2021 Liberty Genesis 96

There's just something awesome about the middle ski in the model line. I'm not sure we could call it middle child syndrome, but they do get overlooked a bit. Such is life for the mid-90's freeride/all-mountain ski category. These things just float along with the rest of the skis in the industry-they really need something that sets them apart from the deepness of the field. For Liberty's Genesis 96, that something is the playful shape.

Many skis out there have a wood core and carbon strips-it's a good way of building skis. They are light, fun, and energetic. The Genesis 96 is no different. The shape, though, falls on the more playful side, and that's just how Liberty wants it. The amount of taper in the ski, especially in the tail, makes it come around easily and smoothly. With 10% rocker profile built in to complement that tapered shape, the exit from the turn can be varied and altered depending on conditions, terrain, and desired duration of the turn. Everything about the shape of this ski is rounded. It's no wonder they generate a 14-meter turn radius at the 158 cm length. They just look like they want to arc clean turns. And do they ever. Unchanged for 2021, the Genesis 96 gets a graphics refresh and all three of the Genesis skis look fantastic.

Shelby Parenteau skied the appropriately sized 158. She scored 4's for a variety of categories, including flotation, playfulness, forgiveness, versatility, and overall impression. A low score of 2 for edge hold isn't that surprising given the flexibility and width of the skis. "The shovels are on the soft side" Shelby notes. "I like that this was a nice, soft ski. Felt very playful but still had some snappiness to the core. Seems like a good ski in all conditions for the playful, freeride style skier. A forgiving ski, it seems good for a variety of users." Due to the softer shovels, Shelby states that her "only concern would be chatter on hard pack." Echoing that sentiment was Ariel Adiala, who was on the longer, 165 cm length. She had a ton of 4's on her scorecard and notes that it's a "burly ski for having no metal. This all-wood ski held its own on the hard pack groomers but did have a bit of tip chattering at higher speeds. That makes sense, though, as this efficient all-wood ski is made for soft, light snow." It's interesting to see the multiple testers, each around the same size, have similar experiences on differently sized skis. That makes this process so interesting and informative-it just seems like the Genesis 96 has a softer tip than is required for hard pack snow and higher speeds, and that's okay, just as long as that's not a priority for you as a skier.

That middle-width ski can certainly get lost in the shuffle, as it seems more and more skiers are opting for the multiple ski quiver while this 96 would fall into the one ski quiver category a bit more easily. There are a lot of skiers out there who are looking for a ski that you can simply click in and go on and never really have to think about again, and that's certainly where the Genesis 96 fits in.