Dynastar's "Rocket Ship" Powder Ski Trades Metal for Maximum Playfulness at Speed
A somewhat new addition to the Dynastar M-Free squad, the M-Free 112 F-Team replaced the discontinued 118 as the widest ski in the lineup. It quickly became a fan favorite among competition freeride skiers (hence the F-Team name) and hard-charging resort rats on powder days. During our time at Grand Targhee, we got to see what all the hype was about, putting the M-Free 112 through the paces. The verdict? A sturdy ski that likes to go fast but still has some loose, freestyle flavor.
Dynastar M-Free 112 F-Team Specs
- Size skied: 183cm, 190cm
- Lengths available: 176cm, 183cm, 190cm
- Sidecut: 141mm – 112mm – 133mm
- Radius: 21m (183cm)
- Profile: Twin rocker
- Weight: 2200g (183cm)
Shape, Flex and Construction
These days, freeride competition skis tend to be leaning more towards a twin rocker shape (eg., fat twin tips), and Dynastar’s M-Free 112 joins that trend. With skiers getting ever more creative in the freestyle realm during comp runs, that more playful shape is welcome, but the ski still needs to hold up to high speeds, questionable landings, and plow through rough snow.
The M-Free 112 offers all of that in its shape, with good amounts of tip and tail rocker, a fairly-centered mount point, and a medium-long 21-meter turn radius.
Inside the ski, Dynastar uses the same fiberglass torsion box and poplar wood/PU construction found across the M-Free line, foregoing the use of metal to stiffen up and dampen the ski. That’s an interesting choice, given the ski’s hard-charging intentions, but it translates to a livelier character from the nearly identical-looking and uber-damp Rossignol Sender 110.
On-Snow Performance
The M-Free 112 is a big ski for everyday resort shredding, but considering the width, it does a pretty good job. On groomers, it’s not as snappy or engaging a ride as other options, but with solid edge hold and good damping, they are more than capable as a resort ski. You could probably just about get away with skiing them daily somewhere like Alta or Jackson, but for most people, these are a bit big to be your daily driver.
That said, they are a good choice for days when your priority is skiing lift-access pow, but still want a ski that will comfortably get you back to the lift on firm or chopped-up snow. They certainly aren’t in that bracket of powder skis where you are just doing your best to get down the slope to upload again. They ski smoothly on hard snow; they just aren’t a ski you’d ultimately choose for that application.
In powder, the Dynastar M-Free 112 truly comes alive, begging for big turns, slashes, and encouraging all kinds of sendy behavior. Despite the relatively heavy advertised weight, they actually feel quite light on your feet, making quick direction changes, airs, and slashy turns easy.
One of our testers at Grand Targhee ventured to the Nipple, a hike-to area, aboard the M-Free 112 for a few laps, and was thoroughly pleased. He said he “really enjoyed” the ski’s “planted” quality and noted that “on the two untracked runs I took, the thing was a rocket ship. So fun. Would be an excellent AK ski. Slarvy tail.”
Another tester faced down some post-powder-day-mank with the M-Free 112 and came away impressed. “The entire lap was the remnants of the storm, so a mix of heavy snow, ice, and whatever garbage that might be hiding underneath,” they said. “The M-Frees plowed through all of it. These are the kind of skis that make you feel like a better skier.”
Still, they require some input from their pilot. In mixed conditions, M-Free 112’s softer tip easily rises above chopped-up snow to allow you to skip over the chunky stuff at high speed—as long as you stay centered on the ski. Lean too far into it, and the centered mount point and round flex of the ski might cause the ski to feel too soft up front. However, it’s happy straightlining out the moguls on the apron of the chute you just pointed them down, or lining up to get speed for that windlip you want to air at the bottom of the run.
Mark Riegel
Comparisons
Two skis stand out as worthy of comparison to the Dynastar M-Free 112.
First off is Rossignol’s Sender 110, which shares a nearly-identical shape—the rocker profile and core are different, but the skis’ footprints are the same. In deep snow, the float of the M-Free 112 is pretty much identical to the Sender 110, but in variable snow they offer different skiing experiences—the Dynastar offers a livelier, more agile ride, but the Sender 110 offers mistake-erasing suspension that allows you to just stand up and plow.
A second comparison is to another tried-and-true freeride competition ski, the Salomon QST Blank. Again, the waist width and overall shape are relatively similar, but the Blank offers a much more directional ride, and consequently better hard-snow performance for skiers looking to push into the front of their boot and drive the ski through a turn. The Blank is also a bit more approachable to most skiers with a softer flex—but shares a similar top-end performance.
Mark Riegel
Who’s the Dynastar M-Free 112 Best For?
The M-Free 112 was a ski we loved for how predictable it felt in all conditions, a ski that can handle whatever you throw at it in the resort on deep days. It does cater best to skiers with a freestyle background who ride with a more centered stance. These feel pretty well suited to freeride comps and skiers who like to charge but still ski lots of deep snow, and we’d take these as a daily driver at a Western resort with lots of powder, plenty of big-mountain terrain, and some out-of-bounds access to play around in.
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