This Elan Wingman 86CTi review will look at the Wingman 86CTi as an all-mountain ski.
As per all out reviews on SKI Profiles, the Wingman 86CTi will receive an overall rating out of 100 as well as a breakdown of that score indicating the ski’s relative ability in different aspects of skiing.
Overall Rating
Skis: Elan Wingman 86 CTi
Price: $999 w/bindings
Style: All-Mountain (with a strong frontside presence)
Manufacturer’s Flex Rating: not stated
SKI Profiles’ Flex Feel: Medium (6/10)
Rating Score: 81.0/100
Who Does the Wingman 86CTi Suit Best?
The Elan Wingman 86 CTI is for anyone wanting a carving ski to specifically ride groomers on. While they are best suited for carving, especially at speed, the 86CTI also handled messy groomers, moguls and jumps pretty well to.
They can handle smaller amounts of powder but they aren't a ski for someone who sees powder regularly. If you don't plan on seeing powder too often, you could consider this your one-quiver-ski.
If you want to hit jumps all day, there are better options but if you occasionally like to go play around on jumps, they are capable enough. Just don't expect much pop from them.
Any higher intermediate to advanced skier looking for a more speed focused carving ski should definitely consider them but, due to their aggressive nature, they certainly aren't for beginners.
Wingman 86Cti Specs and Sizing
Specs at a Glance
Style: | All-Mountain (with a strong frontside presence) |
Price: | $999 w/bindings |
Ability Level: | Intermediate to Advanced |
Flex: | not stated, but Ski Profiles' feel was 6/10 |
Shape: | Flat tail |
Camber Type: | Tip and Tail Rocker |
Taper: | 15mm |
Sizing
Length (cm) | Tip Width (mm) | Waist (mm) | Tail Width (mm) |
---|---|---|---|
160 | 127 | 86 | 113 |
166 | 128 | 86 | 114 |
172 | 129 | 86 | 114 |
178 | 130 | 86 | 115 |
184 | 131 | 86 | 115 |
DEMO INFO
Skis Tested: Elan Wingman 86 CTI, 2023, 172cm
Date: March 3, 2022
Conditions:
Snow was heavy/slushy on and off groomed trails. Visibility was not bad but not unlimited. Raining.
Temperature: 37°F (3°C)
24hr snow: 0" (0cm)
48hr snow: 0" (0cm)
7 day snow: 2.4" (6cm)
Skier Weight: 150lb (68kg)
Skier Height: 5'6" (167cm)
Boots Used: Salomon QST Pro 120
Bindings Used: Elan EMX 12 (Gripwalk)
DETAILS
Feel
The Elan Wingman 86CTI felt stable especially at higher speeds. They carved nicely holding an edge well. They also had some degree of playfulness to them, compared to the Wingman 78 TI.
Flex
Tip flex: Softer than the rest of the ski - 5.5/10
Tail flex: Stiffer than the rest of the ski - 6.5/10
Underfoot flex: 6/10
Edge-Hold
Unfortunately we had slushy conditions while testing this day but still felt like they would hold an edge quite well on hardpack groomers or icy evenings.
Weight Feel
In hand before skiing the weight felt pretty normal and once on snow felt the same.
Playful or Aggressive?
Has the capabilities of being either but overall would say it's a bit more aggressive than playful.
Powder
Unfortunately didn't have any to test in but based on specs they should be able to handle it decently.
The 14mm of taper will help the tails sink in deeper snow, while the tip and tail rocker gives you some increased float too. That being said, it's not a very wide ski, so you can only expect so much from them when in powder.
Carving
Can lay out pretty aggressive short-medium carves while providing decent edge hold. Never felt any catchiness at speed either.
Ease of Turns
Felt a bit heavy and not very nimble, making you work to release the tails and to initiate a turn or slash. But with some effort they were still capable.
Speed
Could get the Wingman 86CTI going pretty fast when desired and they could handle it really well, never feeling sketchy or chattery. Just felt stable and predictable.
Jumps
Overall did ok but not the most ideal ski for jumps. But they did handle them better than expected.
POP (ease of access): Not the easiest to pop. They require you to really wind them up to access all of it.
POP (total pop): Worth the extra effort to wind them up as they have a good amount of pop when you do so.
APPROACH: Found the heaviness at slower speeds really played a factor here as they weren't super quick edge-to-edge meaning last minute adjustments weren't always easy. Better for faster approaches.
LANDINGS: Unlike approach, landings felt really forgiving allowing you to not land perfectly and still ride out with ease most of the time.
SIDE HITS: Enjoyable, especially when riding into them with a bit of speed as it made approaches more maneuverable. And the decent amount of pop made them pretty fun on side-hits.
Uneven Terrain
Handled crud/chunder really well, smashing right through it and never getting bucked around.
Moguls
Capable of handling moguls but it didn't excel, as it meant riding at slower speeds, which is when the Wingman 86CTI begins to feel a bit heavy and less agile.
Trees
Did a bit better in the trees compared to moguls because they were capable of being ridden faster thus somewhat making up for the heaviness and agility problems found when riding moguls.
Switch
Not going to be amazing. The 14mm of taper combined with the flat tails isn't an ideal combo for switch riding.
SCORE BREAKDOWN
RATING | SCORE WEIGHTING | |
---|---|---|
CARVING | 4.0 | 12/15 |
TURNS/SLASHING | 3.5 | 10.5/15 |
SPEED | 4.0 | 12/15 |
CRUD/CHUNDER | 4.5 | 9/10 |
MOGULS | 3.0 | 6/10 |
TREES | 3.0 | 6/10 |
POWDER | 3.5 | 7/10 |
JUMPS | 3.0 | 6/10 |
SWITCH | 2.0 | 2/5 |
TOTAL SCORE after normalizing | 81.0/100 |
Summary
The Wingman 86CTI perform best on groomers and at speed and are able to crush through crud with ease.
They aren't too stiff, which makes them a a little more forgiving than they'd otherwise be, but overall they are still aggressive in nature and prefer to be ridden at speed. And they are more maneuverable when skied faster too. Not ideal for jumps, moguls or trees but can handle them ok when desired.
MORE INFO AND WHERE TO BUY ONLINE
If the Wingman 86 CTi sounds like you're kind of ski and you want more info, want to check out sizing, availability or current prices or are ready to buy, check out the links below:
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