Park-Ready All-Rounder: Armada ARV 100 All-Mountain Skis Review

My first (and wrong) impression of the Armada ARV 100 all-mountain skis was: “Wow, these skis suck.” Turns out, I hadn’t figured out where and how to ski them. I made that mistake, so you don’t have to.

Through trial and error, I discovered that the ARV 100 is a freestyle design with all-mountain capabilities. The ARV 100s excel for new school skiers who ski switch, chase side hits, and spend time in the park rather than just stop by once in a while.

Away from the park, the skis remain fun — with a caveat. The consistent soft flex (from a metal-free wood core) offers a plush ride and predictable behavior. But that makes the ARV 100s somewhat allergic to speed. Carving softened groomers at reasonable speeds is a joy on these skis. Otherwise, don’t expect to blast over crud at high speed.

In short: The Armada ARV 100 ($700) all-mountain skis are built for creativity and deliver a predictable, plush ride. These sticks will appeal to park riders, relaxed intermediates, and advanced skiers who want something friendly and fun to ski. If you’re a park or freestyle-first rider, the ARVs are a great all-season, all-mountain option — as long as you don’t mind the speed limit through chunder and shortcomings in powder.

Read the Best All-Mountain Skis buyer’s guide to see how the Armada ARV 100 stacks up.

Armada ARV 100 All-Mountain Skis Review

Throughout the season, I adjusted my expectations and use cases for the ARV 100s. To my surprise, I came to love them. But my first day on these skis summed up what the ARV 100s are not.

They aren’t another fat all-mountain charger. They can’t plane across fields of light, deep powder. Nor do they blast through minefields of crud at top speed.

My first day on the ARV 100s was underwhelming because I took them straight into their kryptonite — deep snow. The ARV 100s felt like they were base-seeking missiles that refused to float. They were 186cm, a usually perfect length for me. However, the fronts of the skis were short. They’re a true twin tip with a fairly centered mount point.

A softer flex eases landings and encourages smearing and buttering. You don’t have to ski the terrain park to have fun on these skis. They open up a creative skiing style that isn’t as easy to pull off with a more traditional ski. They have a unique sidewall construction meant to withstand abuse on rails and obstacles. 

They’re 100mm underfoot. That’s wide for a dedicated park ski, but I was understaffed in 6-10 inches of heavier powder. In deep conditions, I’m usually happy to be on directional big mountain skis that are bigger, stiffer, and have 110mm of width or more.

These wider-than-normal freestyle skis are ideal for creative skiing at a cruising speed. They’re a tool for spinning, jibbing in the park, and playing in the trees or on the fringe of the run. 

Park-Ready Build: Poppy With Burly Sidewalls

What’s the best thing about the ARV’s personality? The predictability of the flex, which is delivered by the all-poplar wood core. (There’s also an ash insert underfoot for secure binding retention.) It’s comforting to know that wood and fiberglass still deliver in a world of skis with carbon and metal stringers.

Poplar is a softer wood. Armada claims a flex of 6 out of 10 throughout the length of the ski, which feels about right. This is the opposite of what you want for a hard snow carver. But it opens up a style of skiing that takes its cues from snowboarding: freestyle. 

Whether you spend all day lapping the park or finding side hits, you’ll be served well by the ARV 100. I’m at least a decade removed from the terrain park. But once I leaned into the ARV 100’s strengths, I was sliding rails, spinning jumps, and rotating off mounds. I was skiing more creatively than usual — and loving it.

I’m usually afraid to take my daily driver, all-mountain skis, into the park. They’re the wrong tool for the job; There’s a good chance I’ll shorten their lifespan.

However, the sidewall of the ARV 100 is purpose-built to survive the abuse of freestyle skiing with the W3DGEWALL tech, which mechanically connects the injected sidewall into the wood core. Most sidewalls are simply glued on and pressed together as part of the ski’s sandwich of layers. So, these strong sidewalls provide insurance against compression and sidewall separation.

Critiques: Soft Snow Shortcomings

I don’t want to dwell on the ARV 100’s weaknesses, but if you missed my earlier warnings, these are not ideal skis for deep pow days. I skied the longest ski in the lineup (186cm), and under my 200-pound body, they sank like rocks. 

If you slow down and stay centered on the skis, you’ll still have fun. But Armada makes the ARVs in 106cm and 112cm if you ski powder regularly. There are two suggested mount points on the ARV 100: Factory recommended (-5 cm from center) and freestyle (-2.5 cm), and both will make the skis feel short if you’re not used to more centered binding positions. It also shrinks the amount of ski in front of you, which — combined with the fairly minimal tip splay — makes it easy to lose the tips in deeper snow.

When I see chopped-up pow and crud below the fresh, I aim to max my speed and blast through it. On the ARV 100s, this is not the way. Here, they perform better than in untracked pow, but only if you slow down and milk it. Make the attitude adjustment, and it’s fun to bop, bounce, and smear in mixed soft snow conditions instead of straight-lining over and through.

Conclusion: Armada ARV 100 All-Mountain Skis

Unlike people-pleasing designs, the Armada ARV 100 all-mountain skis confidently embrace their identity as a wider freestyle ski with enough versatility to defy being pigeonholed.

If you haven’t gotten the message, the ARV 100s are at home in the park. But I was surprised at how fun they were to ski on-trail. Like most all-mountain skis, they struggle to hold an edge on hardpack at high speeds reliably, but they still deliver a decent turn on a softer base.

On fresh corduroy, they initiate turns easily and naturally, effortlessly tracing medium-sized turns with an 18m radius and 186cm length. On-piste, they delivered fun wherever the snow remained, making it easy to fill the gaps between side hits and rollers.

As easy as it is to think of the ARV 100s as mostly a freestyle or park ski, they’re an excellent choice for skiers with a meandering, fun style — even if they’ve never set foot in the terrain park. That said, I highly recommend them for intermediate skiers who are park-curious and want a playful ski for a range of frontside terrain.

Big mountain freeride chargers and others who need speed and have limited interest in the park should probably look elsewhere. However, for the right type of skier, the ARV 100s could be the only ski they need.