very effectively and therefore regulates the rest of my body temp. Huge fan, get one if you like winter hat/visors.

Mammut Albaron Jacket – I think I might have found my dream jacket when I found this little beauty. This is a Gore Tex Pro Shell jacket, which basically means it is super minimalist, packs up smaller than a down jacket, has huge pit zips and even bigger front pockets. You can see in the picture above, there is even some tacky, reinforced material on the shoulders for wear and tear from your pack. This jacket is completely minimalist in all other ways. No stupid pull cords, no extra soft material for your delicate chin, nothing. This is a standard, lightweight, fully waterproof and breathable shell jacket that looks super hot on me, if you don’t mind my saying. I highly recommend this jacket!

Outdoor Research Trailbreaker Pants – This is our first season carrying any Outdoor Research product and so far, we are very impressed with their quality and attention to detail. I have been looking for a true soft shell pant that actually fits for a very long time, and I am proud to say, I finally found a pair. I am wearing a size medium and they fit great for my 5’8″ frame. Most soft shell pants are too long on me, but not these. Some of the details that first stuck out at me: Cuff guards on the inside of boot, zippers on the outside of the boot, huge ventilation zips on each leg (see pic), 2 thigh pockets, 2 rear pockets and a built-in belt that is actually easy to adjust.

Outdoor Research Trailbreaker Pants

These pants are extremely comfortable, move and glide with your every movement and are a now my go-to pant for all my backcountry travels.

Black Diamond Quadrant Boots – Generally, I subject myself to using all the demo gear in the shop rather than ever getting anything of my own, but that changed this season with the Quadrant boots. I had a chance to demo them last year in development mode, and loved them so much I picked up a pair this year. This is a true touring boot and what I like most is the flexibility this boot offers. It is incredibly stiff when in ski mode and skis like a charm even on big skis like the Zealot or Megawatts. In traditional alpine touring boot designs, the cuff edge and middle buckles limit the forward range of motion in walk mode; Black Diamond‘s Pivoting Cuff moves up and out of the way to allow the boot to flex farther forward than conventionally possible. This is a huge plus for us backcountry tourers because it now allows for a greater range of motion while walking, boot packing or even ice climbing. I am also a total believer and convert in the Boa system. I think this system is super slick and easy to adjust. It really allows you to get the liner to the perfect tension. Also, it allows you to unbuckle your boots and relieve tension on your feet, while keeping your foot in place in the liner which prevents any rubbing or blistering. All in all, these boots kick butt and that recommendation is coming from a telemarker turned ATer mostly due to these boots and Dynafit bindings.

Black Diamond Quadrant with BD Drift Skis

Black Diamond Drift Skis with Dynafit TLT ST Bindings – Black Diamond is really trying to enter the backcountry-specific market this year, and the Quadrant and Drift are the premier boots and skis respectively that they are doing it with. The Drift is 136 at the tip, 100 under foot and light as a feather. Mounting them up with Dynafit bindings is the only way to go in my opinion, don’t waste those weight savings with a heavy, unnecessary binding. These skis skied like a dream. The conditions today were extremely variable with hard pack giving way to wind crust then to dust on crust and finally, when down in the trees far enough, bottomless powder. These skis performed excellently in all those conditions. I was surprised at how solid they actually felt as I thought they would be more like noodles and not hold an edge very well, but I admit, I was wrong. They cut through all the variable conditions with no problem at all. I was also skiing the 176cm size and thought they were perfect.

I had a lot of other stuff on too, but these were the highlights. I hope you like our product reviews and if you have any questions, feel free to call the shop and talk to any of our gear experts or post your comment below and we will respond super fast.  Happy New Year to all our loyal customers and blog readers! Here are a few more pics for your viewing pleasure.

Pam switching over for the ski down

Black Diamond Drifts ripping it up