Head Skis USA

Collective 105 Ski

Skiing nothing but groomers is like eating pizza three meals a day: it's awesome for a while, but before long you'll want to expand your horizons and try, say, some lobster tails, or at least a cheeseburger. The Head Collective 105 Ski lets you take a big bite of whatever the mountain's serving up that day with plenty of hardpack-devouring traditional camber underfoot and a moderate serving of rocker in the tip and tail that'll let you cruise through powder, chop, and crud without a second thought. Built on a full wood core with a hybrid sandwich cap construction and ABS Tuffwall sidewalls that provide the weight-saving benefits of a cap with the durability and edging power of full sidewalls. The Collective can rally as hard as you want it to while staying nimbler than a cat.

If you're looking at the Collective, then you're probably checking out the rubbery tip-and-tail doodads and thinking something like, "WhaHuhWhoNow?" Stay calm, though, that's just Head's TTS Tip and Tail Stabilizer System, which is basically a shock absorber designed to reduce vibration in rockered skis and provide increased torsional stiffness for a smoother feel, more power, and better edge control. If that's not enough vibration dampening for you, don't freak out, because the Collective also has an Independent Suspension System, a series of elastomeric inlays in the tip, tail, and underfoot, designed to give you a ride that's smoother than a set of silk PJs on everything from icy hardpack to day-old storm leftovers. Now that's tasty.