 Poster: A snowHead
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2012-2013 ARTificial. Nature
156-126-152 @ 185cm
Manufacturer Info:
ARTificial. Ski Company
58311 N Sunset Rd
Benton City, WA 99320
Phone: (509) 392 1394
http://www.artificialskis.com
Suggested Retail Price (MSRP):
$749 usd
Usage Class:
Big Mountain Powder/Freeride Ski
Rating (with comments):
(1="get me off these things"->10="I have to own a pair")
9
Summary:
The ARTificial. Nature is described on the company website as:
"On the days when you have to body slam your front door open becausethere’s two feet of snow piled against it, you’ll be glad you have theNatures under your feet. Built onthe fine line between a 3-and-5-dimension ski, the Nature blends softcamber and rocker progression with a forgiving full-length bamboo corein order to provide maximum radial contact when you’re surfing pillowlines or edging back to the lift. Whether you’re blasting crud, packing booters, or stacking powder lines, the best days in nature start with the Nature."
I totally agree with the part about being glad to have this ski when youhave to body-slam your front door open because there's two fee of snowpiled up against it....(although in ski country, doors should open"in".). The Nature model is not just a pair of skis, it is aconfidence-inspiring platform for all kinds of wild snowconditions....crud, crust, windpack, chalk, packed powder, corduroy. These are large skis with lots of surface area, but they handle supereasy, super predictable and very reliably, with a surprising degree ofconfidence-inspiring handling in such a large package. The Natures havea bias toward damp and quiet ride quality rather than surf-and-poppersonality, and once rolled up on-edge, have a surprisingly secure gripon hardpack and corduroy. ARTificial. has created a really fun,stable, versatile big ski for multiple snow conditions. We want a pair.
Technical Ski Data:
Nylon topsheet, Direct print w/UV-resistant coating. (Softer than most topsheets and cuts rather than chips)
19 oz. glass, 1 layers above core and 1 below. The lighter-ounce glassis reported by Tyler to be typically higher quality than the 22 ouncestandard and allows more durability on the top of the core where it'sneeded most)
Full-length 2 inch carbon fiber weave
Vertically laminated bamboo
Bonding intermediates between every layer of glass/metal/sidewall.
CNC die-cut base graphics
Full edge wrap
Rockered tip and tail, camber underfoot
Blend of 3-to-5 point geometry
Bindings and Boots Used:
Marker Griffon Demo bindings mounted by ARTificial. (-1cm from true center)
Salomon S-Max 120 boots.
Pre-Skiing Impression:
Our test skis were Tyler Williams's personal demo pair with plenty ofhours on them. We gave them a quick touch-up on the Wintersteiger tore-true the bases with minimal bevel to give us a good baseline for thereview. These are fairly big skis (156-126-152) with plenty of rockerfront and rear, and some significant camber underfoot (see pics below). Flex is what I would call "moderately soft", but not floppy, nor"stiff". Shovels and tails are fairly broad, with some moderate sidecutunderfoot, but nothing radical. Damp feel, moderate torsionalstrength. Good fit and finish and apparently pretty durable consideringthe usage evident in this used pair of demo skis.
Test Conditions:
Eastern corduroy, packedpowder groomers, ungroomed packed powder withsmall bumps, shin-deeppowder conditions, both smooth and bumpy. Windpack, crust, chalky wind buff, dry powder, weeds and brush (sorryTyler).
Test Results:
One of the most interesting things was the day we unboxed theNatures, two different people (one being a ten year old with a highsense of modern fashion) exclaimed "cool graphics!...I love these!" Notevery ski gets that reaction around here.
Hardpack:
We trued-up the bases first with a grind to free them of old wax andirregularities and to give us a consistent platform for testing. TheNature's were semi-tuned with about a 1-1.5 degree base bevel and 1-2degree side bevel, but not "sharpened" or edge-polished. They basicallywere like a ski with a good week's worth of skiing on them...not sharp,but not dull. In short, they were not in a "race tuned" or totallywhipped, but in a realistic state of everyday tune for most skis in thiscategory. The Natures do not have any tendency to wash-out, wander, dothe splits or fade their grip on hardpack. You have to roll their wideshovels, waists and tails up on edge to get the grip to take hold, butonce you roll them up and set the edge along the length of the contactarea, they set predictably, smoothly and carry your arc until you rollthem down again. I was impressed how well this wide, rockered ski heldon the hardpack and corduroy. The bit of camber really helped makethese skis friendly on hardpack. It was not a snappy, zippy ski on hardsurfaces, but was damp, controlled and predictable, and has a high speedlimit due to its quiet dampening of vibrations. There was no hint ofbeing "planky" or "dead" like some big skis, but they were alwaysresponsive and secure, without any hint of squirrely behavior or runawayfreight train personality. I was surprised how well they did onhardpack without being tuned for such conditions.
