The Quattro RS is one of the flagship models in Blizzard’s Frontside All Mountain collection. It has a narrow 72 mm waist width and uses a full camber profile, one of two skis in the 8 ski collection that doesn’t have any rocker. The Quattro RS is like a display model for all of Blizzard’s carving ski technology. It uses their extended XCell 12 binding system, titanal laminates, and carbon fiber. The construction is designed to provide the ultimate in responsiveness, power, and carving performance on firm snow. The turn radius ranged from 10.0 m in the shortest length to 17.5 m in the longest length, something to consider when choosing your length. There is a big jump in radius from 167 to 174 cm where the radius goes from 12 m to 16 m.
This tester forgot to write their name on their test form, so we really have no idea who it was, but they thought the Quattro RS had incredible torsional stiffness, stability, and energy. We also know this person was skiing the 174 cm length. He (or she?) commented that “turns are a must; there’s no riding flat on these skis.” The Quattro RS is a demanding ski. We tested it last season when it was first introduced and can concur with our tester’s feedback. It’s not a ski you can relax on, it needs to be driven. This tester also commented that they have “awesome rebound and kick out of the turn. They feel very snappy and responsive.” The snappy and responsive feel is largely thanks to the carbon fiber used in the construction of the ski. Carbon fiber provides an excellent connection to the snow and an extremely precise feel.
Steve Sulin was very impressed by the Quattro RS and scored it 5 out of 5 for both torsional stiffness and stability. Steve has a lot of experience skiing high performance carving skis so we really value his feedback on this ski. He described the Quattro RS as having “no speed limit” and also not allowing for any “back seat driving.” He described the feel of the ski as “fast and smooth” and also specifically pointed out that it “only likes hard snow, but eats it up!” We really like Steve’s two end comments on the Quattro RS: “Hold on tight!” and “Good luck in the bumps.”
Marcus Shakun called it a “quick turn leg burner.” Marcus was skiing the 174 cm length, so was experiencing the ski with a 16 m turn radius. He still commented that they have a “super snappy short turn radius.” He also described it as having “so much energy it throws you into every turn.” Because of its narrow waist width Marcus did describe it as feeling “unstable in softer snow at high speeds,” which makes sense as the 72 mm waist width will get bogged down as it sinks into soft snow conditions and the full camber profile certainly isn’t helping keep your tips above the snow. Marcus also echoed the comment from our mystery tester about not responding well to being skied flat. His comment was that it “needs to be making turns, if not they will get squirrely.” Marcus recommended it for “aggressive advanced skiers that like short turns,” and added that it “requires the skier to be on top of it at all times.”
If you’re looking for the ultimate in relatively short, responsive carving turns you’re going to love the Quattro RS. It’s a very high performance ski that demands a high level skier. Intermediates should steer clear and even less aggressive advanced skiers may want to consider moving down the Quattro line to a ski like the Quattro 7.2 Ti that offers a similar level of performance, but is slightly less demanding.
