The Atomic Vantage 90 CTI is the bread and butter of their all mountain Vantage collection. It is arguably the most versatile ski in Atomic’s entire collection of skis thanks to its strong ability both on and off-piste. Atomic uses a wood core of poplar and ash as well as their Carbon Tank Mesh material that we’ve discussed in gear reviews on Chairlift Chat and a Titanium Backbone 2.0. The addition of the Titanium backbone gives the ski a little more strength when compared to skis like the Vantage 95 C. They have solid torsional stiffness, good energy in and out of a turn, but are light and forgiving enough for use in variable terrain. We sent out a range of testers on the Vantage 90 CTI, have compiled their thoughts, and can say they all enjoyed their time on it.
Our testers on the Vantage 90 CTI seemed most impressed by its ability to perform well across the entire mountain. Rory Burke’s first comment on the ski is that it’s a “great ski for ripping around the resort.” He was skiing the 184 cm length and gave the ski high scores in both quickness/maneuverability and torsional stiffness. These are two categories that Atomic set out to focus on in the same ski, so it’s nice to hear they’ve achieved it from more than one skier. Rory highlighted “edge hold” and “quick turning” as standout performance characteristics of the ski. It’s often hard to achieve both torsional stiffness and maneuverability, so kudos to Atomic.
Kris DeMello is a relatively big skier and he personally felt that “titanium is a must!” We don’t necessarily think that’s true as the Vantage 95 C is going to be a great ski for a lot of people, but if you’re a big guy or if you’re relatively aggressive chances are you’ll value having the Titanium Backbone 2.0 that’s found in the “CTI” skis in the Vantage collection. He went on to say that for him “its lighter brother (Vantage C) doesn’t quite compare to the snap of the CTI.” Kris gave the Atomic Vantage 90 CTI 5 out of 5 for overall impression so needless to say he really enjoyed his time on them. We think he’s a perfect example of a skier whose weight calls for the CTI construction over the C construction. Like Rory, Kris was skiing a 184 cm ski.
James Stewart also skied the 184 cm was most impressed by the versatility of the Vantage 90 CTI, which somewhat echoed Rory’s thoughts. The first thing he had to say about them is that they’re “neutral in the best way possible.” That’s quite a compliment for a ski. He added that they have a “practical blend of stability and soft enough flex to be bent into short radius turns.” He also noted that they were “happy to do pretty much any turn shape” and that they were “one of the more accessible and versatile skis in this category.”
If you’re looking for ultimate versatility in your all mountain skis you should be considering the Atomic Vantage 90 CTI. While other skis with more metal hold more power, it’s tough to match the Vantage 90 CTI in terms of an even level of performance across the entire mountain. You can carve a relatively powerful turn on hard pack, smear, slash, and pivot turns in variable conditions, and even ski some light powder. To pull from James Stewart’s closing thoughts on the ski they are:
“A Solid Daily Driver”
