Curious how they compare to my benchmark in the class, my current hell and back. Sounds like they won’t handle crud such as well, keep up on the groomers, and maybe a bit better in pow?
Thanks for the review Jonathan,
Great to see what you think about this ski, and the comparisons to the Ritual.
I have had both the 190 Ritual and original 185 Cochise in my quiver, using the Rituals for groomers and softer snow days and the Cochise for firmer conditions. I had the oportunity to get the Salomon Q-Lab 183, and that is now replacing both those skis. Neither the new Cochise or new Vantage were an option(QLab was a gift), but so far with 1 full day all over the mountain, I am initially happy with that decision.
Look forward to other comparisons, I know you didn’t like the 190 Qlab that much, which was why I opted for the 183, but interested in how the Vantage stacks to the other candidates on the market.
Glad you back on snow again.
I’m currently on a pair of original Automatics in 186. I absolutely adore them in almost any amount of fresh snow and find them capable in hardpack, far more so than any pow ski has a right to be. As the BRG review found, I also find them almost absurdly easy to ski anywhere. I do find myself thinking of switching to something with a bit more hardpack capability if I didn’t have to sacrifice powder performance too much. This ski immediately caught my attention when previewed. I know they’re not really comparable skis, but would appreciate any thoughts you might have on the trade off between these and the old Automatic. Thanks in advance!
I have the old automatics as well. Two pair in fact, one is a rock pair the other a good pair. I skied the vantage 100 today at Loveland ski resort in Colorado. They were amazing on groomers. I skied them in some heavy 3″ powder and they skied great. They skied everything great. They did good in the bumps as well. You can go really fast and they are smooth. They turn quickly. Really light as well.
Thanks for the reviews. I’m looking at some good deals on Rituals but am stuck on what size to get. Have you had a chance to compare the 182 and the 190? I’m looking for an all mountain, do everything ski with an off-piste bias. I ski Montana (Big Sky and Bridger Bowl) and want something that can handle narrow steep chutes but also rip around in cut up crud. I’m concerned about the quickness of the 190 in narrow spots, but would probably like it for blasting deep piles of crud. I also ski with two little kids so need something that can be skied at lower speeds, and that is fun on groomers. Any help would be appreciated.
I’ve demo’d the 180 cm Vantage 100s for 6 of the last 7 days in South Western Colorado in excellent snow conditions ranging from nice powder , soft chop, shaved hard pack and soft groomers. As far as I’m concerned these skiis have handle all conditions superbly. They float, carve and hold an amazing edge. Black moguls are easily managed as well as high speed groomers. I’ve been skiing 191 Volkl Mantra’s as my all mountain ski in Alaska for the past several years and love the stability in crud and icy conditions, nonetheless the Atomic Vantage 100s are much better in powder conditions and still hold edge amazingly well. I’m on my way to buy a pair right now.!
Curious how they compare to my benchmark in the class, my current hell and back. Sounds like they won’t handle crud such as well, keep up on the groomers, and maybe a bit better in pow?
Thanks for the review Jonathan,
Great to see what you think about this ski, and the comparisons to the Ritual.
I have had both the 190 Ritual and original 185 Cochise in my quiver, using the Rituals for groomers and softer snow days and the Cochise for firmer conditions. I had the oportunity to get the Salomon Q-Lab 183, and that is now replacing both those skis. Neither the new Cochise or new Vantage were an option(QLab was a gift), but so far with 1 full day all over the mountain, I am initially happy with that decision.
Look forward to other comparisons, I know you didn’t like the 190 Qlab that much, which was why I opted for the 183, but interested in how the Vantage stacks to the other candidates on the market.
Glad you back on snow again.
I’m currently on a pair of original Automatics in 186. I absolutely adore them in almost any amount of fresh snow and find them capable in hardpack, far more so than any pow ski has a right to be. As the BRG review found, I also find them almost absurdly easy to ski anywhere. I do find myself thinking of switching to something with a bit more hardpack capability if I didn’t have to sacrifice powder performance too much. This ski immediately caught my attention when previewed. I know they’re not really comparable skis, but would appreciate any thoughts you might have on the trade off between these and the old Automatic. Thanks in advance!
I have the old automatics as well. Two pair in fact, one is a rock pair the other a good pair. I skied the vantage 100 today at Loveland ski resort in Colorado. They were amazing on groomers. I skied them in some heavy 3″ powder and they skied great. They skied everything great. They did good in the bumps as well. You can go really fast and they are smooth. They turn quickly. Really light as well.
Thanks for the reviews. I’m looking at some good deals on Rituals but am stuck on what size to get. Have you had a chance to compare the 182 and the 190? I’m looking for an all mountain, do everything ski with an off-piste bias. I ski Montana (Big Sky and Bridger Bowl) and want something that can handle narrow steep chutes but also rip around in cut up crud. I’m concerned about the quickness of the 190 in narrow spots, but would probably like it for blasting deep piles of crud. I also ski with two little kids so need something that can be skied at lower speeds, and that is fun on groomers. Any help would be appreciated.
I’ve demo’d the 180 cm Vantage 100s for 6 of the last 7 days in South Western Colorado in excellent snow conditions ranging from nice powder , soft chop, shaved hard pack and soft groomers. As far as I’m concerned these skiis have handle all conditions superbly. They float, carve and hold an amazing edge. Black moguls are easily managed as well as high speed groomers. I’ve been skiing 191 Volkl Mantra’s as my all mountain ski in Alaska for the past several years and love the stability in crud and icy conditions, nonetheless the Atomic Vantage 100s are much better in powder conditions and still hold edge amazingly well. I’m on my way to buy a pair right now.!
what is your size? Are you happy with 180’s?