2021 Line Sick Day 88

Line is one of the "cool" ski companies. They use innovative industry terms and names but have the skis to back it up. While primarily a freestyle line, Line has ventured into the all-mountain market over the past few years with the Sick Day lineup. The narrowest, the 88, has more of a front-side mentality than most other skis of the company, and it serves as a competitor to some of the other fun-loving 88's out there in the world today. For 2021, the Sick Day 88 gets a graphics re-fresh but remains structurally similar. Line actually has the Sick Day skis as a part of their "freeride" lineup, and we see this mainly through the construction versus the shaping or profiling. If you matched the 88 up to a Kendo, per se, you wouldn't see much difference other than the build. Line uses their Aspenlite wood core to get performance and strength out of the ski, as well as a firmer topsheet that gives the ski a bit better of a response when pushed. While nobody's going to mistake this as having the same performance as that Kendo, for a ski without metal, it's all about having fun and strong performance. We've often talked about the 88's being the best all-mountain width for here in the east, with strong enough carving performance for our harshest conditions while remaining wide enough for our consistent, yet diminutive snowfalls. You don't need a huge ski for around here for everyday use, you just need the appropriate ski that'll strongly handle the majority of conditions and terrain that we do have. If you're in the market for an 88, but don't want the burliness of the dual-metal laminate skis, but rather a more playful and fun time out there on the hill, the Sick Day 88 should be on your list for sure.

Harrison Gorham skied the 179, and that's about right for him, and since they don't come any longer, he had no choice anyway. Harrison scored the ski 4's for stability, quickness, maneuverability, torsional stiffness, versatility, and overall impression. These consistently high scores are a good sign for a ski that's designed to be versatile and well-rounded. That quickness is mostly due to a lighter weight, coming in at 1659 grams per ski, as well as a 17.4-meter average turn radius. When the light weight and the mid-range radius come together, you can really make any type of turn at any point in time. Harrison calls the Sick Day 88 a "strong ski with great edge ability. Carves tight turns with ease. Very stiff, but needed to be at 88 underfoot. Made very snappy turns and it felt like a twin tip, but without the twin tip. Aggressive skiers that love bumps and groomers will love this ski." It's certainly a good point to bring up that bumps are going to be a blast on these things.

Bob St. Pierre skied the 179 and found it too short. The Sick Day 94 comes in a 186, and that would have been preferable for a skier who is 6'2 and 220 pounds. The 179 without metal just won't cut it for an aggressive skier that size, in Bob's mind. Nevertheless, he had some high scores of 4 given for quickness, maneuverability, playfulness, forgiveness, and versatility. Again, seeing these scores consistently on the upper edge of the scale speaks volumes of the high-end performance ceiling of the SD 88. Bob calls them "very consistent and predictable from tip to tail. They have a very even and smooth flex that makes very clean and round turns, especially in the softer snow. A bit of a wobble on hard pack at speed, but that's half the sizing and half the construction." For the most part, bigger skiers who are looking to charge on ice will look elsewhere, we'd guess.

All-around, all-mountain fun is to be had by all, and the Line Sick Day 88 is here to help those skiers get there. With a light build and an easy-turning radius, skiers who value playfulness and quickness will love the continuation of the Sick Day line, and especially the narrowest of the models.