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First the specs:
Size-181cm
Sidecut-130/97/120 mm
Weight-9 lbs 11 oz for the pair
Skied the Rossignol slat for the 2014-15 season. I bought it for the purpose of an all-mountain ski that I could ride in the park, powder, and in all conditions. For the most part it served its purpose well. I mounted them at the recommended mount because I wanted plenty of nose length to ski deeper snow. They can be mounted center for strictly park and groomed snow performance. First I'll compare it with a ski of the same category then I'll get to some of the technical details of the slat's performance.
Previously I had skied the Armada ARV at 185 (130/95/119mm) with 100% traditional camber and it could ski whatever I felt like with confidence. It was stable and super poppy, which made it a true all-mountain ski. The slat is in the same category, but doesn't have as much camber or sidecut. This is a good thing and a bad thing, kind of a problem you want to have in some circumstances. If you want a ski that is going ski better all over the mountain go with the ARV or the ARVti. The slat is more of a park ski that can ski elsewhere pretty good. The slat however is a much better park ski. If you like a wide park ski go with the slat, you'll have a good ass time.
Now I'd like to tell you about some cool technical aspects of the slat I really liked. First thing I noticed right off the bat is the core in the tails is periodically shaved down behind the binding giving the tail a soft buttery flex. Same with the nose, but not as prominent as the tails. So the slat is stiff underfoot, but has a nice soft flex in the tip and tail. Especially the tail, which easily presses any feature it touches. The tip and tail also have a nice gradual rocker that keeps an edge while carving, but gives you plenty of freedom if you want to spin while carving up the lip of jump. I was surprised how well these skis kept their edge in firm snow conditions. The rocker doesn't hurt their performance on hard/firm snowpack. The slat is also exceptional in slush.
My only complaint about the slat is that it didn't hold up as well as I wanted when things got steep and deep. I took it out on a couple 2'+ powder days and felt like I was really pushing the skis past what they could handle. If they were a tiny bit fatter and at a length of 188cm things would be different, but they aren't so at the end of the day the slat is a kick-ass park ski that can tear up almost the whole mountain. I plan on keeping my slat's for another year so if you're thinking about buying them you're not making a bad choice.
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