Review: 2027 Atomic Maven 103 CTi

The term “freeride” ski has grown to have a variety of meanings over the last five years, but it seems to rarely describe simply a ski that can take you anywhere on the mountain you want to go with confidence. With that in mind, it’s refreshing that the widest ski in Atomic’s women’s specific freeride ski lineup is just that. The Atomic Maven 103 CTi goes from carving turns, to smashing bumps, to swooshing around in slushy snow about as seamlessly as you could ever want a resort daily-driver to do so.

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2027 Atomic Maven 103 CTi Specs

• Lengths Skied: 170cm, 178cm
• Lengths Available: 156cm, 162cm, 170cm, 178cm
• Sidecut: 130.5mm-103.5mm-119.5 mm (170cm)
• Radius: 17m (170cm)
• Profile: All mountain rocker
• Weight: 1610g (170cm)

Shape, Flex, Construction

The Maven 103 CTi is the widest in the Maven lineup, offset by the Maven 88 and Maven 94, and comes in four size options at 156cm, 162cm, 170cm, and 178cm. Sidecut radii are size-specific, all falling into the short to medium length of the spectrum. The ski has minimal tip and tail rocker in an effort to increase edge contact and grip and a touch of camber to keep them stable and easy to turn. For a directional ski, the mount point is decently far forward which helped it handle surprisingly and pleasantly well.  

The Maven uses an ash and poplar core, combining stability from the harder wood and the more friendly, playful quality of the poplar along with Atomic’s HRZN 3D technology, that adds a beveled piece of wood into the ski tip for more float. A carbon/Titanal blend (the CTi in the name) helps to dampen the ski further and contributes to the hard-charging feeling of the Maven. Notably and refreshingly, the Maven also uses the same construction as Atomic’s men’s/unisex Maverick lineup. The difference comes in in the underfoot widths offered and ski lengths available. 

On-Snow Performance

We tested the Maven 103 CTi in just about every condition you can imagine at Grand Targhee as well as a number of days at Mt. Bachelor in slush and on hardpack. The Maven 103 CTi is one of those skis that seems to offer a pleasant new surprise with its versatility on every run. When carving on hardpack and groomers, it holds an edge nicely at all speeds and made turns far larger than the 17m turn radius would suggest. When taken off-piste, the Maven is poppy and made turns quickly in tight terrain and bumps. Testers found the Maven 103 easy to ski and intuitive, yet able to handle just about anything they threw at it and not too soft for strong skiers. 

The shovel tip on the Maven does aid its performance in soft snow, off-piste, and notably, slush. However, while the rest of the ski remained stable, testers did find the tips to be quite chattery while carving on groomers and on hardpack.

The Maven 103 CTi would be an excellent choice for strong skiers looking for a one-ski resort quiver, just about anywhere in the West, and especially who want a ski that performs well in bumps. Its weight, waist width, and shape all make for a jill-of-all-trades ski that you can rely on no matter what the forecast calls for. 

Comparisons

While the Maven 103 CTi is categorized as a freeride ski, it didn’t feel quite as playful as something like a Bent Chetler, to pull from Atomic’s lineup, but then again it’s not built to be. The directionality of the ski makes it hard to compare to other freeride skis that would otherwise fall in a similar category, like the K2 Mindbender 110 W or Armada’s older ARW 106. Contrasted against another, more directional, women’s-specific freeride ski, the Blizzard Sheeva 9, the Maven was lighter and more approachable than the Sheeva, with only the tip chatter really counting against it in comparison.

What type of skier is the Atomic Maven 103 CTi Best For?

One tester did a pretty good job summing it up: “ex racers, patrollers, strong Mom skiers, someone who wants to ski bumps.” There’s no doubt the Maven demands a strong skier, but it’s lightweight nature and versatility would make it an excellent daily driver for a skier looking to cruise around a mountain like Targhee, Winter Park, Sunshine Village, or Crystal Mountain.