2023 STOCKLI MONTERO AR SKI REVIEW

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As much as we try to stay away from the notion that one ski is not intrinsically better than another, some skis make it more difficult than others. That’s kind of the way we felt about both of the new Montero (AR and AX) skis from Stockli this year. While there are a lot of skis out there that cross over from decent to good, or from good to great, most of the skis we get on from Stockli are firmly entrenched in the “great” category, and the 2023 Montero AR is no exception. With slight changes from the previously awesome Laser AR, the Montero AR takes the performance, precision, and personality to the next level. We’ve always associated Stockli skis with quality, and they certainly carry the price tag to back it up. Whether you’re getting what you pay for is more of a subjective conversation. Are the skis worth an extra $400 or so? That’s up to you and your bank account, but by all of the experiences and measures that we’ve had on Montero AR, we’d say yes.

Built with a light wood core consisting of paulownia and balsa wood, the skis have a snappy and energetic start to them. They then add two sheets of titanal to the mix for dampness, grip, and power. The upper laminate features Stockli’s Flex Torsion Control technology which allows the ski to flex a bit more, both longitudinally and torsionally without sacrificing underfoot grip. By cutting S-shaped slits in the tips and tails of the ski, the Montero AR’s torsional stiffness is altered to meet the speed and terrain where it’s at. These cutouts extend roughly 17 cm from the tip down through the shovel and 9 cm from the tail up in the 180 cm length. This makes the ski easier to steer and allows for greater control in the turns. Additionally, the technology increases suppleness and the ability to adapt to different terrain and snow conditions. In terms of character and personality, this adds to the intuitive nature of the ski in that, even on your first turn, you feel like you’ve been on the AR forever. Another thing we like to talk about with the construction of the Stockli skis is the use of rubber dust in the lamination process. By adding this rubber dust to the epoxy and fiberglass layers, Stockli makes the ski quite a bit damper and quieter. The softer feel to the topsheet adds to this silent nature, creating a unique and rare chatter-free character.

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The shaping (and sizing) changed a bit from Laser AR, but not so much that this is an entirely different feel. The waist width jumped from 83 to 84 mm while the tips dropped from 130 to 128 mm. In the tails, we see an increase from 112 to 114. These slight alterations give the Montero AR an easier entry into the turn, a bit of a wider platform to stand on underfoot, and a tad stronger of an exit with a modest kick at the end. Interestingly, the altering of sizing somewhat negates the change in sidecut. Whereas the previous 182 cm Laser AR generated a 17.9-meter turn radius, the new Montero’s 180 comes in at 17.3-meters. This isn’t a huge difference at all, again leading us to believe that this is far from a totally different ski. Montero offers sizes from 165 to 185, breaking every 5 cm, so it’s a pretty tight spread of lengths, which we think is great news for skiers looking for the ideal size. Laser AR had a 7cm gap between sizes, meaning the new ski is easier to fine-tune and home in on the perfect ski for you. While these changes in sidecut do give the Montero AR more of an all-mountain shape and personality, it’s still not a wholesale change from what we’ve seen from Laser AR in the past, and we think that’s a good thing.

Rocker profiling is about the same as well. The Montero AR features slight rocker in the tips and tails, giving the ski an easier entry and exit to the turn, but it’s not so dramatic that it makes it a playful freeride floater in the least. In our experience, there’s not a marked difference between the profiles of Laser and Montero. The Montero AR has width and terrain-appropriate rocker, and we wouldn’t have it any other way. The taper shape falls into the front-side realm of all-mountain, leaning more to a carving and on-trail shape than the other way around. This distinguishes and separates Montero AR from Stormrider 88, which falls squarely into all-mountain, especially in the shovel. Montero’s shovel taper is minimal, while the tail is mostly squared-off and flat. This falls in line with Stockli’s Full Edge Contact shaping, providing smooth and predictable grip from tip to tail.

Groomer and on-trail performance is where the Montero AR loves to live. I skied the 180, and it was great, but I’d certainly choose the 185 for myself as a length. It makes show-off turns for sure. While there are some other skis with wider shovels and more dramatic sidecuts that pull you into the turn, the Montero likes to be finessed a little bit. In the same breath, you don’t have to do a whole lot, since the technology built in allows the ski to flex at a varied range of speeds, so the Montero makes just as clean and round turns at 15 mph as it does at 40. The interesting thing about the ski, though, is that it has a very strong and stiff tail, relative to how hard you push it. When you encounter firmer snow and stand on the edge of the ski, it puts you right in the back if you’re not ready for it. I definitely advise to be prepared for this, as the Montero will not reward lollygagging at speed and on firm snow. On softer corduroy, the Montero AR is truly in its element. It’s a silent assassin that crushes the groomers with total confidence and style. You can vary up turn shapes and styles due to the slightly straighter cut, or you can stand on it and adhere to the stated radius—it's all up to you and how you choose to point the ski down the hill.

It's not that long ago that a ski at 84 mm wide underfoot would be considered a mid-fat, so it’s certainly worth bringing off-piste and adventure skiing into the discussion here. We skied the Montero AR in about 3 inches of snow (we get a lot of 3-inch snowfalls here in Vermont), and it was as amazing as you would expect. It plowed right through the chopped-up snow, and when it was untouched, the flotation due to the rocker was actually pretty darn smooth. Coupled with the damp feel and light weight combination, the soft snow performance is quite impressive. I’d say the AR will top out at about 5-6 inches, at which point the Stormrider 95 or 102 would enter the chat. In the bumps and trees, I’d opt for something with a more forgiving tail, but that doesn’t mean those zones are out of the question, you just have to work harder to get the same performance. I totally understand that with a retail price of $1349, you may want the things to do the moguls for you, but skier input is still required. I love the shovel flex and the waist width in the bumps, and if you’re willing and able to put in the effort for zipper-line style bump skiing, you can get it, but Montero AR is more comfortable making wider turns in the moguls. It’s a directional ski, after all, and with a shorter tail that increases the stiffness back there, it’s no wonder that these skis can be a handful in the tight spots. Our narrow and icy lines here in Vermont are not the best for the ski, but wider, softer, and more spaced-out lines will be right in Montero AR’s wheelhouse. The same can be said for the trees—wider and more spaced glades are better, and while tighter woods are not out of the question, the tail stiffness and lower rocker/square shape do make it on the more challenging side of the spectrum. Still, for an 84 mm underfoot ski that absolutely shines on-piste, these are only slight deficiencies, which only slightly border on downsides.

Frankly, I’m kind of sick of talking and writing about these skis—I just want to get on them and go. It’s pretty frustrating just looking at these skis on the wall, or in the rack of our warehouse—they deserve to be on snow, and on the feet of appreciative skiers. Seeing them sit still in plastic is an affront to the ski industry. The improvements, consisting of tighter (and longer) sizing, Flex Torsion Control, and better-looking graphics put the Montero AR in pretty rare air in the ski world. The sound (or lack thereof), range, and quality of these skis are simply off the charts. If you’re looking for that true all-mountain ski that can carve amazingly well without losing off-trail capabilities, the 2023 Stockli Montero AR not only answers the call, but does so at an extremely high level of precision and luxury.

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Written by Bob St.Pierre on 07/21/22