K2 Wayback 106 Ski
For those days when gluttony abounds and your friends may not be so friendly, K2 brings you the Wayback 106. Built from the same bones as the beloved 88, this fat ski is a dream ride when the snow is fresh and deep. The Wayback 106 packs all the wizardry that K2 has developed in their years of ski building while remaining light enough to stack laps. With a Y-shaped titanal insert and a carbon overlay on top of a Paulownia Tour Lite wood core, this Wayback model is stiff and poppy for the hard-charging, powerful skier. It handles hardpack with aplomb and gorges on powder. When you buy a pair of K2 Wayback 106's, you'd best be spending the summer getting on your boss' good side, because you'll be calling in 'sick' more than ever before. And remember, there are no friends on a powder day.
- Snophobic top sheet helps to keep your skis light and feathery while you're skinning, because why buy light skis if they're snow magnets?
- Ti SpYne is a Y-shaped sheet of titanal that keeps the tail supportive and the tip torsionally rigid, just how a good ski should be.
- All-terrain rocker profile keeps the tips up in the deep stuff without over-rockering the tail, essential in a lightweight ski.
- Paulownia Tour Lite wood core is becoming the industry standard lightweight construction.
Update 2020/21: The K2 Wayback 106 has a dazzling new topsheet - same great ski we know and love, it's just going through a more yellow phase.
Update 2022/23: Another visit to the paint shop for the Wayback team. Less yellow, same fun.
Specifications | |
Lengths (cm) | 172, 179, 186 |
Weight |
1455g [172] 1525g [179] 1655g [186] |
Weight (pair) | 2910g [172] 3050g [179] 3310g [186] |
|
136-106-124 [179] |
Turn |
22m [179] |
Skin |
Z-Clip tip and tail holes, flat notched tail |
Specs Verified | Yes |
Design | |
|
All Terrain rocker, camber underfoot |
|
Round tip and friendly, medium radius |
|
Titanal Ti-Spyne laminate with ABS sidewall construction and full metal edges |
|
Paulownia Tour Lite |
Skimo Co Says | |
Usage | A daily driver in a good year, a powder ski in thin snow years |
Notes | Snophobic topsheet repels snow |
Bottom Line | A mid-to-stiff fat ski that is light enough to stack laps when the snow is soft |
Compare to other High-fat Skis |
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Questions & Reviews
match? other K2 skis to consider for that 101-106 underfoot 1 ski?
The main thing will be lots more tip and tail rocker. Haven't ever skied the Coombacks, but guessing these, or the new 98, will be easier and more fun to ski. I couldn't dig up an actual weight on those, but I would say these newer skis are lighter too. These are the only K2 we carry, they have a heavier Dispatch line, that may be more similar.
The recommended mount point isn't too far back, you'd be perfectly fine at the factory rec. I haven't talked to anyone who's mounted them forward, but those who have them at the rec say they handle crud fine. I'd say if you'd like to go a bit further forward, you could try +1 of rec. +2 or +3 would probably feel a bit far forward for powder.
In other words, when de-cambered at the mount point, the skis touch in three spots: near the tip taper, the mount point, and near the tail taper (kind of like triple camber almost); where I would normally expect continuous contact from the tip to tail taper points.
Is this expected? Can someone confirm? I'm wondering if this will compromise grip on the skin track.
The amount of pressure a ski strap or your hand can apply to the ski is significantly lower--and the surface area of the applied pressure is significantly smaller--than that of a person when touring. Also, the recommended mounting point is where the center of your boot aligns, so your contact points on the ski will actually be closer to where your arrows are pointing in the picture above.
About myself, I am 185.4 cm (73 inches) tall, weigh 86.2 kg (190 pounds), and classify myself as a type III skier. I have not skied any back country with the exception of one day where I rented my gear, but I do want to start skiing backcountry in addition to my resort alpine skiing. My current setup for resort skiing are a pair of Nordica Enforcer 104 Free, 186 cm length. For my backcountry setup, I have already purchased and fitted a pair of Scarpa Maestrale boots. For bindings, I am going to be running the Fritschi Tecton 12 due to its downhill performance with release capability, while not being as heavy as some other tech bindings with these features. As far as what I will primarily be skiing, I want flexibility to ski in all kinds of conditions in the PNW (Washington).
5 stars to Jeff for patiently answering all my questions over a 4 week period as I dialed in my target setup as well as the overall skimo crew.
https://blisterreview.com/gear-reviews/2018-2019-k2-wayback-106
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