2024 BLIZZARD RUSTLER & SHEEVA: NEW COLLECTION OVERVIEW

It’s been a pretty good run for the original Rustler and Sheeva lines from Blizzard. From inception until 2023, the skis have stayed pretty true to their roots in terms of being solid, well-rounded skis that hit a huge portion of both the freeride and all-mountain markets. That said, with so many modern skis coming out in that time, the Rustler and Sheeva skis began to feel a bit stagnant. They’re still amazing skis, but it just started to feel like they were standing still and everyone else was taking forward steps. For 2024, we’re getting a whole new Rustler and Sheeva line consisting of six total skis with different shapes, constructions, profiles, and lengths. We’re seeing a sophistication with Rustler and Sheeva that we haven’t seen before, and the added performance to match.

All of the Rustler and Sheeva skis follow the same construction changes with the implementation of TrueBlend Freeride wood cores. This is the same core that they use in the Hustle series of skis consisting of 8 Beech, 3 Poplar, and 5 Paulownia stringers placed in a strategic manner to get the best benefits of not only each individual length of ski, but also the strength to weight ratio overall. TrueBlend is definitely a step in the right direction for these Rustler skis, as they’re pretty much the last of Blizzard’s top-end of skis to get this core upgrade. In addition to the core, the big buzz word this year is Flux, and the FluxForm construction. This is where Rustler and Sheeva differ slightly in terms of build. For Rustler, we’re getting three sections of titanal. The main piece is an underfoot laminate that goes edge to edge and takes up the entire binding zone and then some. This delivers power and grip to the waist with dampness and stability. The next two pieces are two fork-like laminates that run from the underfoot plate, along the edge towards the tips and tails in a frame-like manner. These add stability and grip to the mix without sacrificing playfulness or flotation. The interesting thing here is that they do not connect in the ends, leaving the very tips and tails of the skis metal-free. This build is reminiscent of a blend of K2’s Titanal Y-Beam and Volkl’s Tailored Titanal Frame, but with its own Blizzard twist. Sheeva uses similar metal in the frame form, but instead of metal underfoot, they use additional fiberglass to get the grip and power. This makes Sheeva a bit lighter and more playful, but still with a very high-end performance ceiling. In terms of weight, we’re looking at pretty similar numbers, with the new Rustler 9 coming in at about 1900 grams and the 10 at right around 2000. Sizing gets an update on all models as well. We used to have an 8cm gap between lengths, and that was always a little much. Now, Blizzard has shortened it to a 6cm gap, and when combined with the TrueBlend core, that’s going to hit a lot more skiers in the sweet spot. They kept the 180 as the reference length in the Rustler 9 and 10 (186 in the 11), and introduced the 174 as the reference for all Sheeva models.

The shaping of the skis, and especially the 9, takes a bit of an interesting turn. Both Rustler and Sheeva adhere to the same shape and profile changes. While the 10 remains more the same, the 9 gets a bigger refresh. Starting with the overall width, the 9 in the 180 goes from 94 mm underfoot to 96, with the tips going from 127.5 to 131.5 and the tails from 117 to 121. The radius stays the same at 17-meters while we get a bit wider overall. In the 10, we go from 133/102/122.5 in the 180 to 134/102/123, so there’s not a whole lot of changes here, and that radius stays the same at 17.5-meters. For the 11, we’re seeing similar numbers between the 188 from 2023 and the 186 for 2024, as those two lengths both feature measurements of 142/114/132 mm. We’re also seeing a similar trend when it comes to profile in that the 9 gets the bulk of the changes in both Rustler and Sheeva while the 10’s and 11’s differences are more minute. The rocker profile in the 9’s is longer and lower, with more dramatic splay in the tips and tails. This, combined with the added width, makes sense in terms of moving the needle to the freeride side of the spectrum. With slightly more edge contact in the new 10’s due to the earlier taper, that ski gets a bit of a boost in the turning department, but it’s more about the changes in build rather than shape that make the 10’s and 11’s feel and perform differently. For the 9’s though, the added width, elongated rocker, and additional splay combined with the new build certainly make it feel like a more different ski than the other models.

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With dimensions of 131.5/96/121 mm at the 180 cm length. This ski starts out at a 162 and goes up to a 186, breaking on the 6’s. As the narrowest of the group, it is most at home in an all-mountain format, and the big changes for this ski make it more agile, smoother, and floatier than ever before. This is a big step in the direction of sophistication, tip to tail precision, and energy out of the turn. It makes short, snappy turns with ease, and feels like the whole ski is engaged throughout varying shapes and styles of carves.

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In the 174, this ski has measurements of 129/96/118.5. Skiers looking for an awesome all-mountain ski that oozes versatility will definitely gravitate to this one. With sizes ranging from 150 to 174, the skis have a huge span of skier type and style. At 96 mm underfoot, it does a little of everything, and if you’re looking for a strong and smooth ski with tons of pop underfoot, the Sheeva 9 is the way to go. Emily loved this ski and found there to be a great deal of energy to go along with a relatively friendly nature.

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Now with more tip to tail confidence, especially on firmer snow, the Rustler 10 is an awesome choice for aggressive skiers who are looking for soft snow versatility and an all-mountain feel. At 134/102/123mm, it’s a pretty sharp turner, but you can tell that the 102 mm underfoot width really wants to be driven through crud, powder, windslab, and chalk. The stability of this ski is one of the perks, and you can really feel the difference between the new TrueBlend core combined with the FluxForm metal laminates. Like the Rustler 9, we see sizing starting at 162, but the 10 adds a longer 192 cm model on the tall end. For advanced and expert freeriders, this is the one-ski quiver you’ve been waiting for. While not as quick or agile as the 9, it’s a more complete ski than the outgoing 10, as the build quality and overall snow feel is far superior to its predecessor.

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Light, agile, and comfortable in a variety of conditions and terrain, the 10 is an awesome soft snow complement to a narrower ski as well as a good single-ski choice for those who spend most of their time in deeper snow. At 102 mm underfoot and weighing a bit over 1700 grams, the Sheeva 10 can be equal parts drifty and playful all while maintaining a pretty business-like posture when the skiing gets technical. There’s no loss of energy here, thanks to the fiberglass laminate underfoot—it's both shock-absorbing as well as poppy, and this makes a lot of sense for a ski like this.

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While we didn’t get a chance to get on the 11 as of press time, the fact that it has a similar shape with the upgraded build bodes well for this freeride specialist. At 114 mm underfoot, its strength is certainly in the flotation, and while we wouldn’t necessarily choose this for a daily driver here in Vermont, there are certainly ski areas and resorts in which this 11 would be a highly useful tool on a whole lot of occasions. It’ll be interesting to see how the FluxForm metal laminates play out in deep snow on this 11, as we were always pretty big fans of how the older model handled soft snow and had a pretty drifty personality. At over 2000 grams per ski, it’s pretty sturdy, so will work great on the feet of more experienced and proficient skiers.

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Again, no empirical data on this ski as of yet, but the theoretical approach rarely lets us down. At 112 mm underfoot in the 174, it’s one of the few women’s skis out there that has this amount of metal at this width. We’ll see some very high-level skiing on this Sheeva 11 from pros and mere mortals alike. With the ability to stomp big airs and float through deep pow, it’d be easy to overlook the precision of the metal frame, but I’d venture a guess that these skis will rip on anything less than pure powder as well.

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Written by Bob St.Pierre on 1/9/23