Top Frontside Skis 2013

With all the hype over backcountry and chest-deep stash, it's sometimes easy to forget that most of us do our skiing at resorts—and that that can be pretty wild, too. Sure, there's the lift line buzzkill, but there are also groomed steeps, early-morning corduroy, untracked glades, tricky-fun bumps and, in some locales, bountiful sidecountry bowls brimming with fresh powder. If that sounds like your scene, check out these killer skis. They're built for performance on groomers—great edge hold, knife-like carvability and quick turn initiation—but, for the most part, are also versatile enough to plow some untracked pow. Introducing your tickets to rip at the resorts (though, yes, you still have to stand in a lift line).

In order to make our top picks, we've surveyed the work of nearly a dozen online and print ski publications who, together, employed dozens of testers to put literally hundreds of skis through their paces in every condition imaginable. We cross-referenced until we were cross-eyed and reasonably certain we'd gotten a comprehensive, bird's-eye view of what works and what doesn't. These choices represent the best of the best. Click on each set of skis for a more detailed review.*

MEN'S SKIS

ROSSIGNOL PURSUIT HP

K2 A.M.P. AFTERSHOCK

BLIZZARD MAGNUM 8.0 TI

ATOMIC CRIMSON Ti

HEAD REV 85 PRO

 

WOMEN'S SKIS

KÄSTLE MX83

HEAD MYA No. 6

*Ratings (Stability, Carving/Edging, Overall) for each ski are on a 0 to 5 basis, and each represents an average of ratings published by SKI, Skiing, OnTheSnow and Outside.