K2 Apache Chief ($699):
Deep snorkel powder and sphincter-factor steeps are the name of the game in heli-skiing (that's the point, right?). What you need to succeed in this vertical venue is a ski like the new K2 Apache Chief, the company's flagship stick developed through heli recon missions to North America's premier powder palace: Valdez, Alaska. The powder-eating Chief is nothing short of a backcountry warrior, coming in four lengths from 167 to 188 centimeters with a phat 126/98/116 figure. Its surface area alone decrees that the Chief will perform at extraordinarily high levels in deep and soft snow. And it's versatile enough for packed stuff and icy patches, because the moderate 12-millimeter sidecut produces enough power-steering to allow crisp, arcing turns. Behind the scenes, the Chief's Mod Technology—consisting of an elastomeric, shock-absorbing secondary core that operates independently from the primary wood core—is hard at work to provide dampening that keeps the ski in better contact with the snow. And to further enhance control, the Chief uses a MOD Monic, a small mounted weight tested in Boeing's labs and precisely positioned on the front of the ski to reduce high-frequency vibrations. Contact 800-972-4063, www.k2skis.com.
The Planks | 
