The Rossignol Experience 100 HD is the widest ski in their all mountain collection and also the stiffest and most powerful. This is largely due to the fact that the Experience 100 HD is the only ski in this collection that uses metal laminates. This metal is in addition to the Carbon Alloy Matrix material that is used in a wide range of Rossignol skis. This Carbon Alloy Matrix gives the ski excellent energy and responsiveness, while metal provides strength and vibration dampening properties. On paper this construction and the ski’s 20 m turn radius (182 cm length) align it to compete with some of the burliest all mountain skis on the market. Each of these testers skied the 182 cm length.
Mike Aidala certainly thought it was a powerful ride. “The Experience 100 HD skis are damp and very powerful. They are perfect for hard charging skiers that spend most of their time on trail.” While the Experience 100 HD does have a 100 mm waist width, the shape and rocker profile of the ski do lean towards on-trail use. The relatively wide waist width retains some ability to jump off-piste and gives the ski great stability when there’s a little fresh snow on the groomers, but the shape is derived more from a carving ski than a freeride or powder ski. Mike thought it would be great for ex-ski racers due to its ability to “rip big turns at high speeds.”
Stephen Brown also found the Experience 100 HD to be a pretty powerful ski and actually thought it required quite a bit of skier input when initiating turns. “the ski initiated a bit tougher than expected, but once on edge it held and busted through crud.” While he didn’t feel the tip rocker helped with turn initiation, he did think it helped with this crud-busting ability. Just like Mike Stephen thought the Experience 100 HD really is best as a carving ski, and he thought it would make a “very solid east coast carving ski.” While we don’t disagree, we would certainly add that a western skier could enjoy it as well. In fact it’s arguably just as, if not more, appropriate out west, as western “groomers” more frequently have soft snow on them.
Jamie Bisbee referred to the Experience 100 HD as an “expert ski.” He scored it 5 out of 5 for stability and torsional stiffness (we can thank the metal and Carbon Alloy Matrix for that) and just like Mike and Stephen found it to be a blast to carve turns with. “Go fast ski!! Stand on it, flex your boots, and be ready.” He also found that it was “not bad in the bumps,” but we’ll add that you should be a pretty competent bump skier if you plan on using a ski like the Experience 100 HD. Something like the Sky 7 HD provides much quicker and easier pivoting turns, while the Experience 100 HD requires more effort and skier input to move it side to side.
The Experience 100 HD lives up to our expectations when looking at the skis stats and specs on paper. The metal laminates provide excellent stability and vibration dampening for high speed skiing, while Carbon Alloy Matrix gives it a distinctly energetic and responsive feel, especially on firm snow. If you like carving turns, but want a wider foot print than a typical carving ski, or even more all mountain skis, chances are you’ll find the Experience 100 HD from Rossignol is right up your alley.
