Volkl Blaze 86 w — Review

The Volkl Blaze 86 w is the mid-waist entry in Volkl's women's Blaze line — 86 mm waist, Full Sidewall construction, Double Rocker + camber profile, 3D Radius Sidecut, with Suspension Tips & Tails to dampen rough snow. It's positioned as Volkl's most balanced women's all-mountain at the 86 mm waist class: not as freeride-leaning as the Mantra 88 w, not as carve-pure as the Yumi.

On groomers the Blaze 86 w carves with predictable engagement — the 12 m mid-body radius at 159 cm makes medium-radius turns natural while the 21 m tip radius adds stability when you stretch a turn. The Double Rocker (tip + tail) makes initiation light and pivots forgiving, which suits the target intermediate-to-advanced user. Off-piste the 86 mm waist and Multilayer Wood Core Light handle soft chop and chopped powder side of the trail confidently; the Suspension Tips & Tails dampen wind-blown snow noticeably.

Multilayer Wood Core Light (hard wood in binding area, lighter wood outside), Full Sidewall, Suspension Tips & Tails (TPU elastic bumpers), 3D Radius Sidecut, Tip & Tail Rocker with classic camber underfoot. Sidecut 129 / 86 / 111 mm. Per-length 3D radius (R1/R2/R3): 152 cm 20 / 11 / 17 m, 159 cm 21 / 12 / 19 m, 166 cm 25 / 13 / 21 m. Lengths 152 / 159 / 166 cm. Weight ≈1230 g per ski at 152 cm and ≈1280 g at 159 cm.

A confident-intermediate to advanced woman who wants one all-mountain ski for the on/off-piste mix without the weight of a Mantra-class titanal frame. Compared to the Volkl Mantra 88 w the Blaze 86 w is significantly lighter (~500 g per ski) and more forgiving but gives up authority at high carve angles. Against the Volkl Yumi 84 the Blaze 86 w has a stiffer chassis and more freeride-leaning profile. Cross-brand, the Head Kore 93 Ti W is in the same forgiving-all-mountain segment but with titanal for more stability at speed.

Pros

• Suspension Tips & Tails noticeably calm chop on top of the snow.
• 3D Radius Sidecut gives natural-feeling turn variety.
• Light at ≈1230 g per ski (152 cm) — easy to swing all day.
• 86 mm waist hits the all-mountain sweet spot for piste-leaning skiers.
• Three lengths in a women-specific size range.

Cons

• Lacks the high-edge-angle authority of a titanal-framed ski.
• 86 mm waist is still moderate for serious powder days.
• Limited to three length options.
• Light layup feels under-skied at high carving speeds.

Verdict: The best-balanced Blaze for the 70/30 piste-to-snow week. Pick the Mantra 88 w for more aggressive carving; pick the Yumi 84 for less effort; pick the Blaze 94 w for more soft-snow capability.