Review: Rossignol Blackops 92 Open Skis · 2024
By Ski Expert
Leo Cocchiara
Rossignol Blackops 92 Open Skis · 2024
from:$264.98
$529.95
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The Curated Take
4.0/5
The Rossignol Blackops 92 is a versatile all-mountain ski tailored for intermediate skiers advancing to higher proficiency. This ski offers a playful and poppy feel, excelling in off-piste terrains like moguls and trees. It features an intuitive rocker tip and tail, ensuring effortless turn initiation and release. Moreover, its 92mm waist width and construction provide a balanced mix of surfiness, steady tracking, and carving ease without sacrificing stability. While not built for extreme speeds or deep powder, it's ideal for skiers seeking a blend of performance across diverse mountain conditions.
Ideal for
- Ideal for intermediate skiers pushing to an advanced-level
- Great for improving skills in free ride environments like moguls, parks, and trees with easy turning and control
- Versatile for all-mountain skiing in all but the most extreme conditions
Not ideal for
- Paulownia wood core has its limits at top speed without the reinforcement of stiffer core materials
- 92 underfoot doesn't give the most float on days deeper than 5"
Flotation
It's a great option for developing confidence and technique in soft snow due to its rocker tip and tail shape, 92mm waist width, and lightweight paulownia wood core. Heavier and...Read more
The Rossignol Blackops 92 is not a powder ski. However, if someone has only ever skied sport or performance level rentals, is upgrading out of their 15-year-old parabolic skis, or...Read more
Carving
Carving is often one of those skills skiers want to learn to do well but can't justify having a ski specifically dedicated to carving. The Blackops 92 strikes an excellent...Read more
When intermediate skiers develop their carving skills, they focus on starting the turn with the outside leg, maintaining pressure through the apex of the turn, getting those edges on a...Read more
High Speed Stability
The Blackops 92 is geared towards lighter-weight skiers and intermediate-level riders. It is appropriate for groomers, moguls, trees, park, and powder but not for straight line down steeps at top...Read more
Skis built for crisp high speeds differ from those built for loose, playful freeriding. Rossignol gave the people what they wanted regarding a combination that can do both well while...Read more
Playfulness
The Blackops 92 has a playful personality that shines through and defines this ski. The paulownia wood keeps the ski's weight down while giving it a springy and poppy energy....Read more
The Rossignol Blackops 92 is playful by nature with the idea that it's a ski to build on and off-piste all-mountain skills. The simple wood core makes this ski happy...Read more
Turn Ease
A ski's rocker refers to the upward curvature of its tip and tail, which rise off the snow when placed on a flat surface. Its rocker shape makes the ski...Read more
The Blackops 92 gets skiers moving comfortably through the off-piste and technical features of the mountain and perform on-piste. The ski is easy to turn with a progressively rockered tip...Read more
Versatility
The idea behind the Blackops 92 is that it's a one ski quiver for the intermediate skier to develop with no matter what part of the mountain they're on or...Read more
The Rossignol Blackops 92 is for the progressing intermediate to adventure and explore at the right speed, with the ability to dabble in any discipline on the mountain. It's not...Read more
Curated Experts are not sponsored by brands. Their reviews are based on their honest experiences testing products.
Leo Cocchiara
About the ski gear
- Model: Rossignol Blackops 92 Open Skis · 2024
Test conditions
- Days tested: 2
- Where I’ve used it: Tested on a hardpack day in Colorado and the day after a powder day in Utah
- Terrain: All mountain, groomers, trees, moguls, park, and tracked-out powder
- How many times I've used it: 2
Expert Reviews of the Rossignol Blackops 92 Open Skis
Leo Cocchiara The Rossignol Blackops 92 is ideal for the intermediate skier progressing to advanced. It's suitable for pushing the boundaries into off-piste freeride terrains like moguls and trees and dabbling in the terrain park without overpowering. It won't demand a skier to go faster than they're comfortable with or require being muscled out of locked-in turns. The main draws are the ease of turn initiation and a well-balanced combination of surfiness, steady tracking, and an attractive topsheet. Its core is made from simple paulownia wood. Despite the vertical sidewalls that add torsional rigidity, it hits its speed limit pretty quickly going full tilt, straight line down the face of the hill, so those with a pension for keeping their foot on the gas pedal might look elsewhere.
Product Specs
| Age Group | Adult |
| Gender | Men's |
| Includes bindings | No |
| Model year | 2024 |
| Ski type | Freeride |
| Skill level | Intermediate, Advanced |
Review Ratings
Averaged between reviewers, view below how all experts voted.
Flotation
4/5
Leo Cocchiara gave 4 of 5 stars. It's a great option for developing confidence and technique in soft snow due to its rocker tip and tail shape, 92mm waist width, and lightweight paulownia wood core. Heavier and more advanced skiers will look for more on a powder day.
Leo Cocchiara gave 4 of 5 stars. The Rossignol Blackops 92 is not a powder ski. However, if someone has only ever skied sport or performance level rentals, is upgrading out of their 15-year-old parabolic skis, or getting back to the sport after having not skied for several years, these skis will provide more float and fun when the snow is coming down than what they've experienced in the past. Skiers might want something wider once the snow is over 6-8".
