Curated Skiing Expert Hayden Wright got his hands on the 2024 Blizzard Rustler 9s this spring. Check out how it performed in the carving, freestyle, and freeride categories, but consider the fact that each and every skier is different; if you have any questions about the Rustler 9 or need recommendations on which ski would be best for you, reach out to a Skiing Expert here on Curated.

Before we get started, it's worth noting that Curated Experts are not sponsored by any brands. All of these reviews are completely unbiased.

Brand Claims

What does Blizzard claim about this ski?

[Hayden] Blizzard claims this is for party laps. Fun for skiing all over the mountain. Very versatile ski.

Overall Impressions

What is your overall impression of the ski?

[Hayden] My overall impressions on the Blizzard Rustler 9s were actually you know for the conditions we were skiing, which were chop track POW, this absolutely was the ski for it that day at 96 millimeters underfoot.

How does the shape of the ski affect the way it rides?

[Hayden] We've got a good amount of early rise in the tip. You’ve got more in the tail this year. But the big thing, the big difference is going to be the titanal layer throughout the ski. Last year's models of the Rustlers kind of tapered here. If you see it's kind of more tailored to the outside edges of the ski. So what this is going to do is it's really going to beef up the torsional rigidity of that ski. Once it's on edge, it's not going to fold over no matter what kind of snow. You're kind of plowing that ski through.

Last little bit about the the shape of the ski, it has tons of early rise, which I absolutely love. There is a good amount of camber underfoot. This ski is going to be great on and off the trail.

Carving

How does the ski carve?

[Hayden] So how does the ski carve? They actually get over edge really nice, super fast.

What is the edge hold like?

[Hayden] So in the Blizzard Rustler 9s I rode the 180-centimeter length with a 17-meter turn radius here. I found it really easy edge to edge and definitely that ski you know you'll be really confident on regardless of the conditions.

What about dampness? Any chatter in the skis?

[Hayden] Even with that early rise, the titanal layer on the outside really minimizes that chatter. These things blast through everything. You know, again, touching base on the flex. It's a very stable ski underfoot and then it is still stable throughout the tip and tail. I found it quite responsive.

Freestyle

How is the ski for freestyle skiing?

[Hayden] So as far as freestyle goes, you can totally hit jumps, natural hits, and jibs.

Is it good for skiing switch?

[Hayden] All right, so how did the Blizzard Rustler 9 ski switch? They do have a little bit of early rise. I'd be a little timid to land like a backcountry jump or anything like that switch. But if you want to do a, you know, pop round backwards and ski switch on the groomers, these absolutely are a ski you can ski switch on.

Can it handle the park?

[Hayden] I wouldn't necessarily take the ski into the terrain park as it's not quite as forgiving as some of the more park-friendly skies are out there. But yeah, as far as hitting, you know, those side hits, little cliffs, inbounds, this guy is going to be great for you.

Freeride

How is it in powder?

[Hayden] As far as ungroomed and powder skiing, the 96 millimeters underfoot, even with all that early rise in the tip, it's still going to struggle at anything over 6 to 8 inches of POW. It will do all right. But you might want to look at the the Rustler 10s or even the Cochise or another wider powder ski.

How is it in uneven terrain and chunder?

[Hayden] How do these bad boys do on ungroomed, untracked terrain, in the trees, and whatnot? These things are absolutely beasts blasting through the crud. I was riding it in about a tracked out six-inch powder day, and these were the skis to have just charging through everything. They just blast through whatever's in their way.

What terrain is this ski good for?

[Hayden] The terrain that the Blizzard Rustler 9s absolutely rocked it in was just all over the mountain when I was skiing the tracked out powder. These things had no speed limit. I had so much confidence just railing turns through just blasted out crud.

What terrain should skiers avoid with it?

[Hayden] The stuff that these aren't going to ski the best in again is if you're going on like a backcountry trip, you're going heli skiing in Alaska. This just isn't going to be the ski for you.

Recommendations

Who would you recommend these skis to? [Hayden] Who am I recommending these for? I'm recommending these for the skier that loves to ski all over the mountain. They're wanting that performance ski for groomer skiing but they also venture off trail. The Blizzard Rustler 9 is going to be a great ski for just that.

Who should avoid these skis, there are better options out there for them ? [Hayden] Who I'm not recommending the Blizzard Blizzard to, if you already have that groomers-specific ski or your daily driver and you want that real wide POW specific ski, this just isn't going to cut it for you. The skier that's just getting out of rentals, again, if you're just mainly skiing on the groomed runs and you're still fairly new to skiing, these skis aren't going to be the best skis for you.

Skis work differently for different types of skiers. If you are wondering whether the Blizzard Rustler 9 is the right ski for you, chat with Hayden or any other Skiing Experts here on Curated, and they’ll put together free, personalized ski recommendations on the best skis for your needs.