2025 Dynastar M-Free 108 - SkiEssentials com Ski Test Review

Hey skiers, it's Bob with SkiEssentials.com. Welcome to our 2025 ski test. We finally got this ski in so we can talk about it. This is the all-new Dynastar M-Free 108. This ski has been around for a number of years now, finally getting some much-needed updates and upgrades for this year, kind of following along with Dynastar's trend of the new M-Pro series. We also get a new M-Free 112 this year, excuse me. So this 108 retains basically the same footprint, but with the updated construction. So what we saw with the new M-Cross series from last year was the introduction of hybrid core 2.0. So their hybrid cores have always been really interesting using a central cord of wood. Up until now, it's just been, you know, vertical stringers of poplar wrapped in their torsion box fiberglass construction and then polyurethane along the sides. So that polyurethane does a really good job of keeping the ski quiet and smooth, stable and damp and surprisingly energetic. I think that a lot of us kind of hear of polyurethane and our minds go right to plastic and plastic is bad in skis, but really not the case. Over the years, they've done a great job of incorporating more and more of this polyurethane back in some of the older skis. It was just kind of found in the forebody of the ski here and then they kind of put it in a little bit further along the sidewalls and now they're really kind of going more all in and having basically, you know, half of the core width taken up by this polyurethane material. So the big move for 2025 with the new M-Free 108 is the incorporation of that hybrid core 2.0, which basically upgrades that wood core in the center. So with M-Cross, we saw this with the new M-Pro 94 and 100. For this year, we see it as well. So basically, they're taking three horizontal layers of wood. So one solid layer along the bottom and then the top two are milled out and then joined together. So there's basically tongue and groove along the top that they get sandwiched together on and then using that friction basically to create the adhesion of those wood laminates. What that does is it keeps them from having to use epoxy or glue in order to bond those laminates. So they're reducing the carbon footprint overall as well as increasing the energy of the ski. So by pressing those wood cores, those wood layers together, they're giving the ski a little bit more pop and a little bit more kick. You can definitely feel it on this new M-Free 108, which is kind of saying something because the old one was also really poppy and peppy, especially for the width, which was really, really interesting. So that's the new upgrade in terms of construction is that new hybrid core 2.0. We also get a couple of different length options. So in years past, we were basically in either a 182 or a 192. There was a shorter length as well, but now they're moving into more core sizing. So this is the 178 and then we also get a 185. So I think a lot of people like myself included was kind of lost in between that 182, 192. I think the move to 178, 185 is going to fit a lot more skiers. So that's another nice upgrade from Dynastar there. And then, you know, these M-Free's have always been a little bit on the hefty side, which is great for stability and smoothness. We're on the scale at just over 2000 grams, 2070 here in the 178. So you do get that nice stability and quiet overall feel. That polyurethane is just does a really nice job of making the ski quiet and then pretty stiff flex in this thing as well. So a lot of nice energy and rebound. 17 meter turn radius here. Most of that is in the center of the ski, mainly because of how tapered and rockered it is. There is definitely some drama here in terms of how bendy and flowy this ski is from a profile perspective. That camber is very high and because of the stiffness of the ski, it's very hard to decamber. A lot of skis you can pinch and actually kind of hear those bases clapping together. But with this ski, it's really hard to make it do that. What that's doing is it's building energy into the ski so that when you put it on edge and feel that ski come around, it's going to give you a lot of rebound onto the back edge. If this was like a flatter overall ski, that would make it very responsive and very energetic and agile. But because it has that rocker in the back, it ends up being drifty and smeary and floaty as well. So when you get this thing in softer snow, very much that playful shape in the tail. But from a tapered perspective, it is kind of that smooth, nice round tip shape here that does facilitate for better flotation and then some pretty good rocker in here as well. But really that camber underfoot, super long and again, very stout and robust in terms of that camber. And then quite a bit of tail rocker and splay back here as well. You know, it's more of a free ride twin tip than anything freestyle or trick oriented, but certainly helps keep skiers, you know, engaged from a playful standpoint. And, you know, anything up to, you know, a foot of snow or more, this thing's going to stay right on top and really give you a nice energetic feel and rebound. I think that that's kind of the big update here is really just kind of stiffening the flex and getting it to be a little bit more higher performance while the shape keeps it balanced and keeps it in check from a playful and free ride perspective. So really cool stuff overall here from Dynastar with this new M-Free 108. Psyched to finally get it in the shop here to give it a good once over and present it to you all. If you're in that market for, you know, 108, 110, 112, this thing floats really, really well for a 108. It also, like its predecessor, delivers an impressive amount of energy and edge grip for the width and more of this playful shape. That does kind of put it in more of the advanced and expert category in terms of skier type. Although somebody who's a progressing intermediate, maybe you're a little bigger and you're looking for a first type of free ride ski, this is great because it's easy to use from a turning perspective, but it also delivers high performance. So a nice mix of application here from kind of all-mountain to free ride use and, you know, anyone progressing kind of through that advanced level will find something to like here. So make sure you check out this all-new Dynastar M-Free 108 here at SkiEssentials.com and we'll see you out there on the hill.