Gear Review

Volkl Gotama

1. progressive rocker
2. a powder specialist
3. hardpack: not totally hosed
4. 137-106-132mm

Volkl's popular wood-core Gotama ski got a big makeover in 2010: it became a modern powder ski with the addition of a rockered profile.

Whenever you change a classic, you can expect some eyebrows to raise. In fact, one shop technician I spoke to said his store dropped the Gotama this year because they didn't like the changes. The addition of a rockered profile, however, was exactly why I was interested in the Gotama. I wanted a progressive powder ski. So I tried the Gotama myself to see how it compares to a cambered powder ski like Volkl's smash-hit Mantra. In a word, the Gotama's powder ability is magical.

Perhaps a quick sidebar is in order as to what exactly 'rocker' means in the skiing universe.

Traditionally, skis have been build with camber: that inverse-U shape seen from a side view of the ski's tip to tail (not sidecut!) that makes the ski bend like a spring when you carve turns on hard snow.

A rockered ski turns that shape upside-down—literally.

The ski is shaped so that the tip and the tail are higher than the center of the ski. Seen from the side, a rockered ski makes a slight "U". This, of course, is exactly the opposite of traditional ski design.

If the concept of rocker sounds bizarre, consider that it has been used for decades in surf board design. A rockered board is easier to turn on water—and on snow. That said, a rockered ski fundamentally changes turn mechanics, and on hard snow, rockered skis can become unstable to the point of being unskiable.

No early adopter myself, I was curious enough to want to try a rockered ski but also wary of any new gimmick. As I grabbed a pair of Gotamas from the ski shop and headed for the slope, I was actually kind of intimidated by the ski. What on earth would they feel like, I wondered? And would their rockered profile make them unmanageable on hardpack?

The weather was luckily cooperating, providing abundant fresh powder snow for me to work with—the ideal playground for the Gotama. Just standing stationary on snow on the Gotamas, I noticed the rocker. It felt like the skis had some sort of super-wax on them: they were incredibly easy to pivot, as if there were no tips or tails to them at all.

This 'pivoty' feel translated directly to an almost magical feel in powder. The Gotama's rocker does indeed offer a nearly effortless ability to turn the ski in deep snow, requiring far less effort and vertical motion (unweighting) than a traditional cambered ski. In short, I was delighted by the Gotama's powder skiing chops.

Less delightful was the Gotama's performance on hard snow. Volkl says the Gotama is versatile enough to use as an 'everyday' ski. That claim seems a bit of stretch to me, but I did find the Gotama credible enough on hardpack to let me get down the hill without worrying too much about skidding out. However, the Gotama does not offer nearly the confidence or carving performance of the Mantra.

I would compare the Mantra and the Gotama thus: the Mantra is as much better on hardpack than the Gotama as the Gotama is better on powder. If you need maximum versatility, pick the Mantra. On the other hand, the Gotama's silky smooth, pivoty feel on powder and soft snow just has to be experienced to be believed. If you want a powder ski that won't leave you totally hosed on the hardpack, the Gotama easily bests the Mantra.

» Bottom Line: an ideal introduction to the world of modern powder skis

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