2019-2020 Majesty Skis Werewolf CLT, 184 cm
Available Lengths: 166, 175, 184 cm
Blister’s Measured Tip-to-Tail Length: 182.3 cm
Stated Weight per Ski (184 cm): 1370 g
Blister’s Measured Weight per Ski: 1358 & 1353 grams
Stated Dimensions: 122-92-112 mm
Blister’s Measured Dimensions: 123-92-111 mm
Stated Sidecut Radius: 26.2 meters
Core: paulownia with ash inserts
Tip & Tail Splay (ski decambered): 63 mm / 22 mm
Traditional Camber Underfoot: ~6 mm
Recommended Mount Point: 81.3 cm from tail; – 9.9 cm from center
Boots / Bindings: Fischer Travers Carbon / Atomic Backland Tour
Test Locations: Lost River Range, ID; Snow King, WY
Reviewer: 6’,0” 175 lbs
Days Skied (so far): 3
[Note: Our review was conducted on the 17/18 Werewolf CLT, which is unchanged for 18/19 or 19/20, apart from graphics.]
Intro
We’ve already posted a First Look of the Majesty Skis’ “backcountry freeride” ski, the Superior, but it’s time now for something very, very different from Majesty.
The Werewolf is Majesty’s lightweight touring and mountaineering ski, and it comes in two flavors: the standard-edition Werewolf, and the “CLT” edition.
The standard Werewolf is constructed with a poplar and ash core and a fiberglass layup, and has a stated weight of 1740 grams per ski in the 184 cm length.
The “CLT” designates Majesty’s “Carbon Light Technology,” their high-end lightweight layup. The Werewolf CLT has a paulownia wood core with ash inserts, and a full carbon and kevlar layup that shaves its weight down to 1370 grams per ski in the 184 cm version. In case you hadn’t noticed, that’s a very competitive weight for a ~95mm-wide touring ski, and our measured weights of 1358 & 1353 grams situate the Werewolf CLT as a clear competitor to skis like the Blizzard Zero G 95.
It’s also worth noting that, out of the box, this is an absolutely beautiful ski, and the overall construction is tight. The edge meet is imperceptible, and the carbon-weave topsheet just looks mean. My only hesitation is there is very little bevel on the topsheet edges, which sometimes means that they’re more likely to get chipped up, but I’ll keep an eye on that.
Now before we mount some ultralight bindings to these things and start running up mountains, here’s a brief breakdown of the Majesty Werewolf CLT.
Flex Pattern
Majesty rates the flex of this ski as a 7.
I’d break it down like this:
Tips: 6
Forebody: 7.5
Underfoot: 9
Tail: 8
The tip is pretty soft, and stiffens up gradually toward the center. And the tail is noticeably stiffer than the tip. The flex is similar to the Zero G 95, but the CLT is a bit softer throughout. Overall, it seems like a very sensible flex pattern for a lightweight mountaineering ski, but I think there is the possibility that some bigger skiers may find themselves wanting a stiffer tip.
Shape and Mount Point
This is where the Werewolf CLT differs drastically from skis like the Zero G 95. It’s got a lot of tip taper, and a longer sidecut radius. For comparison, the Werewolf CLT has a 26.2 m radius compared to 22 m for the Zero G 95, and 18.8 m for the Salomon MTN Explore 95. It will be very interesting to see how that — combined with the slightly softer flex — performs on snow, particularly in tighter trees and chutes and on hop turns.
It’s also worth making a note about the mount point. The Werewolf CLT has two mount lines on the topsheet, “Centre” and “Recommended Stance.” “Recommended Stance” is 2 cm behind “Centre.” But “Centre” designates the center of the sidecut of the ski, not the core center. So while a -2 mount point sounds very centered for a ski like this, the mount is actually at -9.9 cm from the true center of the ski (our measured tip-to-tail length, divided in half), which is very similar to the Zero G 95 (-10.6). That makes sense on a ski like this, and while I like the idea of a more centered mount in a ski I’ll be using in tight conditions, the more setback mount should provide some greater stability when skiing fast or in difficult snow (especially given the ski’s softer tips).
Profile
There are no real surprises in the Werewolf’s rocker profile. Its tip rocker line runs a little deeper into body of the ski than the Zero G 95’s; it’s more similar to the Salomon MTN Explore 95. The CLT has a healthy amount of camber, and just a hint of tail rocker. All that adds up (on paper, at least). It’s the sort of profile that makes me think, “There is enough traditional camber here for good edge grip in steep conditions, enough rocker to break the ski loose when needed, and a mount point and sidecut radius that ought to help the ski deal with variable snow.”
Bottom Line (For Now)
Out of the box, the Majesty Werewolf CLT’s low weight and stunning appearance set it apart. While its got a bit more tip taper than similar skis, the rocker profile and flex seem well suited to big days in high-consequence terrain. We’re excited for the corn cycle to begin so that we can log some long tours with lots of vert on the Werewolf CLT.
NEXT: The Review