12/6/2023 0 Comments Atomic skis home page![]() ![]() The rise extends from the tail back 13.8cm until the base makes contact with the snow. But the softer flex up front adds to the sense that the ski is perhaps more rockered than these metrics suggest. The tip rises 5.2cm in total from the snow surface. The tip rocker extends from the tip back ~35.3cm until the base makes contact with the snow. Think of this as primarily a traditional powder ski: a little camber underfoot, 4mm at max height, ample but not too much tip rise for my liking. Here we see the tip splay and rocker of the Backland 107 with the skis decambered. The designers also include a carbon backbone insert for rigidity. A Poplar and Karuba wood core is the ski’s bones, with a fiberglass weave and carbon stringers (which run the ski’s length) for added stiffness and full side walls for a solid ride and durability. It is sensibly modern with its tip and tail rocker, camber underfoot, and a basic nod to what works below the topsheet. Luckily, conditions are somewhat predictable here. Otherwise, if I’m on the Backland 107s and hit something other than that defined range, I’ve likely missed the ski selection. And for “expected” powder but likely to encounter variable snow and tracked powder, these too would be the tools of choice. For me, the Backland 107 is a job-specific tool in my PNW-quiver: powder 100% for sure. The same can be said of variable conditions too. But, if you’re powder hunting and come across some boilerplate, the Backland 107s will work in a pinch. And some have written about skiing firm spring snow with this board, but I can think of better, lighter, and skinnier options- WildSnow’s archives are full of them. Some call the Backland 107 a powder charger. The Backland 107 has a robust build in an ~1650g ski (182cm) and features a full sidewall for better durability and a stable ride. Likes to go long with the turns.īinding & Boot Pairing Tested: Mounted with ATK Crest 10. Profile: Rocker-camber rocker with ample tip rocker and softish flex up front, cambered section underfoot, and a modestly rockered/flat tail with noticeable tail taper. Backland 107 MetricsĪvailable lengths (cm): 175, 182 (tested), 189 It’s worth repeating that I was seeking burly, which in this case amounts to heavier just not maybe pushing beyond 1600+g/ski burly. ![]() Add on just over 300g per binding, and I’d be pushing over 2kg+ / ski with skins adhered. Atomic and others have them weighed out at ~1550g-1590g. With my heavier boot, around 1450g/boot, there was a gut-check weighing these planks. Upon delivery of the boards, I was, however, a bit unnerved at the unboxing. The longer length in the Backlands bumped the turning radius from 17.5m (175cm) to 18.5m, which is to my liking. In fact, 182cm is as long as I’ve skied since the days of my 210cm Kazama Outback Softs. This season’s Backland 107 comes unchanged from previous years, except for a new black/gray topsheet.Īfter emailing several folks familiar with Atomic’s ski lineup, I went longer than usual to select a 182cm I’m 5’10”. The wider, heavier, longer, more stable, and floatier-in-deep-and-variable-snow skis materialized in Atomic’s 2022-2023 Backland 107. With my timidity that day, which could have resulted in a ligament-tearing tumble, I pivoted to wanting decidedly heavier gear with more oomph to match less-than-perfect conditions.īigger and stiffer boots came in the form of a Fischer Transalp Pro. Sure, the lighter setup may have matched the soft, deep pillowy snow conditions in some spots. The terrain, which resembles a horseshoe-shaped cirque with sustained steepish slots, begs for higher speed and unabashed bigger turns. My skiing hesitancy that day resulted from light boots ( Fischer Travers Carbons) and light skis for their width, the Movement Alp Track LT 100 (1250g/ski + 200g for the binding). The gear setup was off I had swung the performance pendulum too far to the light-is-right side over the years. But here and there were pockets of variable stashes, which caused me to either check speed drastically or ski with a timid (read unfun) mindset. ![]() It was, for a fledgling 18-year-old, a highlight day. It had ceremoniously been dumping with moderate winds. It was my son’s 18th birthday, mid-ish February. I know the precise day in 2021 when I had my ah-hah. ![]() Yet this is not a ski to compartmentalize as it is well suited for those variable days and the off chance you encounter firm snow in steep terrain. Atomic’s Backland 107 comes into the 22/23 season with a new top sheet, otherwise the venerable ski arrives ready for mid-winter powder. Great Backland 107 conditions: ample soft snow with a view to match this well-rounded mid-winter plank. ![]()
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