2022 Armada Reliance 102 Ti

The 2022 Armada Reliance 102 Ti is a hard-charging ski for upper-level lady skiers who prefer to shred the whole mountain, and who have a penchant and love for the softer snow. These skis are burly and tough, and have the added benefit of being energetic and poppy at the same time. As the women’s version of the men’s Declivity 102 Ti, the Reliance has a good heritage to get its performance from. Built with a blend of caruba and poplar in the wood core, the Reliance gets its main source of power from the articulated titanal banding. On the upper metal laminate, the designers at Armada have removed metal material in strips, or bands, and have replaced it with an elastic polymer material. This allows the ski to flex more naturally into the turn, as well as release with power and energy on the back side. It delivers a unique feel to the ski, and creates an incredibly smooth ride, especially through the crud and chop when you’re at high speeds on this ski.

As the Reliance skis get wider in the category, they also get more dramatic taper shapes and rocker profiles. The 102 has a long and low rocker profile in the shovel, as well as a lower taper point to increase flotation and smoothness in the fresh and soft snow. Same is true in the tail, and with a bit of a late flair to the profile, the skis are able to release from the turns with ease and poise, allowing for advanced and expert skiers to dictate the shape and duration of the turn. The tails are a bit on the softer side as well, and this makes it easy and fun to load them up and get some good energy out of it. More playful than some other skis in the back end, the Reliance 102 Ti is capable and willing to smear and slarve turns in the fresh with a hook and catch-free feeling.

On the groomers, and firmer terrain, the camber underfoot makes it an energetic ski to bounce on, and with the metal laminate, it’s a lot grippier and more torsionally stiff than the width may indicate. This is great news for advanced and expert skiers who are looking for all-mountain versatility with a great blend of carving power and off-trail prowess. The tail does have a bit of a bump-out that’s on the bulbous side, and that, when combined with the softer flex, makes the ski really rebound out of turns with intent and purpose. Skis in this width that do not have metal in them likely won’t have the same power, stability, and dampness of the Reliance 102 Ti, so if you’re looking for a ski in this shape that will not let you down when it comes to those qualities, this is a fantastic choice for an all-mountain ski.

Perhaps a bit on the wide side for just groomer skiing, and slightly too narrow for the deepest of snows, the 2022 Armada Reliance 102 Ti slides somewhere in the middle, and that’s what ski companies are trying to do with stuff like this. It’s a lot like an SUV that you drive around town. Powerful enough for long-hauling, but nimble and sharp enough to handle more urban terrain, these SUV-type of skis do a lot of things really well, and while they might be overkill for some of the things you’ll do on the hill, it’s nice to know that the performance exists, and you can access it if you wish.