Ski Reviews

2023-2024 Blizzard Rustler 9, 174 cm

Reviewer Username: Rainy

Reviewer Height: 5’4″

Reviewer Weight: 155 lbs

Reviewer Experience Level: Advanced

DAYS USED: 15 days

TEST LOCATIONS: Mt Bachelor, Oregon

PERFORMANCE RATINGS

(0 = Terrible, 5 = Okay, 10 = Outstanding)

OVERALL IMPRESSION: 6/10

FORGIVENESS: 9/10

MANEUVERABILITY (How Loose / Easy to Pivot & Smear?): 8/10

MANEUVERABILITY (How Quick / Low is the Swing Weight?): 8/10

STABILITY: 5/10

SUSPENSION: 5/10

EDGE HOLD: 6/10

PLAYFULNESS: 8/10

PLAYFULNESS (Open Ended):

loose, energetic, slash/pivot

SKI LENGTH: It felt a bit too long (174 cm length tested)

THIS SKI’S IDEAL TERRAIN: Softer groomers | Softer moguls | Low-angle, off-piste terrain | Fairly steep off-piste terrain | Trees

THIS SKI’S IDEAL SNOW CONDITIONS: Softer, but not deep snow | Untracked powder (shallow) | Soft chop / pretty forgiving cut-up snow

WHAT TYPE(S) OF SKIER DO YOU IMAGINE WILL GET ALONG BEST WITH THIS SKI?

Intermediate skiers could enjoy this ski it has a wide range of performance. Advanced to expert finesse skiers that like to turn, not straightline the mountain.

ARE THERE SIMILAR PRODUCTS YOU’VE SKIED THAT YOU CLEARLY PREFER? IF SO, WHY?

Volkl Mantra M6, is another 96mm width, all mountain ski. I am now finding that I prefer the stability and suspension of a heavier ski like the Mantra compared to the Rustler 9. The Rustler 9 is great in soft snow conditions, but when conditions get firmer and cut up, the limitations of its stability and suspension are startling.

PLEASE ELABORATE ON ANYTHING ELSE YOU’D LIKE TO SAY ABOUT THIS SKI. FEEL FREE TO GO INTO DETAIL!

This is my everyday ski this year in the Pacific NW. With a -8 mount-point was hoping to ski this with a more upright stance but finding it is working best when ridden with a forward stance. Worked great in 4-6” of Cascade Concrete (great base builder) doing medium fall line turns. Was easy to slash and pivot in the dense snow. On firm groomers it held an edge ok, but I attribute a good portion to the driver. In soft conditions has nice rebound, also rewards a gradual down-weighting in 3D snow which makes it feel more stable. The better the skier the better it performs, surprise!
UPDATE: Have since had it in boot to knee high dry powder (Hokkaido) in low-angle to moderately steep terrain. I found that it floats really well for its width. With the rocker and splay design never even thought about tips diving. Even in these conditions, for me at least, a forward stance gave the best balance. One thing that works for me is patience, a gradual down-weighting to get into the flex of the ski, this drastically increased stability and suspension in cut up soft snow conditions.
UPDATE: Two days of skiing in firm to grabby snow, including firm chop. On low-angle groomed runs the R9’s are fine but get on to anything steeper and they (or maybe I) lose all composure. A buddy skied behind me and told me that I looked fine, carving the whole length of the ski with minimal tail washing out. But really I was feeling every irregularity, felt the edge skipping and was at the very speed limit of me and R9. It was exhausting. Was able to get on Mantra M6 in the same conditions and it was a different world. I think if you are a really dynamic skier the R9 might be fine in the conditions I found it wanting. For me, a 96mm all mountain ski has to work primarily on low tide days and as a bonus work in soft snow conditions of say 4” or more. Again for me, the Rustler 9 does not fill that niche in the quiver.