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The K2 Talkback 88 is a women's specific touring ski that is designed for fast ascent day touring and ski mountaineering - our test team tried them out in Kuhtai, Austria.
k2 talkback 1
Level
Expert
Best for
Women ski tourers looking to ascend fast and ski hard
Price
£330
Season
2016/17
lengths
153,160,167
Bindings?
No
Versatility
9
Up-hill
9
Value
8
Downhill
8
Performance
8
Overall Score
8

The narrower of the two models available in this range - the other being 96mm under foot with this one a thinner 88mm. This makes it lighter and faster for ascending than its sister ski and would suit women as keen to walk up as they are coming down.

The width underfoot still provides good stability for going uphill though, without detracting from its ability to ski down. Whilst not superlight they are a good weight for women, a compromise for the dual usage of touring.

There's a Paulownia/Maple wood core with a tip rocker to help with turn initiation and a SnoPhobic topsheet - a lightweight layer that helps strengthen the ski, without adding unnecessary weight.

As you might expect, in powder snow they perform really well, although on groomed slopes they scored highly for long radius turns too, but lacked a little spark in the shorter turns, feeling a little damp when you ramp things up.

Overall a very solid ski that would suit quite a wide range of people, from touring newbies to more experienced ski mountaineers - giving it a good life expectancy and even better value for money.

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