The 2018 Bonafide is the ski's second generation, and it couldn't have come at a better time. Blizzard did all it could with the first generation: it made the Bonafide better looking and even added carbon to the extremities, but even the groundbreaking Flipcore design was getting a little long in tooth. For 2018, Blizzard made the ski more compliant and more reactionary in the snow by softening it a bit and shortening the tip to create more shape and decrease the turn radius. And it did so all without compromising what created such a large groundswell.
As exceptionally mediocre as the Peacemaker was, the Rustler 10 is a ski that actually leaves an impression. Who woulda thunk that so much could be done to an evolution of a ski? Blizzard fixed everything that was wrong with the outgoing model when it designed the Rustler, and kudos are deserved. It is also very good that Blizzard started fresh and didn’t try to keep the Peacemaker name going (not sure why Blizzard didn’t do that on the women's side by retaining the Sheeva name, but oh well). The on-snow feel of the Rustler 10 is so much better than the Peacemaker ever hoped to have.
- Why choose the Bonafide? This one is for powermongers who are not in their 20s any more, good skiers who want to charge but don’t need to charge from bell to bell. This new Bonafide is the mature version of a ski that we fawned over from Day 1.
- Why choose the Rustler 10? The Rustler wants you to hang a bit more off piste, but even though it prefers mixed conditions and the rough and tumble part of the mountain, it still possesses a significant amount of groomer performance, ready to come out like a pair of pocket aces.