Giordana Specoo

Created specifically for beginning and intermediate female skiers, Rossignol's easy-fitting Xena X6 Ski Boots emphasize comfort with enough support for mastering intermediate runs while mixing in a black diamond adventure or two. Unlike a lot of other companies that simply note anatomical differences between men and women, Rossignol employs a team of women who specifically address their products through a Feminine Intuitive Technology (F.I.T.). In the Xena X6 Ski Boot, these refinements include a women's true specific cuff, women's easy entry concept and a women's lasted liner technology. Because women's feet and lower calves are anatomically different from men's, the Xena X6 liner is lower and cut out along the back for a better fit. Extra padding along the cuff helps cushion your calves better than unisex ski boots (or boots that claim to be a woman's design, but are actually just sized smaller). The Xena boot line is the only women's boot collection that features a special upper cuff that has a backward flare--something Rossignol calls "a distinct tulip." This scalloped profile is lower than conventional women's boots so it accommodates the natural shape of your calf better than most ski boots. To make this new design work, Rossignol added a couple of innovations. The top buckle is lower on the Xena X6 boot than traditional women's ski boots so you get a better fit without any pinching at the closure. Rossignol also applied their X-shaped bi-injection cockpit design with a stiffer plastic. The two types of plastics give you a progressive flex in the boot, so the power that you transmit from your feet to your skis is more responsive than other boots where you need to "wrench" your feet to make your skis turn. Softer plastic up top along the cuff also helps you slip your feet into the plush Thermo Fit liner (that Thermo Fit liner features heat-moldable EVA foam, and it can be molded as many times as you want until you know you have the perfect fit!)

Sometimes the progression from beginner to expert requires the purchase of three different skis, but the versatile Women's Maya all-mountain ski can take you from the blue runs to the steep black diamond challenges without throwing you off-balance. This agile ski borrows design elements from Scott's all-mountain Mission ski, but the design and the wood core are much lighter and completely female-specific. Unlike traditional ski designs that use a single sidecut dimension, the Maya has a dual radius design that allows you to mix your short- and large-radius turns with considerable ease. To keep the flex lively, Scott incorporated a versatile wood core triaxial laminate for a blend of torsional stiffness and excellent flex distribution. Another nice feature is the Progressive (Pro) Tip construction that keeps the tips from over flexing and bouncing around in crud and uneven snow. These tips have a progressive tip height radius that makes the flex far more predictable than some advanced and expert all-mountain skis. If you tend to look for powder more than hardpack, consider a Maya with a wide width.

Augmented with a wider size selection, the versatile and performance-oriented as K2 Apache Raider Ski with M2 11.0 Ti Binding is an ideal choice for aggressive skiers who ski all sides of the mountain in equal proportions. That's because the Apache Raider has an all-mountain profile build on the proven Apache Recon chassis, so it offers the widest performance envelope in the Apache line without dumbing down the agility or lively feel. If you're looking for an intermediate ski that adapts to challenges better than the recreation skis with vibration-deadening cores, the Apache Raider is a practical step-up and a great platform for future learning on black diamond terrain, but it won't throw you on tough terrain. When mixing first tracks with established inbound runs, K2's Mod Technology dampens vibration and minimizes ski chatter at speed. K2 compares Mod Technology to shock absorbers in an off-road car. It's an "elastomeric secondary core" that's independent of the wood core that dampens vibrations without taking anything away from the overall ski flex. Combine this with the weighted Mod Monic on the ski and you'll find that the Raider offers excellent contact with the snow and crud, so you are more apt to initiate turns exactly where you need to most. K2 paired their Apache Raider with the Marker M2 11.0 Ti Binding for powerful carving potential that will please aggressive skiers without any of the unsettling chatter that sometimes rattles advancing intermediates. Unlike previous years, the Marker M2 binding series now has lightweight titanium refinements, making this one of the best values of the ski season.