Blizzard Anomaly 94 Review

The Blizzard Anomaly 94 presented a flashy appearance with plenty of exciting social media presence ahead of its launch – an all-mountain ski designed to be “a wolf in sheep's clothing.” Blizzard borrowed from the Rustler series to tailor a new Fluxform layup for the new Anomaly series. They break up titanal strips into three layers, which allows them to sheer slightly above their patented Trueblend woodcore.

Performance Comparison

Stability at Speed

High-speed stability is the one thing the Anomaly 94 absolutely nails. Thanks to the tweaked Fluxform technology, this ski retains some of the DNA of its distant relatives by prioritizing stability at speed. Even with some flap from the softened tips, the feeling underfoot is the type of solid dampness we have come to know and love from Blizzard all-mountain skis.

This unique construction offers a progressive and predictable flex in the tips. However, our testers experienced a “shove” from the inversely powerful tail, which was sometimes exciting and, at other times difficult to predict. As a result, we mainly preferred to stick to smooth groomers to make fast, large-radius turns.

Carving Ability

The Anomaly 94 came with a high-quality tune fresh out of the wrapper – edges that were sharp but not too sharp, with silky rather than slippery bases. These details matter because it means that a potential buyer doesn't have to start by paying for a fresh tune in addition to their brand-new skis. We applaud Blizzard for setting up their customers with a tune that supports this ski's quick edge-to-edge capabilities.

The construction of the Anomaly 94 is designed to provide “the right flex where you need it.” Yet our test team noted that the flex was decisively harder behind the bindings, which contradicted the softer flexing tip and forefoot. They all felt like this dictated an aggressively shallow turn shape, which also led them to pick up more speed than they wanted to as they transitioned between turns. This can be fun when you have enough space to let 'em run, but not so fine when you have to reel in your speed quickly.

Powder Performance

The Anomaly 94 is decent in powder, with just enough float to get by. The Trueblend woodcore uses lighter-weight poplar for an easier flex in the tip, while high-density beech wood generates enough pop to put the ski back on the surface. Our testers noted this ski preferred a shorter turn shape and less edge angle through deep snow, which was totally unexpected based on our experience skiing hardpacked groomers.

Crud Performance

Skiing crud requires precision and power, which were difficult to dial in with the Anomaly 94. Our testers remarked that the softer flexing front of the ski can be unpredictable in choppy snow, with one tester going so far as to call them “scary.” At the same time, the beefy tail made it difficult to maintain a round turn – it kept trying to launch us into the backseat.

Blizzard's Alu Frame extends the external titanal all the way to the edge of the ski, which is designed to absorb side impacts better. While this technology may reduce chipping your top sheets along the edges, the Anomaly 94 regularly lost its grip during periods of heavy vibration. Coupled with an inconsistent flex profile, nothing about the layup translated to confidence skiing crud.

Terrain Playfulness

It's tough to have much fun on a ski that you can't trust. Unless it's set on edge, the front of the ski vibrates with what one tester described as “nervous energy.” That squirrely feeling is further enhanced at low speed or during smeared turns, and it doesn't get any better when the skis start to vibrate, all of which can make the Anomaly 94 difficult to steer. At the same time, the super stiff tail makes it extremely difficult to conjure small radius turns. All of the above make it difficult to blend turn types through rapid changes in terrain or snow conditions.

Should You Buy the Blizzard Anomaly 94?

Ski design changes over time. There have been many skis over the years that our team has loved that end up being discontinued. We keep a detailed history of things we specifically liked about those special skis, and then scour the market to find something similar. While we loved the Bonafide, the new Anomaly 94 needs some work. If you plan to stick to perfect corduroy for a few runs each morning, this ski will still provide the stability and sensation of Blizzard skis we loved in the past. Otherwise, we hope that the design can be improved because at this point, it's difficult to recommend this as an all-mountain ski.

What Other Skis Should You Consider?