If you ever get the opportunity to get on a 2024 Elan Ripstick 116 in deep snow, we suggest you take it, and fast. These are some of the coolest and most unique skis at this width out there, and they surprise us constantly with their ability to be drifty and floaty but also somewhat precise and agile. As the widest Ripstick, it’s got the soft snow preference for sure, but its maneuverability sets it apart from other skis of this width. Elan is all about pushing boundaries when it comes to construction and shaping sophistication and their use of asymmetry in the build and profile give this ski a big leg up when it comes to soft snow and aggressive freeride performance. While it’s on the easy side of the spectrum to ski, there’s still a whole lot of it, so it works better when on the feet of advanced and expert skiers who know how to handle a ski of these dimensions. Otherwise, 116 in the waist is pretty darn wide, demanding a whole lot of attention if you’re not used to it or ready for it.

Built with Elan’s tubelite wood core, we get a light and energetic wood to start from. By milling out channels on the sides of the ski along the curvature, and placing carbon tubes in those zones, Elan boosts the power and responsiveness of the ski by quite a bit. Carbon gets a lot stiffer when it’s used in a three-dimensional format, and these tubes do that and then some. They use the full 360-degree aspect of the material, allowing the ski to operate a lot better when the ski is under force. They’re already placed in there under pressure as they follow the curvature of the sidecut, so there’s kinetic energy built in as well as the natural form of the carbon. Since the skis are built differently from right to left, Elan also puts in a carbon laminate that puts more material over the inside edges of the downhill ski while the outisde edges of the uphill ski remain lighter and more flexible. The result here is that the Ripstick 116 feels smoother in softer snow and more precise when it gets firmer or more technical.

The same general theory applies when it comes to profile and shape. The ski benefits from Elan’s Amphibio Rocker Profile which basically twists the ski to create a smooth personality. There’s more camber along the inside edge while the outside is more rockered. This creates better transitions between turns with less hooking and catching. As opposed to simply adding more rocker (of which there’s plenty in the shovel), they’re altering the lateral rocker which makes a lot of sense. The tail is a bit more standard, and since it’s thinner (even at 132 mm wide) it still acts like a rudder in deeper snow, allowing better maneuverability and playfulness. This thing goes sideways really well, and we’ve even seen it work well in less than deep powder in this format. The 185 produces a 20.4-meter turn radius which allows the skier to dictate the shape and duration of the turn with relative ease.

For powder skiers and those that spend most of their time in search of deep snow, the 2024 Elan Ripstick 116 is an awesome ski. It cuts cleanly through crud and chop and stays afloat in the deeper stuff that the mountains have to offer. Certainly, a great choice for an aggressive and hard-charging skier, this Ripstick 116 also has a lower end that’ll satisfy those that are looking for smoothness and compliance at more moderate speeds. Either way, it’s a fun-loving powder ski that’ll answer the call on a snowy day.