2021 Line Pandora 104

Is a 104 on the wide side of narrow or the narrow side of wide? These existential questions certainly keep me up at night. Either way, the Line Pandora 104 is a whole lot of fun. From the fresh snow in the morning to the broken-up chop in the afternoon, the 104 has the shape, profile, and build to make it a very versatile soft-snow ski. Built with an aspenlite wood core with carbon magic fingers, the skis have enough power to generate good energy out of the turn while remaining light and nimble enough to dance through the trees and not tire you out. The light weight of this ski also makes it a solid contender for a 50/50 in and out of bounds setup. If you have some tech bindings and boots, this would make a great touring ski without losing any of the downhill performance. It's all about blending those things these days, and the Pandora 104 is a great ski to get you where you need to go.

Unchanged for 2021, the skis have a more mythical graphic than the men's Sick Day version as well as shorter lengths. Topping out at 172 cm, the Pandora 104 boasts a pretty short average turn radius of 14.6-meters, and this is going to give the ski a turny nature that loves to be on edge and in a carve. For a 104, it's lightning quick and easy to use, but don't let that lull you into a false sense of security-these skis have a very high-performance ceiling. While we weren't able to get any of our own testing staff on them this year, Line was gracious to lend us their athlete's opinions and descriptions of the skis. Hadley Hammer was our go-to gal when it comes to the Pandora line this year, and we love having her hard-charging input on the skis.

Hadley skis the 172 in the Pandora 104 and has some pretty high opinions about it. On the scorecard, we're seeing all 5's right down the line, showing that upper-end of versatility and performance. "I've given this ski to a few different girlfriends and every single one came back with the same reaction: 'I had so much fun on this ski!' I think the Pandora series allows skiers to go from being the passenger to the driver. It's so nimble and playful which makes it really maneuverable without sacrificing stability. I, myself, have gone way to fast into mogul fields or bumpy runouts without ever feeling like the ski wasn't stiff enough to handle the speed, and I think its forgiveness helps the skier work with uneven terrain instead of fighting against it." Great analysis there, and I especially like the part about driving the ski rather than being driven by it. There are a lot of skiers out there who are on skis that are too stiff and heavy, just because they are considered "expert" skis and I think it's really helpful when skiers get on an appropriately flexing ski with the proper weight.

Lots of good stuff coming from Line for this year, and the Pandora 104 has a ton of versatility and composure built right in. For ladies who are looking for that soft snow ski with many other features, the 104 is a fantastic choice. Light and quick, yet floaty and fun, the Pandora 104 will check a lot of boxes for today's modern freeride skier.