2024 Head Total Joy

[SkiTalk Test Team]

​

Tricia
Length tested: 158cm
Location: Brighton
Conditions: Mixed with groomers

When Head introduced the Joy line back in 2014,(wow, has it really been 9 years?) I was impressed with the way Head started from a clean slate, building this women's line from the ground up with light weight construction using Graphene. Even though I took to the Super Joy for her carving prowess, the Total Joy was a bit more popular because with a slightly wider profile, it offered a bit more versatility, but in reality, the Total Joy carves juuuuust fine.
Even though the Joy is one of the best light weight carving skis on the market for women, Head has gone back to the drawing board and has redesigned the Joy line with a slimmed down shovel, lowered ramp angle, a different side cut and construction making these well loved skis damper, more confidence inspiring and powerful than their predecessor.

The Total Joy that I had a chance to ski was a little shorter than I'd prefer to ski, but it with the new construction I found the stability and calmness that was missing from the previous generations. Fortunately, we'll have the Total Joy in our long term test fleet this season in a 163, so we'll get a chance to put her through her paces in a variety of conditions. Stay tuned!

Insider tip: If you're a woman who enjoyed the previous Total Joy but thought it could be a little more stable, then this is your chance to find more Joy in your quiver.​

Insider tip: If you're looking for more of a carver, check out the Power Joy​

Pat AKA Mustski
Length tested: 163cm
Location: Mount Rose
Conditions: Early season WROD with some soft loose piles mixed in with scraped off slick sections

First of all, this ski is nothing like the previous version of the Total Joy! I never befriended that ski; the chatter made it feel unstable at speed. This new version is terrific - super light underfoot without becoming some floppy noodle. Easy to flex, the Total Joy holds an edge really well and is stable at speed. She switches turn size easily and immediately and has a large sweet spot. I particularly enjoyed the “friendly” personality of the ski - forgiving but responsive! I intentionally took her in and out of loose snow piles onto skied off slick sections to see how she would respond. I expected the edge to slip out from under me, but it held just fine. This ski really is pretty effortless to get on edge. One woman said that she liked it because she didn’t have to “think” about what she was doing. That is a pretty accurate description of the feel of this ski. I definitely want to give the Total Joy a try in some soft snow and some bumps to see how she does. I suspect that she will be a fun playmate in the bumps.

Insider tip: At 135, I'm not really a lightweight skier, but I enjoyed the Total Joy and did not overpower it. It works fine for we more average sized ladies!​

 

[Tricia]

Long term update:
We recieved the Total Joy in a 163cm length for our test fleet which is what I chose to take out for opening at Mt Rose this past week.
The changes Head has made have proven to make the Total Joy a much better ski when getting into those little annoying ice marbles that can be encountered on man made early season snow. The Total Joy was defnitely damper and did not get deflected in these conditons and the responsiveness on a crowded slope was just what this ski needed.
If you've owned or skied a previous Total Joy, and thought it was a little nervous, you'll quickly see the calmness in this new version.

 

[Tricia]

Long term update:
New Years Day 2024 promised to be a groomer zoomer day with mostly man-made snow.
I had a little nagging pain in my back so an easy ski was the weapon of choice, which is why the Total Joy was what I clicked into.
I ended up skiing more runs than I thought I would, and though my back kept getting more naggy the Total Joy was damp enough and intuitive enough that I had a good day. That is a testiment to the updates in the Joy line.
The cherry on the top was when I needed to carry my skis to the car, the skis remarkable lightness made carrying easier than I'd expected.
Light done right..indeed!