When I first read what Elias reported I thought it was lacking but he nailed it from a bit different perspective. My apologies. At Whistler this past week 4 out of 6 days skiing were spent on these. The 181 length regular flex is a bit stiffer, snappier and really solid on edge do to the flex and vertical sidewall imo. If you charge hard and use a traditional aggro racer esque' forward stance these will stun you how well they hold for a 110+ waisted ski. The 181 measures in at 145/111/136 according to these old eyes. Impressive grip. Not a forgiving ski if you tend to move a bit too far back on your heel through the finish of the turn. Some skis with a rounder tail flex starting at the rear binding area will accomodate that style better. When the hill turns rough these have the ability to hammer crud bumps and are just flat stable on edge. Seven inches of colder snow over the previous days 3 inch wind packed remains with hidden ice debris here and there was no problem and very smooth other than the occasional hidden ice chunk deflection. This was very minor and most skis would deflect. If you wanted to point these straight (run em flat)so as to bee line fast straight down over bumpier terrain on maybe a bit steeper run out the skis limits or your own might be tested on these. A bit short for that and obviously much more secure with just a touch of edge pressure. Chutes and tighter terrain with big hurkin bumps covered in 5-6" were easily handled so Elias was spot on. The float was decent and smooth through the fresh pow and wind pack with a carvacious type of turn with its conventional type design. Incredibly versatile tool. I skied a few skis this past week and the Nomad was just a trusted fun ski. I wonder, an extra five +/- cm with a layer of light metal and a very slightly softer flex with the same perfect dimensions hmm? I put Jesters on mine and don't know if that contributed to the super solid feel on edge. Maybe a bit, but the Nomads just friggin rail turns and have a fast base material. With Dukes this would definately be one of the better A.T. setups. Guess I felt at first it to be more of a Rockies type of snow quality ski. The more I skied it in the PNW junk we get it just got more fun. These skis charge and get it done. Maybe a quiver of one for some.

Icelantic is starting to make more and more 'ski' sized skis. Known for ultra-short touring skis (and sick graphics), Icelantic has built up some more versatile fat skis in bigger sizes. I skied the Nomad for a day at Snowbasin and loved how nimble it was in aspen groves, narrow chutes, and the lower elevation scrubby trees. The Nomad is nice and light, but built incredibly well (they're all made in the Neversummer factory and sport the same 2 year warranty) with solid ptex sidewalls and tough bases. The available lengths, moderate flex, and solid build definitely leads me to believe that the Icelantic Nomad is purpose built to be a glade skiing tool. It also sports one of the slickest graphics out there, a real attention getter.