Powder
Over the next few days, the snow in Little Cottonwood Canyon didn’t let up, with a final storm total of 18 inches. The combination of small crowds and unrelenting snow made for endless fresh stashes in Eagle’s Nest and North Rustler. In untracked, deep powder, the Stella had no problem floating. Unsurprisingly, however, they didn’t have quite the same natural, surfy feel as a dedicated, fully rockered powder ski (Line Pandora or Volkl Shiro). While the ample tip splay kept the skis on the surface most of the time, occasionally when I would sweep across the fall line, I experienced a little tip dive.
The 179cm length is of course on the longer end of the spectrum for women, but in tighter tree sections, the Stella demanded a little more work than the 185cm Nordica La Niña. At slower speeds, the ski was easy to maneuver through untracked areas, and in narrow chute sections, the ski allowed for quick hop turns. Once I did gain momentum, though, the Stella clearly preferred to be driven down the fall line and demanded a stronger movement if I wanted to bring it across the hill. I attribute this to the ski’s flattened tail, which offers a more directional and solid feel, but definitely takes a little more work than a ski with a rockered tail. On really deep days, I would probably opt for a wider, more playful option, but the ski is still plenty of fun in fresh snow.
Deep Chop
So the Stella excels on groomers; low, firm bumps; and in untracked pow. It’s predictable and stable in all these conditions. The unavoidable deeper chop that shows up around mid-morning on a powder day, however, is where I began to encounter some issues.
I mentioned before that the ski has significant tip rocker in combination with a flat tail. On more consistent snow, especially on groomers, the rocker in the shovels made turn initiation effortless, and in deep powder or shallow chop, there was plenty of float. In these conditions, the decrease in effective edge at the front of the ski was noticeable, but subtle.
My experience in heavier, trenched-out snow was mildly frustrating and similar to what Will Brown describes in his review of the Armada Norwalk, another tip rockered, cambered, ski. That is, I had less of an issue when I made larger GS turns or straight-lined it in the lower, open sections of Eagle’s Nest and Lone Pine above the rope tow. But just like Will, once I began to make medium-to-high-speed turns or cut sharply across the fall line initiating the ski’s edge, I would get tossed around a bit and the shovels felt unpredictable.
As a point of comparison, I took a few runs on the 184cm Moment Bibby Pro (tip and tail rocker, camber, and 116mm underfoot) on the same day down the same runs. To be clear, the Bibby is a much bigger, stiffer ski with a very different shape than the Stella, but it felt effortless through deeper trough sections, and smoothed out rougher spots without issue. I was confident carrying high speeds over firmer chop, and despite the additional length, shutting things down quickly or tracking across the hill didn’t offer up any resistance.
Still, the Stella’s impressive performance in other conditions outweighs the drawbacks I experienced in deep chop, and it probably is only an issue if you are looking to ski very aggressively in places that get frequent bouts of heavy snow.
Other Considerations
I didn’t get the opportunity to ski the Stella on well-crafted moguls, but down bumpier runs and through tight trees, the skis were fairly easy to maneuver for their length. Popping off smaller airs and drops was incredibly fun, and I was never concerned about an unstable landing thanks to the supportive tails.
Salomon’s new offerings in the Quest line cater to those seeking a more versatile all mountain ski, but also a solid backcountry tool. The Stella actually felt fairly heavy, though I think that was mostly because of the beefy demo binding on the ski. I haven’t yet had the opportunity to tour on the Stella, but I see it working well as a backcountry ski given its flat tail profile (good on skin tracks and for anchoring skis) and its capabilities in untracked snow.
The Stella joins a number of other big-mountain women’s skis in the popular 100-105mm underfoot category. The Volkl Kiku, Moment Bella, and Armada TSTw all fall within this range, while the Nordica La Niña, Line Pandora, Armada VJJ, and Blizzard Dakota are a bit wider.
Although I haven’t yet skied either of the Armadas, the Stella is pretty similar in design to the TSTw. Compared to all of the skis I have put time on, I had the most fun ripping down groomers and hardpack on the Stella—even more so than the playful La Niña. I wasn’t as blown away by the Stella’s float in powder compared to fully rockered, powder-specific skis like the Pandora or Kiku, but was still impressed considering its incredible edge hold on groomers.
Bottom Line
My first experience on this type of ski, which is found across Salomon’s entire Quest line for 2013-14, was exciting. During my time on the Stella at Alta, the mountain offered a wide variety of conditions from wind-scoured hardpack to soft corduroy to choke-inducing blower pow. The Stella transitioned between different snow conditions run-to-run and day-to-day with little compromise in performance. Like any ski, the Stella is more at home in certain conditions than in others, but for a ski that rips across the board, the Stella delivers.
For the deepest powder days, I would probably opt for a powder-specific ski, and the Stella wouldn’t be my first choice if I was looking primarily for a ski that absolutely shines in deep chop. However, the Stella was designed to perform well in a wide range of conditions rather than in just one, and I certainly found this to be true.
If you are looking for a stable, directional ski that carves exceptionally well and can charge hard, definitely check out the Stella this coming season.