ceestan
Certified Ski Diva
Hi all! I recently had the opportunity to try a bunch of new skis, so I'm posting my experiences here both for my own reference and because I find reviews from other women so helpful when researching and hoping I can pay it forward.
I am 5'1" (155 cm), 120 lbs, advanced skier who mostly skis the Pacific Northwest. My home resort is Mt Hood Meadows where we have a lot of snow and it tends to be wet/heavy. My favorite things to ski are steep natural terrain (though I don't find myself in trees all that much) and I'm also a weirdo who gets very stoked on moguls/bump skiing. I have a bias for directional skis with metal, wider skis, and I tend to size up my skis.
On that last note, I had some Mindbender 99ti skis that I bought last season. I was torn between the 154 cm and 160 cm lengths. Ultimately I opted for the 154 cm because I intended for it to be my leftovers ski (a day or more after a storm) that I could take into moguls and trees. However, after 3 bad days on them this season, I realized they had become too short for me. It felt like I was skiing banana peels. This put me in the annoying position of needing to replace them, even though I started the season with zero plans to. So here are all the skis I tried, mostly through a demo day at my home mountain:
2025 Sheeva 9, 162 cm
I could definitely feel that the 162 cm length needed me to get a little more forward and be more commanding of the ski (vs. if I had chosen the shorter 156 cm length), but that felt like a good trade off for a little more stability. These skis are quick, lively, and SO FUN in moguls that I found myself seeking them out. They're also a little lighter than I am accustomed to (I usually prefer power over lightness/agility in a ski) but these are so playful and fun without feeling flimsy. Not the most locked in ski on groomers, but the rebound at the end of each turn made them very fun to ski on groomers.
2025 K2 Mindbender 99ti W, 160 cm
It seemed logical to try these in the longer length. I enjoyed these skis a lot on groomers, where they could carve really solid, locked in turns, but off-piste (which if what I would mostly use this ski for), they were quite a bit more demanding and less quick than the Sheeva and just not as fun.
2026 Volkl Mantra M7 W, 156 cm
Formerly know as the Secret 96 (I think?), I got to try these at my resort's demo day. I sized down a bit in these since they have a reputation for being a demanding, heavy ski, and that ended up being the right choice. These skis can COOK, but they also hurt my knees a bit, they're pretty heavy. I took them down one groomer run, where they were VERY GOOD. These skis will make you feel like a hero in your carved turns. Next I took them off piste and into some steep bumps where they were surprisingly pretty maneuverable as long as I was intentional about staying on top on them. The tail didn't feel too punishing, and I was surprised at how amenable they were to quick pivot turns for how locked in they can also be. I hit a few patches of untracked powder in the trees and was surprised by how well they float for a heavy 96 waist width ski.
2026 Nordica Santa Ana 102, 161 cm
I own 2 other pairs of Santa Anas (93 and 110 Free) so these skis felt very familiar and comforting to me. They were not all that dissimilar from the Volkl, but felt slightly more easygoing, slightly quicker, and with slightly better float. I was aiming to demo all skis one run on groomers and one run off piste, but these were so fun off piste that I cheated a little and did 2 off-piste runs, but that tells you a little something about their nature. These skis were very powerful in the bumps, and I felt comfortable making both big arcs and smaller jump turns. They're not too demanding to pivot and swing around, but again, I was being pretty intentional about staying very forward on them. I don't think this would be a great ski for a less aggressive skier.
2026 Blizzard Sheeva 10, 162 cm
I loved these skis! It was interesting to try the Volkl, Nordica, then Sheeva, one right after the other because it felt like a really natural progression from the demanding to playful sides of the spectrum. These skis were a lot more amenable to smear-y turns than the Volkl and Nordica, but still felt stable and solid on edge. I again broke my own rule and skied 2 off piste runs on these because that's what they felt built for. They were really quick, fun and lively (esp. compared to the Volkl), great at short turns, and will be your bestie in the moguls. Compared with the Sheeva 9, these felt slightly less quick edge to edge, and I imagine the 9s are probably better on groomers and firmer snow.
2026 Line Pandora 99, 163 cm
These were the only ski I tried that didn't have metal, and unsurprisingly I didn't like them very much. They were a lighter ski than I'm accustomed to, so they did feel more playful and easier to pop off bumps, but the downside was that once you came down into the snow, they kind of just *splat* underneath you, not offering much support or power through the snow and into your next turn. One run and I knew they were not for me! Funny enough, when I brought them back to the tent, I overheard the Line reps talking about how women love these skis and how they had been flying off the shelves, so I guess I might be in the minority!
At this point I was exhausted and decided I only had enough energy for a groomer run, so I tried a bit of a wild card that I figured would be fun on groomers....
2026 Stockli Nela 88, 160 cm
These felt like dainty little slippers compared to the rest of the skis I'd been on that day, but once I got them going, I realized they're a very solid ski. I did take them into some pretty chunky, pushed around snow, and they performed admirably there for how narrow they are. They were not surprisingly a blast on the groomers, very precise and quick edge to edge, and smooth as butter. I've heard lots of good things about Stocklis and thought they lived up to their reputation.
