K2 Wayback 98 womens — Review

The Wayback 98 W is built as a lightweight touring ski that wants to do it all on a backcountry day: quick on the skins and confident on the descent. At 98 mm underfoot it strikes a deliberate balance between uphill efficiency and enough surface area to handle variable snow. The ski feels nimble at slow speeds, and the All‑Terrain rocker — a gradual tip rise with a low, short tail rise — makes pivoting in trees or linking steep turns on mixed snow comfortable. It’s aimed at tourers who prioritize low weight but still expect a solid downhill.

The construction is thoughtful for its category: a Paulownia tour‑lite core provides liveliness and low mass, while Titanal Touring Technology adds damped stiffness and stability when you pick up speed. Bio‑resin helps keep flex consistent across temperatures and the snophobic topsheet reduces snow buildup. A hybrid cap/sidewall construction and a sintered polyethylene base round out a package that’s light on the skintrack yet composed on the descent. Overall the materials aim to preserve uphill lightness without surrendering reasonable downhill performance.

On snow the Wayback 98 W is versatile. On groomers it holds a clean edge and will carve predictable turns; the 18.3 m radius at 165 cm leans toward medium‑long arcs rather than tight slalom turns. In soft and variable snow the tip rocker aids float while the short tail rocker helps releases and quick direction changes. At speed the Titanal layer tames chatter, though a full‑blown heavy alpine ski will feel more planted on hard, high‑speed runs. For mixed touring days this ski performs very well overall.

Specs matter and explain a lot about how the ski behaves. Tip 126 mm, waist 98 mm and tail 114 mm describe the contact planing: a wider tip helps float in soft snow, the 98 mm waist keeps things agile and quick to turn, and a 114 mm tail supports exits. All‑Terrain Rocker indicates a gradual tip rise and a small tail lift for versatility and easy turn initiation. Weight of 1260 g per ski (165 cm) makes long approaches less tiring. Radius 18.3 m points to medium‑long turns; available lengths are 151, 158, 165 and 172 cm. Bindings are sold separately.

Who should buy this ski? The Wayback 98 W is ideal for lightweight backcountry skiers who want a legitimate downhill feel without a heavy setup. It’s less suited to pure powder hounds who need wider platforms, or to racers and hard‑charging resort skiers who want maximum edge grip on super‑hard snow. Alternatives to consider include other light touring skis with metal reinforcement — compare models in the lightweight women’s touring category for similar trade‑offs. Remember that binding choice and mounting position will influence final behavior.