Head Skis USA

Big Joy Ski - Women's

There are two ways to make a ski lighter: you can cut corners to cut weight, or you can incorporate new technologies and thoughtful design to shave ounces while actually boosting skiing performance at the same time. Head opted for option number two when it made the Big Joy Women's Ski, creating a big-time powder ski just for gals who might not weigh enough to truly maximize a stiff plank designed for guys. Don't think the Big Joy's wimpy, though; it sports an aggressive Allride Rocker (traditional camber with a rockered tip) so you can crush hardpack in addition to floating over powder, and has a superlite sandwich cap construction that combines the weight-saving benefits of a cap with the power and torsional rigidity of sidewalls.

Since it was designed for lighter riders, the Big Joy's camber profile has been mellowed out, making it easier to use every millimeter of camber without getting bounced around by too much rebound. Head tailored the rocker, rebound, and turn radius to work in concert—it calls it ERA 3.0 technology, if you're curious—for a smooth, powerful, and predictable ride, and even laminated the lively wood core with Graphene, a carbon laminate that's just one atom thick and 100 times stronger than steel (seriously) to provide an unbeatable combination of strength and lightness. Add in a tough and speedy UHM C base, and you'll be hard-pressed to wipe the goofy grin off your face after a long day of crushing big lines and deep pow.