Ultimately, I bought the Sheeva 9, and will probably do something a little unhinged and buy the Sheeva 10s too if I can find a good deal on them this spring/summer. Thanks for reading!
I am 5'1" (155 cm), 120 lbs, advanced skier who mostly skis the Pacific Northwest. My home resort is Mt Hood Meadows where we have a lot of snow and it tends to be wet/heavy. My favorite things to ski are steep natural terrain (though I don't find myself in trees all that much) and I'm also a weirdo who gets very stoked on moguls/bump skiing. I have a bias for directional skis with metal, wider skis, and I tend to size up my skis.
On that last note, I had some Mindbender 99ti skis that I bought last season. I was torn between the 154 cm and 160 cm lengths. Ultimately I opted for the 154 cm because I intended for it to be my leftovers ski (a day or more after a storm) that I could take into moguls and trees. However, after 3 bad days on them this season, I realized they had become too short for me. It felt like I was skiing banana peels. This put me in the annoying position of needing to replace them, even though I started the season with zero plans to. So here are all the skis I tried, mostly through a demo day at my home mountain:
2025 Sheeva 9, 162 cm
I could definitely feel that the 162 cm length needed me to get a little more forward and be more commanding of the ski (vs. if I had chosen the shorter 156 cm length), but that felt like a good trade off for a little more stability. These skis are quick, lively, and SO FUN in moguls that I found myself seeking them out. They're also a little lighter than I am accustomed to (I usually prefer power over lightness/agility in a ski) but these are so playful and fun without feeling flimsy. Not the most locked in ski on groomers, but the rebound at the end of each turn made them very fun to ski on groomers.
2025 K2 Mindbender 99ti W, 160 cm
It seemed logical to try these in the longer length. I enjoyed these skis a lot on groomers, where they could carve really solid, locked in turns, but off-piste (which if what I would mostly use this ski for), they were quite a bit more demanding and less quick than the Sheeva and just not as fun.
2026 Volkl Mantra M7 W, 156 cm
Formerly know as the Secret 96 (I think?), I got to try these at my resort's demo day. I sized down a bit in these since they have a reputation for being a demanding, heavy ski, and that ended up being the right choice. These skis can COOK, but they also hurt my knees a bit, they're pretty heavy. I took them down one groomer run, where they were VERY GOOD. These skis will make you feel like a hero in your carved turns. Next I took them off piste and into some steep bumps where they were surprisingly pretty maneuverable as long as I was intentional about staying on top on them. The tail didn't feel too punishing, and I was surprised at how amenable they were to quick pivot turns for how locked in they can also be. I hit a few patches of untracked powder in the trees and was surprised by how well they float for a heavy 96 waist width ski.
2026 Nordica Santa Ana 102, 161 cm
I own 2 other pairs of Santa Anas (93 and 110 Free) so these skis felt very familiar and comforting to me. They were not all that dissimilar from the Volkl, but felt slightly more easygoing, slightly quicker, and with slightly better float. I was aiming to demo all skis one run on groomers and one run off piste, but these were so fun off piste that I cheated a little and did 2 off-piste runs, but that tells you a little something about their nature. These skis were very powerful in the bumps, and I felt comfortable making both big arcs and smaller jump turns. They're not too demanding to pivot and swing around, but again, I was being pretty intentional about staying very forward on them. I don't think this would be a great ski for a less aggressive skier.
2026 Blizzard Sheeva 10, 162 cm
I loved these skis! It was interesting to try the Volkl, Nordica, then Sheeva, one right after the other because it felt like a really natural progression from the demanding to playful sides of the spectrum. These skis were a lot more amenable to smear-y turns than the Volkl and Nordica, but still felt stable and solid on edge. I again broke my own rule and skied 2 off piste runs on these because that's what they felt built for. They were really quick, fun and lively (esp. compared to the Volkl), great at short turns, and will be your bestie in the moguls. Compared with the Sheeva 9, these felt slightly less quick edge to edge, and I imagine the 9s are probably better on groomers and firmer snow.
2026 Line Pandora 99, 163 cm
These were the only ski I tried that didn't have metal, and unsurprisingly I didn't like them very much. They were a lighter ski than I'm accustomed to, so they did feel more playful and easier to pop off bumps, but the downside was that once you came down into the snow, they kind of just *splat* underneath you, not offering much support or power through the snow and into your next turn. One run and I knew they were not for me! Funny enough, when I brought them back to the tent, I overheard the Line reps talking about how women love these skis and how they had been flying off the shelves, so I guess I might be in the minority!
At this point I was exhausted and decided I only had enough energy for a groomer run, so I tried a bit of a wild card that I figured would be fun on groomers....
2026 Stockli Nela 88, 160 cm
These felt like dainty little slippers compared to the rest of the skis I'd been on that day, but once I got them going, I realized they're a very solid ski. I did take them into some pretty chunky, pushed around snow, and they performed admirably there for how narrow they are. They were not surprisingly a blast on the groomers, very precise and quick edge to edge, and smooth as butter. I've heard lots of good things about Stocklis and thought they lived up to their reputation.
Ultimately, I bought the Sheeva 9, and will probably do something a little unhinged and buy the Sheeva 10s too if I can find a good deal on them this spring/summer. Thanks for reading!