Mixed Conditions:
Mixed snow types and surface consistencies essentially disappearedunderfoot when skiing the ARTificial. Natures. The sense of being "on aplatform" really became apparent, and I found myself looking for thecrappiest, craziest combination of manky snow conditions I could findjust to see how the skis would handle. Old chop, windpacked old bumps,chalky windslab mixed with pockets of soft, dry powder and days-oldgroomer plow wash just faded into "the surface" of the terrain. It was agreat sensation to feel like the type of snow covering the terraindidn't matter one bit. Just "point-and-go", paying attention to thelines I wanted to cover instead of what kind of snow covered thoselines. The large surface area of the ski was nicely governed by theflex and geometry of the design to give a responsive, yet Cadillac-likeride with a huge confidence-building effect. Changing directions inshort or large radius turns across variable surface types was easy withthe Natures. Naturally, a ski this size is not a nimble ride, but youcould get it to slarve, pivot, arc, punch or smear without anytrouble....just decide what you want to do and execute. I found myaverage speed through wacked-out surface conditions went way up afterjust a few runs on these skis. Really tight Eastern tree noodling foundthe Natures to be stable and capable of crushing brush, logs, holes andledges really well, just don't expect to be as lively as a jackrabbit atslow speeds since you're driving a big rig. Once your speed picks up,the Natures get quicker. These are excellent in mixed snow conditions,and rarely have I found a ski deliver this much confidence when thesurface gets wacky.
Bumps:
The small bumps I was able to find during our short test were a mix ofhard and moderately soft surface types, and the Natures were moreabsorbant of the impacts and less prone to deflection than I expectedfor a ski with 156mm shovels. The torque of hitting bumps at less thandead-on angles didn't result in the ski twisting away from me ortransmitting lots of pressure along the body to my feet...they justsoaked it up and did not begin to buck back until about 2/3rds along theforebody...just fine with me. I did not get them in big bumps, but Idid manage to get them into some drainage and waterbar ditch bumps, andtheir damp behavior soaked them up and I kept on truckin' without ahitch. These are not a lively buck-and-jump ski in the bumps, so if youwant a big ski with that behavior...look elsewhere.
Powder:
We did not get enough powder during our test period to get any snowmore than shin-deep (Vermont had a serious snow drought in January andFebruary), sowe feel like the Natures did not get a fair shake intheir naturaldeep habitat. The lighter the snow, the more they surfed,and never showed any tip dive in any soft snow, but I did not get achance to get them into real deep snow to see how they handled verticaldepth change commands fore and aft at various speeds.
Analogies: (this ski is like...)
A Rolls Royce with some grippy tires. Potholes...what potholes? Washboard....what washboard? Quiet and comfy, with a hint of elegance.Nice.
Things I Would Change About This Ski:
I would not change anything in this design other than provide a bit morepop and spunk if someone wanted a more sporty feel in a big ski.
Short Answer When Someone Asks "What Do You Think About This Ski?":
The ARTificial. Natures are a big, easy-to-ski, confidence-inspiringplatform with lots of surface area and stability to surf through anyconditions you might find out there. This is the ski you might reachfor when the plows are getting stuck trying to clear the roads.
Advice To People Considering This Ski:
Get ready to get rid of your 110-115mm waisted skis if you buy this ski.
Pics:
ARTificial. Nature Tip Rocker
ARTificial. Nature Tail Rocker
ARTificial. Nature Underfoot Camber
ARTificial. Nature Tails
ARTificial. Nature Tips
ARTificial. Natures (far right) 156-126-152 @ 185cm
Compared to WhiteDot Redeemers 138-142-128-132-128 @ 180cm
Tyler's Road-Gap Shot (courtesy ARTificial. Skis)
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