Testing 2025 Salomon Skis at Alta, Utah - Day 1

After a travel day that featured a handful of near misses, from the last call of our connecting flight to the squeaking through the Little Cottonwood Canyon closure, we arrived unscathed at the bohemian and communal Alta Peruvian Lodge. It had snowed about a foot that day, but since our friends at Salomon couldn't make it up the canyon we were without skis for the afternoon. This was fine, however, as we settled in nicely to the time warped Peruvian and even checked out the Gold Miners Daughter for a mid-afternoon pizza. The snow continued through the night in the form of squalls and showers, all but guaranteeing us fresh tracks the ensuing morning.

We met Joe and Dakota from Salomon "first thing" in the morning, which by Alta standards, is about 9:00. For ski selection, they brought the wider QST skis--the 106, Blank (112), and the new QST X (116). Bob chose the 106 in the 189 to start, Jeff was on the 112 in the 186, and Emily the 173 Stella 106. While under most normal conditions and ski days, especially for us in Vermont, 106 is usually enough. But this is Alta, and things work a bit differently here. Jeff was the winner of the morning session with that Blank. We started the day up the Collins lift and over to Eddies High Nowhere. While we did have to wait a few minutes for the diligent Alta Ski Patrol to drop the gate, the hike and delay were well worth it. Since this area was closed the day before, the snow was deep. It was one of those runs that you see only on Instagram, only it was real life. Smooth and fresh tracks at that depth are few and far between for us, so having this zone pretty much all to ourselves was a special experience. At the bottom of the pitch, we found the only corduroy that we would encounter in two days as we scooted back to the Collins. This time we utilized the High Traverse to get over to Eagles Nest--a zone that more closely resembles what we're used to at Stowe in terms of steep trees. While the skiers on the 106's fared better here than the wide-open zones, we still went and switched out and all got on wider stuff. Bob found the Blank in the 194, Emily hooked into a Blank in the 178, and Jeff settled in nicely to the 116 in the 184. Joe stayed on his personal Blank the whole day, which is a testament to what a Salomon employee will choose for themselves on a typical snowy Alta day. Dakota used his personal Blank as well, but he had an interesting binding combo with a half-shift, half-STH/Cast frankenbinding that he uses for occasional tours. Through the afternoon, we bounced back and forth mainly between the Wildcat terrain (which we all love) and the Supreme/Eagles Nest zones. Fred's Chute under Collins was a great pitch with some good snow on it still, even at the end-ish of the day. Visibility was better in the trees, both from a skiing and filming perspective. We even managed to throw in a Keyhole run off Wildcat which takes you over the ridge into Snowbird resort, barely managing to catch the shuttle back to the friendly confines of Alta. Continuing with the adventurous spirit, Joe and Dakota shared some secret spots (including something actually called Secret Chute) and the Condo Couloir. There are all sorts of fun natural and enhanced hits in the Wildcat area, so we had some fun practicing stunts into the soft landings. Joe and Dakota are fantastic guides and seem to have little pet names for everything. Very few align with what is listed on the trail map. We finished with a trip up Wildcat and a short walk up towards the Shoulder (closed for the time we were there) and dropped in for eight more good, untracked turns. Even at almost 4:00, we were milking every bit of pow out of that place and it was a blast.

If you've never been to Alta, it's a very interesting place--incredibly natural and seemingly built by nature to be a perfect ski resort. While there are traverses and sidesteps aplenty, this little bit of extra effort rewards the willing and adds to the overall satisfaction of any given ski day. The big takeaway on the skis was that, simply, wider was better on Day 1 with the Blank and QST X trading blows for ski of the day. If you want something a bit lighter and surfier, you'll prefer the X. For more of a charging and rounder turning ski, the Blank is probably one of the most versatile 112's on the market today. The day was made complete with a trip to the P-Dog bar, the hot tub, pool, and family/community style dinner at the Peruvian dining hall. Bedtime was not far behind as we prepared for Day 2 (which will feature a fun and exciting guest)!