Shop Talk: 2025 Ski Preview

Despite seeing plenty of innovation in other sectors of ski gear, 2024 has actually been a pretty quiet one when it comes to new skis. Many brands have opted to get at least another year out of their current lineups, but a few things stood out. This past April, Powder spent a full week testing next year’s finest wares on the slopes of Sunshine Village, Alberta and here’s what was fresh to the lineup.

We'll have full reviews on each of these skis (and many more) in the coming weeks. Stay tuned.

K2: Reckoner KF

True pro model skis are few and far between in 2025, but K2 continues to break the mold with a freestyle pow ski straight from the mind of Karl Fostvedt. Developed over the last few seasons at their Seattle-based Advanced Resource Collective facility, the Reckoner KF is a very unique ski designed with the express goal of making pow skiing less serious and a whole lot more fun. At 114 underfoot it floats and slashes with the best of them, but the carbon construction and deep twin rocker lines are what really stands out. It’s one of the most energetic and bouncy skis we’ve ever ridden, encouraging freestyle flair anywhere you point it, but the Reckoner KF is somehow one of the most approachable soft-snow weapons out there.

The K2 Reckoner KF is available now.

Blizzard: Anomaly 102 + Black Pearl 94

On the opposite end of the spectrum, Blizzard dropped their new Anomaly 102 and Black Pearl 94, catering directly to the all-mountain/hard snow crowd. Blizzard took the award-winning Flux Form construction of the popular big-mountain Rustler series and created two perfectly-balanced all-mountain skis around it: the unisex Anomaly 102 and the women’s-focused Black Pearl 94. On snow, these aren’t your typical 2x4-stiff Blizzards of yesteryear. Instead, they are lively and energetic crud-busting and groomer-carving machines that reward high speeds with predictable edge hold that never lets up.

The Blizzard Anomaly 102 and Black Pearl 94 are available now.

Salomon: Départ 1.0

This year, Salomon re-enters the freestyle game with their long-awaited and subtly teased Départ 1.0. It looks like anything but a park ski, and that’s because athletes and designers Sami Ortlieb and Nico Vuignier didn’t want a spin-to-win comp ski. Instead, they recognize that freestyle skiing has evolved far beyond the confines of the terrain park, and they wanted a ski to express their creativity anywhere there’s snow on the ground. It’s a directional twin-tip with a uniquely wide (and pointy) tip, a soft but poppy flex, and a robust construction that will hold up to abuse. It’s weird, and it’s really fun.

The Salomon Départ 1.0 is available now.

Scott: SEA 108 and SEA 116

Scott’s new SEA line, designed with help from newly-minted Scott athlete and big-mountain mastermind Parkin Costain, is the Swiss brands latest entry into the freeride space. With an unconventional, squared-off tip and tail shape, light weight, and a very damp flex profile, the all-mountain oriented SEA 108 surprised testers with their agility, loose and surfy feel, and consistent performance in all types of snow. For pow days, the larger SEA 116 takes a similar shape and more energetic core to bring your big-mountain dreams to life, offering a great balance between freestyle chops and freeride brawn.

Völkl: Blaze 104

Need a single pair of skis to do it all? We might have found the one. Völkl has an updated Blaze for next year, replacing the current 106 with a new 104mm-waisted version. Splitting the difference between touring and dedicated alpine performance is no easy feat, but the Blaze 104 is one of the best examples of a true one-ski quiver that we've tested. It's both quite light and super damp, oozing stability at high speeds even in questionable snow. It would be right at home with a hybrid binding as a ski you can confidently grab any day of the season, no matter where you’re headed.

The Völkl Blaze 104 is available now.