If you’re looking for a World Cup style carving ski in a more user-friendly shape, the 2020 Head Supershape I.Rally is a perfect ski for you. At 76 mm underfoot, the skis have more width and shape than the race-room skis, but the build and the concept are basically the same. There’s a bit less metal than in the racers, but that’s probably a good thing for the majority of the skiers out there on the planet. Still, you get a wood core, a Graphene laminate, and two metal layers. This leads to a strong ski with a ton of power. Best suited for advanced and expert skiers who love to carve turns, the I.Rally is a wonderfully constructed ski with a love for angles and g-forces. The turn radius really starts at the very tip and does not let go until the very end of the tail. This fully-cambered and tip to tail ski allows you to size down and still get the best performance. Since the ski has a very long running length, the longest size is a 177, and that’s good for very big skiers. At 170 cm, the turn radius is 13.7-meters, so expect to be on edge pretty much all the time. Not the best flat running skis. Our testers were enamored with the edge grip and the quickness of the Head Supershape I.Rally.
Ryan Daniel would prefer a longer length, but the 177 was just fine, especially given the build and shape. But that didn’t stop him from scoring the ski high for quickness and maneuverability. In addition, he had an overall impression score of 4 out of 5, so it’s pretty clear that Ryan is a fan of the Rally. “This thing likes to turn! Not a great ski for going straight. Great for groomers and light crud. Makes all-radius turns from tight slalom turns to light pressure GS turns. Great for an (older) ex-racer.” I like how Ryan notes that you have to lightly pressure the GS turns—it shows a clear and fundamental understanding of how a shorter-radius carving ski should work.
6 foot 5 Marcus Shakun felt pretty comfortable testing the 177, although he’d prefer a longer length if they offered one. He had some pretty high scores regardless, giving the Rally 5’s out of 5 for stability, quickness, maneuverability, and edge hold. These categories are right in the Rally’s wheelhouse, so it’s nice to see that the ski lives up to its reputation. “It is super-lively and energetic. You have to be on your game as it is so quick.” Certainly, this has a lot to do with the 76 mm waist width, as the narrower waists do require a lot of attention. Marcus was even so bold as to take this thing off-trail and into the bumps and woods. He notes that it is “quick in the woods and bumps, but the stiff tail doesn’t make it forgiving.” And echoing Ryan’s sentiments as to the comfort of the ski in different turn shapes, Marcus says the Rally “can hold medium-radius turns all the way or snap out slalom turns. Stable at speed with razor-sharp edge hold.” Nice imagery!
The front-side category is a really fun one. There’s a ton of differences in the way that a lot of these skis are shaped and built, and that gives us a lot of material to work with, especially when it comes to a test like this. We get to see the similarities and differences, both material and philosophical. The Rally falls on the end of high-performance in all realms, and it’s awesome to see a ski excel in so many areas of front-side carving.
