An all-Völkl mano a mano.
I was still in PA when the Kendo was introduced and thought “Boy, this is a better Mantra for more people.” I was lucky in saying that then, because I was actually right. Was it outselling the Mantra? Not sure of exit numbers but if it wasn’t, the sales were on par with its big brother. At that time, Völkl’s all-mountain collection was the AC series; the spiritual predecessor to the RTM 84 UVO would have been the AC50 (one down from the top). In that time, the Kendo has seen an evolution and the RTM 84 UVO, a revolution.
The Kendo has been around for a bit and is in its 2.0 mode of design, which happened a few seasons ago. Völkl took some of the traditional shape out of the extremities, giving it more taper and adding more gradual rise to the tip so it isn’t so bitey in mixed conditions. Basically, it took the shape of the Mantra and made it better for more people. It retains that firm flex that you expect from a Völkl, but by retaining some camber along with the early rise in the tip and tail, the ski is a touch more versatile.
The new RTM 84 UVO is a ski with a bit of an identity crisis. It is not the first-generation RTM, the zero camber one, oh no. That first RTM was a design study that just should not have happened. It won some accolades, but how it won anything more than a participation trophy is beyond me. The new RTM 84 UVO is also not a AC50, an I-beam that had a sweet spot about the length of a golf pencil. As you can tell, I never really cared for either of these skis (and I have been very Völkl about it). But Völkl has taken the best things from those two skis and made a stellar one, this new RTM. The 3D-Ridge design allows it to keep the strength of the AC while adding the ease of the Gen-1 RTM, resulting in a versatile, frontside-biased all-mountain ski.
For the ladies, you can replace Kendo with Kenja, and RTM 84 UVO with Flair 81.
- Why choose the Kendo? You venture off piste more than you stay on the groomers. You like crud busting and skiing in mixed conditions. This could be that one-ski quiver.
- Why choose the RTM 84 UVO? You stop occasionally to admire the railroad tracks that you just laid down. Technical proficiency is a top three requirement, but you still want a ski that can tackle the sides of the trail and hit some bumps.
- Other sibling comparisons: Atomic Vantage 90 CTi and Vantage X 83 CTi, Blizzard Brahma and Quattro 8.4, K2 iKonic 85Ti and Pinnacle 88, Rossignol E84HD and E88HD.
