The Experience 84 AI is part of Rossignol’s brand new, completely re-worked line of all mountain skis. The new versions of the Experience collection use more tip rocker and early taper and also have a whole new construction concept that’s quite exciting. Line Control Technology uses materials vertically laminated in the center of the core of the ski, instead of horizontally across the topsheet or along the base. The Experience 84 AI, in particular, uses basalt in the center of their HD Core. That HD Core uses Carbon Alloy Matrix, which we now see in a lot of Rossignol skis after its successful introduction a few seasons ago. This new Experience 84 AI is a lightweight, fun, versatile all mountain ski, and let’s see if our testers can confirm that for us.
Dave Marryat had an awesome reaction to the Experience 84 AI. He skied the 176 cm length and gave it some high scores, including 5 out of 5 for stability, quickness/maneuverability, torsional stiffness/edge hold, versatility, and overall impression. Playfulness and forgiveness also came in with relatively high scores. “A whole new beast from Rossi. Light and quick edge to edge, great hold. Will hold a strong carve or let you slide the tail. The new tip profile is more rockered than previous generations, yet doesn’t give up any edge grip.” That’s the type of feedback we’re looking for, Dave! It’s nice to know that despite having a shorter effective edge, the new version of the Experience 84 certainly isn’t lacking edge grip. Dave went on to describe it as a “very versatile ski for this waist width,” and marveled that it is “surprisingly fun in soft snow.”
Mike Thomas also skied the 176 cm Experience 84 AI. He was impressed by the performance it achieves at such a light weight. “As I skated to the quad the ski felt fast and light. In fact, it made me feel like a young XC skier from Maine,” (hey that sounds like me). “On the hill, the light weight and lively feel felt kind of recreational until I got the ski up to speed and it never lost composure.” That’s really good feedback from Mike. Mike isn’t a small guy, and it’s nice to know the Experience 84 AI can hold up to someone of his size and ability level despite not using any metal in its construction. Mike’s highest scores were for playfulness, forgiveness, and quickness/maneuverability, all of which received 5 out of 5.
Michael Rooney, also on the 176 cm, found it to be lightweight and forgiving, yet with solid edge hold as well. Michael pretty much scored the Experience 84 AI 4 out of 5 across the board, really solid scores for an all mountain ski designed for versatility. “This is a very light ski, which makes it feel very responsive,” commented Michael. He also found “it is very forgiving in all kinds of snow and holds on ice well.” The combination of being forgiving while also holding an edge well is hard to achieve. Kudos to Rossignol.
Steve Sulin gets to test a lot of skis within a given season, so his feedback is very valuable. He gave it very high scores for stability, quickness, playfulness, forgiveness, and versatility. Gosh, what more could you ask for out of an all mountain ski with an 84 mm waist width? “Ski does it all. Rolls into the turn easily, forgiving, happy at all speeds.” As the manager of our brick and mortar retail location in Stowe, we expect Steve will be recommending the Experience 84 AI to a lot of skiers this season. Steve was also on the 176 cm length.
The new Rossignol Experience collection is undoubtedly more versatile than it’s ever been before. The new Line Control Technology achieves impressive performance and the new construction retains any edge grip and stability you might expect to be lost by using more rocker and early taper. It really takes their performance to the next level. The Experience 84 AI is going to be a great choice for a variety of ability levels who want consistent, predictable performance around the whole mountain.
