UPDATE: Soul 7 HD skis and Experience 88 HD skis available now!
Rossignol, light of my life, fire of my loins. My sin, my soul. Ros-sig-nol: the tip of the tongue taking a trip of three steps down the palate to tap, at three, on the teeth. Ros. Sig. Nol.
The Soul 7, of course, remains the star of the show. After three winters spent methodically conquering Western mountains, the Soul 7 has finally been rewarded with a redesigned construction and updated graphics. No longer will Rossignol’s flagship freeride ski look like a yellow highlighter. No! For 2017, the all new Soul 7 HD now looks like a yellow highlighter with red stripey things.
Other stuff changed, too, though. The Soul 7 HD now features a carbon matrix to reinforce its light paulownia wood core–a quality it shares with all of the 7 series skis. That adds a bit more backbone to a ski that’s always been remarkably stable for its weight. Just like me. Don’t believe it? Just try to knock me over. Can’t be done, friend.
Elsewhere in the freeride lineup, the Sin 7 has been ritualistically sacrificed to the god of ski engineers. In its place: the Sky 7 HD. Vestigial signs of the old Sin 7 remain, as the new Sky has the same dimensions of its predecessor, and the same 98mm waist. But carbon alloy and paulownia wood make this ski simply a skinnier Soul 7.
On the women’s side, the charade has finally ended. The Savory 7 and Saffron 7 were always the exact same ski as the Soul and Sin, thinly disguised behind a lady-friendly name. Now, Rossignol is simply calling them the Soul 7 HD W and Sky 7 HD W. Because the journey to equality begins with a single step. They’re still exactly the same as the men’s version, though, if you’re keeping score at home. Which you really shouldn’t be. I don’t even know what would constitute scoring a point. Think it through, man.
Oh, and last year’s Squad 7 is now called the Super 7 RD and has the same lightweight paulownia wood core of its 7 series brethren. It’s also pretty damn straight, with a 30m turn radius. But don’t worry, there’s still the softer, slightly skinnier, Super 7 HD for you old school Super 7 fans. The two 2017 versions of the Super 7 look pretty much identical, too. So that’ll be fun for the warehouse elves next winter.
Here are some pics of all this:
From left to right, that’s the Super 7 HD (or its evil twin, the Super 7 RD–we’d never know), the new Soul 7 HD, the Sky 7 HD, and the Smash 7, which, apparently, didn’t get in on this HD action. In the distance, you can see the women’s versions. But you get the idea.
And a few more of the other lines:
We’ll have more to say on this blog about the 2017 Rossignol lineup–specifically the Experience and Temptation skis you see above–as soon as I have time to translate my notes from the SIA Snow Show into a thousand words of weird nonsense. So…look forward to that?
Have you skied the 2017 E88s? I would love to see a review
Would love to hear more about the 2017 E88s. Care to share a short one sentence description? How were they compared to last year’s model?
Hi John,
Thanks for your question! I haven’t been out on those new Experience 88s just yet, but I’ll be sure to get a review posted as soon as I ski them! For a general description based on the new design elements of the ski, please see the response to Jim’s question below.
Thanks,
Dan
Hi Jim,
Thanks for your question! The main difference from last year to this year’s E88 is that the new ski uses Rossignol’s HD Carbon Alloy Matrix, which amplifies energy, pop, and shock-absorption, while maintaining top-notch stability and edge grip, and also allowing for loose and playful maneuverability and float (depending on the style of turn you’re making and the snow conditions). I know that one sentence description isn’t all that short, but hopefully it’s helpful!
Dan
Are the E100s getting a makeover too? I am eyeing a pair of those but if the 2017 model is getting the same upgrades as the E88s, I might have to wait…
Hi Micah,
The E100 will feature the same updates as the E88, namely the new Rossignol HD Carbon Alloy Matrix. Of course, the topsheet graphics have been updated too.
Dan
Thanks! And when will those be available in stores?
The Experience 100 HD isn’t available until the fall, we’ll be sure to keep the blog updated with incoming gear. In the meantime, Rossi pre-released the 2017Experience 88 HD and the Soul 7 HD, which are currently available.
-Dan
Do u have a sky 7 in stock to see r a fx 95
Thanks for your question, Paul! We do not currently have a Sky 7 in stock, but we do have some Kastle FX95 skis – both the FX95 and the FX95 HP. All the skis you can see on the website are in stock at our storefront in Golden, and we’d be happy to show you any skis in which you may be interested.
-Dan
@Jim Horg @ Dan – My favorite east coast ski is the Exp 88. I had a pair of the Exp 88 HD’s out a few weeks ago and found them very much the same but snappier in a slalom ski kind of way. All other virtues are the same but the HD’s have more pop more fun (if possible) just be careful not to load up the tails!!! Toward that end, for some, they may not be as forgiving as their predecessors.
C Miller
Sugarloaf Perfect Turn Ski School