The Newest Do-It-All Sender
In the AS7 years—that’s “after Soul 7″—Rossignol has continued to make great skis. But they seem to have struggled a bit with names (too many) and model recognition (what’s the flagship?). Now, it feels like they’re hitting their stride once again. The reason? The Sender collection. One: cool name. Two, the collection features accessible and versatile skis that appeal to both everyday casual skiers and hardcore *senders*. The new 2025-2026 Sender Free 100 is designed first with the latter in mind. Going into my testing, I wondered a) how much those folks would like it, and b) how well it would appeal to casual, less-hardcore skiers.
Field Notes: Rossignol Sender Free 100
My testing took place at Loveland Ski Area, Monarch Mountain, and Crested Butte. I spec out at 5’7″ and around 165 pounds. I mostly skied the 178cm Sender Free 100 but added a few laps on the 184cm size, too.
First things first. If you’re wondering (as I was) how this ski differs from the Sender Soul 102, a ski of similar name and dimension, here’s the technical comparison. Note, I will talk a bit about the on-snow differences later. Compared to the Sender Soul 102, the Sender Free 100 features a longer turn radius and a more directional shape. It profiles with taller camber and longer rocker, plus more tail splay. And, it is not built with metal, while the Sender Soul 102 features a metal plate underfoot a beam down the center.
Second things second. The Sender Free 100 looks a lot like a narrower version of the Sender Free 110. Construction-wise, that bears out, with two notable differences: no metal and no Carbon Alloy Matrix. Otherwise, they share characteristics (other than dimensions, obviously), with the 100’s rocker and camber profiles looking similar to the 110’s.
Here’s what we’re working with:
Sizes: 162, 170, 178, 184, 190
Weight: 2,000 grams/ski (184cm size)
Radius: 20m (184cm size)
Dimensions: 131-100-123
Going into testing, I wondered a few things. How would this ski compare to the aforementioned Sender Soul 102? How would it differ from the Sender Free 110? And where would it land in the revitalized(!) world of skis around 100mm underfoot?
Groomers
Like the Sender Soul 102, the Sender Free 100 is easy to get along with on-piste. It doesn’t require you to tip it on edge, and it smears turns easily. But when you do want to make pretty arcs and lay trenches, you get a ski with surprising torsional rigidity and solid edge hold. I say “surprising” because the Free lacks the metal built into the Soul. When it comes to carving stability and power, I actually didn’t notice much of a difference between the two. Rossignol skipped the metal in the Free because they wanted to save weight, instead opting to mess with the core thickness to provide stability. In my book, it worked. When you stand on the ski and push it with a neutral stance, you get loads of rebound and energy. That makes for a fun carving experience, especially when you let the longer 20-meter radius do its thing (ie, rail longer GS-style carves). It’s a fun mix, skiing a ski with a long radius but lots of playful character.
That said, those weight savings do show up a bit in the tips. I’m not a big person, but when I really drove the shovels hard on firm snow, I noticed less support than when I skied more centered. Bigger people and better/faster skiers will probably notice that more. Skis like the Blizzard Anomaly and Rustler, Volkl Mantra, and Nordica Enforcer 99 all hold up better in that regard. Of course, none of them are as energetic and lively as the Sender Free 100. And the pink sticks do prove sturdier than several freestyle all-mountain skis, like the Elan Playmaker 101 and Armada ARV 100.
Ultimately, while I do exist in my shovels often, I also enjoy skiing with the type of stance this ski prefers. So it’s a non-issue to me. But note that it won’t rail groomers with the same support throughout the ski as some of those heavier-duty options.
Bumps and Trees
Dipping off-piste or zipper-lining bump runs, the Sender Free 100 shines. And it was in these places that I noticed the biggest difference between it and the Sender Soul 102.