Carving
4/5
Leo Cocchiara gave 4 of 5 stars. Carving is often one of those skills skiers want to learn to do well but can't justify having a ski specifically dedicated to carving. The Blackops 92 strikes an excellent balance for skiers who still want to be able to roll the ski on edge and develop a good carving technique while progressing in more technical terrains like moguls and trees.
Leo Cocchiara gave 4 of 5 stars. When intermediate skiers develop their carving skills, they focus on starting the turn with the outside leg, maintaining pressure through the apex of the turn, getting those edges on a good angle, and transitioning smoothly into the next turn. The Rossignol Blackops 92 makes it easy to develop those techniques.
High Speed Stability
4/5
Leo Cocchiara gave 3 of 5 stars. The Blackops 92 is geared towards lighter-weight skiers and intermediate-level riders. It is appropriate for groomers, moguls, trees, park, and powder but not for straight line down steeps at top speed. The trade-off for being lightweight and playful is that it quickly reaches its max speed limit. However, the skis have reliable stability if skiers make good consistent turns as they pick up speed.
Leo Cocchiara gave 4 of 5 stars. Skis built for crisp high speeds differ from those built for loose, playful freeriding. Rossignol gave the people what they wanted regarding a combination that can do both well while still gearing it towards the intermediate skier. Expert or heavier bodies who straight line it down a steep will hit its speed limit and must make some turns to keep it happy.
Playfulness
4/5
Leo Cocchiara gave 4 of 5 stars. The Blackops 92 has a playful personality that shines through and defines this ski. The paulownia wood keeps the ski's weight down while giving it a springy and poppy energy. The construction and shape make the skis easy to spin, smear, jump, and change direction. This ski is ideal for skiers looking to add creativity and freestyle to their all-mountain skiing.
Leo Cocchiara gave 4 of 5 stars. The Rossignol Blackops 92 is playful by nature with the idea that it's a ski to build on and off-piste all-mountain skills. The simple wood core makes this ski happy to flex into and create a nice pop off the ground, which helps progress in moguls and the park. The taper and rocker in the tip and tails make it happy to smear out turns when someone wants to, but it doesn't take away the ability to put the ski up on edge and carve out a turn when a skier wants to. It offers excellent balance for the skier who wants the best of both worlds.
Turn Ease
4/5
Leo Cocchiara gave 4 of 5 stars. A ski's rocker refers to the upward curvature of its tip and tail, which rise off the snow when placed on a flat surface. Its rocker shape makes the ski easy to initiate and release turns. The Blackops 92 feels intuitive on groomers, moguls, trees, and everywhere I take it.
Leo Cocchiara gave 4 of 5 stars. The Blackops 92 gets skiers moving comfortably through the off-piste and technical features of the mountain and perform on-piste. The ski is easy to turn with a progressively rockered tip shape, a partially rockered tail shape, and a moderate 92 waist width built out of a paulownia wood core.
Versatility
4/5
Leo Cocchiara gave 4 of 5 stars. The idea behind the Blackops 92 is that it's a one ski quiver for the intermediate skier to develop with no matter what part of the mountain they're on or what conditions they're facing. Rossignol absolutely nailed the balance of versatility for exactly that. Everything outside of the fastest speeds and deepest powder is within its wheelhouse.
Leo Cocchiara gave 4 of 5 stars. The Rossignol Blackops 92 is for the progressing intermediate to adventure and explore at the right speed, with the ability to dabble in any discipline on the mountain. It's not a question of where it's limited to but when it will hit those limits. Outside of the fastest speeds and the deepest powder, it's overall happy no matter where I take it.
FAQs
What was your favorite moment with this gear?
Leo Cocchiara One of the first runs I pointed this ski towards was a long, steep mogul run at Loveland Mountain, and it handled it smoothly. It had just the right balance of responsiveness and forgiveness to make linking those bump turns easy.
Leo Cocchiara I was testing these on a hardpack day in early November at Loveland Basin in Colorado, which is known for its moguls, steeps, and trees. Even as a more powerful skier, I had a lot of fun on these. They stayed in control even when pushing faster speeds and really shined for me in moguls, trees, and some light freestyle.
Why did you choose this product?
Leo Cocchiara I wanted to try the Blackops 92 to see how it compared to the more entry-level Sender 90 and the higher-end Blackops 98—the biggest difference between them being the core constructions. Even with just a simple wood core, I am pleased with the feedback and responsiveness from the 92 compared to the Sender 90. It is more forgiving than the Blackops 98, meaning it nailed its target audience.
What do you love about this product?
Leo Cocchiara I love how approachable the Blackops 92 is in moguls and trees. It's a great ski for progressing in more technical terrains.
Leo Cocchiara There are plenty of reasons to tout the Blackops 92 for their performance, but they're one of the most attractive options for the level of skier they're geared towards. It's hard not to love the classic mountain graphics on the topsheet.
