It’s time to head back to Argentina to see what some of the most interesting skis of the upcoming season can do (see BLISTER Heads South – Again). We begin our rollout today with the…
2012-2013 Atomic Automatic, 186cm (140.5-117-129.5)
If you’ve already heard of the Automatic, you’re probably as giddy as we are to get on this ski.
The Automatic was built to bridge the gap between Atomic’s fat, buttery, trick sticks, the Bent Chetler, and their more business-like, big-mountain, directional charger, the Atlas.
The Automatic is essentially a pro-model collab between athletes Sage Cattabriga-Alosa and Dana Flahr. What they were looking for was a ski that maintains the high-speed stability and stiffer flex of the Atlas, but is also capable of quick slashes and long, high-speed slarve turns.
Interested? We are.
If there’s any notable design trend from last season to this one, it seems to be more conservative rocker profiles (especially in the tail), tapered tip shapes for better performance in soft snow, and dialed back waist widths for greater versatility.
It all makes a lot of sense on paper, and since the Automatic is a move in this direction, we’re eager to find out exactly how ‘automatic’ it all feels on Las Leñas’ terrain and snow.
NEXT: Salomon Rocker 2, 115