In the bumps, the impressive torsional stiffness I mentioned above helps the ski feel planted. Moreso than I thought it would. The flex in those softer, lighter tips gives you an element of forgiveness and an ability to absorb your line. In that way, the Sender Free 100 felt more lively and dynamic to me than the Sender Soul 102. The latter doubles down on the planted feeling, while the former is, honestly, more fun. In skiing terms, I felt much happier airing and doubling moguls on the Free. In that way, it skis a lot like the exquisite Dynastar M-Free 100. The liveliness is palpable, and the added tail splay helps you easily shed speed and slash.
In trees and dancing between rocks (hello, Crested Butte Headwall), the Sender Free feels lighter than its stated weight of 2,000 grams per ski. That’s a good thing, because the 20-meter radius doesn’t exactly slither like the Soul 102 and its shorter radius. You need to stay on top of the Free, especially when you’re skiing it in a longer size (like me on the 184). It doesn’t punish you if you get backseat, at least not like one of those chargier skis above will, but it sure doesn’t like being skied from back there. Again: the skis perform best when you use a dynamic, centered stance. If you do, the low swingweight from those airy tips will guide you through the tightest tree lines without issue.
Powder and Mixed Snow
I’ve mentioned this in other Lift Line reviews, but I’m a sucker for a ski with a directional shape and a somewhat forward mount point. So, the Sender Free 100, with its recommended mount point at -3.2cm, tickles me. In pure pow, those light and tapered tips float up nicely. The camber and rebound give you that nice bouncy feeling. And those splayed, freestyley tails slash with ease. Again: the skis feel lighter than they (allegedly) are. That said, the mount point does make it easier to dive those light tips if you drive them in the shovels. I did not experience this personally, but I also didn’t ski more than ~6 inches of fresh on these skis. I could imagine a chargey skier burying the tips in deeper snow. Float like a butterfly, sting like a bee.
In cut-up pow or variable nonsense, the Sender Free 100 holds up well considering how playful and dynamic it is. Thank that stiffness underfoot. The tips can get deflected, understandably, but that’s a common tradeoff with skis in this category. So it shouldn’t be a huge surprise. In these conditions, the Sender Soul 102 gives you a little more dampness and tracking, and a shorter radius for finessing your line. The Sender Free 100 loves skipping across soft chop with more of a dynamic style.
Downside
I can see three situations where people might be bummed out on the Sender Free 100.
One, you’re a bigger person than I am and you drive the shovels hard (and you refuse to quit!). You’d probably be better off on an Anomaly, Mantra, or Enforcer, though you will sacrifice the lively, playful feel of the Sender Free 100. Two, you ski like that in crappy conditions, where the tips get deflected. Same trade-off available. And three, you don’t ski with a directional style and really prefer shorter-radius turns. That long radius is so much fun for some people, but the Sender Free 100’s lack of “slither” ability compared to the Sender Soul 102 could make it sort of challenging for some skiers.
Bottom Line
The Sender Free 100 makes its case for “Ski of the Year!” Not that we actually crown that title. But we do keep an eye on how our staffers respond to various models. At the Powder7 Ski Test in March, staffer after staffer validated the liveliness and enjoyability of these skis. So it got me thinking about those questions from above.
One: the Sender Free 100 feels more playful and lively than the Sender Soul 102, and its longer radius plus directional shape show up for sure. Again, that could be a good thing or bad thing depending on your ski style. For me, it’s a huge positive. Two, it does feel like a narrower Sender Free 110. Sure, there’s no metal, but the narrower waist width inherently makes the ski more torsionally rigid, so I think it comes out as a wash. Props to Rossi on that one.
All in all, if you ski with a directional style but enjoy getting loose sometimes, too, the Sender Free 100 should be at the top of your list for skis around 100mm underfoot. It’s definitely a ski meant to excite the core-skier base (which should, I now realize, absolutely be a political party). It will also appeal to a wide array of skiers, though that array may differ slightly from the Sender Soul 102’s clientele. The bottom line is that Rossignol now rolls out two skis around 100mm underfoot that, between the two of them, appeal to, say, 90% of skiers. That’s a potent mix.
