First Look: Dynafit DNA Skimo ski

We’re keeping the shoes in there…because Gavin has style, as does the Dynafit DNA Pro. A skimo-specific ski that Gavin will push outside its skimo lane.

With the somewhat bleak winter conditions we’ve experienced here in the Tetons, it’s been a good year to explore my fitness and speed-oriented curiosities in the mountains. Normally, January and February are reserved for 100 or 110+mm waisted skis, burlier boots, and powder-seeking. I’ve skied my Sportiva Stratos Hybrids, Backland 86 ULs, and nordic-style poles more than ever this winter.

I already did a small downsize, taking my smallest skis from 88mm x 172cm to 86mm x 165cm in the Backlands, and right about 1000g. I’ve been loving the Backlands and gaining confidence in steeper and more committing runs–in the right conditions, they are suitable for all but the steepest and biggest runs. I’m still grabbing my Blizzard Zero G 105s or Black Crows Solis for those runs.

My curiosity about moving fast (both up and down) has led me to wonder about reduced ski weight: Race skis can save 200+ grams compared to my already lightweight Backlands. As a mountain traveler, not a Skimo racer, how much performance would I give up on the descent with a full-blown race ski? One factor is certainly safety and reliability; breaking a ski or “booting out” on a steep run is a bad situation, but quickly descending is a factor for the sort of thing I’m interested in, which is moving fast round-trip, rather than just on the up.

All this is to say, I recently got my hands on a set of Dynafit DNA Pro race skis. Hopefully, the winds die down, and there is still some snow left to ski in the coming weeks, and some of my plans for these little skis come to fruition.

Light, stiff, and can you say some camber? Dynafit’s DNA Pro.

The tail end of skinny and light: Dynafit DNA Pro.

The brash that will make you dash: The front of #speedup...Dynafit DNA Pro. — The brash that will make you dash: The front of #speedup…Dynafit DNA Pro.

A side view of the very very…ample camber on the DNA Pro.

It is immediately apparent that the DNA is built to walk uphill fast and to do some high-speed, firm, survival skiing on the descent. They are fiercely stiff, have a long radius, and a nearly full-length camber pocket. If the Backland 86 UL is a downsized, less rockered version of a “normal” touring ski, the DNA is pretty clearly a different beast altogether.

I haven’t quite decided how to quantify or add a scientific element to this testing, but some fast laps on Teton Pass are certainly going to be included. The real question will be if the race skis are up for a descent of the Grand Teton’s Ford Stettner route—I know the Backlands are up to the task.