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PTO Review
We know them. Here's how they stack up.
These skis span 2 categories (Carving, All-Mountain Freestyle). Scores reflect each ski's intended use — direct comparison across all dimensions may be misleading.
PRO — advanced-to-expert skiers who live on hard snow, ski fast, and want race-room construction that is not a gate ski.. Bent 100 — intermediate and better skiers who value a light, quick, playful ride and drive the ski with finesse rather than muscle.. Check the radar chart below to see where each one wins.
Each row compares all skis on one dimension. 🏆 marks the highest score.
| Dimension | PRO | Bent 100 |
|---|---|---|
| Carving | 9🏆 | 6 |
| Park | 1 | 7🏆 |
| Playfulness | 2 | 9🏆 |
| Forgiveness | 3 | 8🏆 |
| Stability | 9🏆 | 5 |
| Powder | 1 | 6🏆 |
Advanced-to-expert skiers who live on hard snow, ski fast, and want race-room construction that is not a gate ski. It suits a skier who wants the long, fast arc - 16 m at 175 cm, out to 22 m at 189 - and who wants a system ski that arrives on its plate and factory-tuned rather than a flat ski to build up. Van Deer also lists a higher-DIN Marker COMP 16 GW as a fitting option for the PRO, which it does not list for the H-Power line; whether that range is the right one for you is a fitting question for a technician.
Beginners and soft intermediates: the catalogue's easy-to-ski line is measured against a World Cup ski, not a cruiser, and this is a stiff metal build that has to be driven. Anyone who leaves the groomer: 68 mm on a race layup has no float, and soft snow makes it work - the H-Power 89 or the Freeride skis are that ski, not this one. Anyone who wants short, quick, tight-radius turns: the PRO starts at 168 cm and 13 m and never goes shorter, while the H-Power 68 runs down to 147 cm and a 10 m radius, in lengths the PRO does not make, for $50 less. And a racer who needs a homologated ski cannot use this one - Van Deer says the PRO is deliberately not FIS-bound. Look at the Race Series, and check the model and length against the current FIS list yourself, because Van Deer prints no per-model homologation for any adult ski.
Intermediate and better skiers who value a light, quick, playful ride and drive the ski with finesse rather than muscle. It rewards people who like to press, slash and ride switch, plus lighter or less aggressive skiers who do not want to fight a heavy ski, and anyone after one do-it-all ski that still floats on a soft day. It also makes a light resort-to-sidecountry option.
Skiers who want a metal ski's hard-snow bite and race-like precision: with a light woodcore and no metal laminate, the Bent 100 handles a groomer but will not match a metal ski's edge hold on firm snow or feel as locked-in on ice. Heavier, aggressive skiers who charge through cut-up crud will feel the light build deflect - a metal all-mountain ski like the Nordica Enforcer 100 tracks that line better. True beginners should skip it too; independent reviews place it at intermediate and up. And if deep powder is the priority, the wider Bent 110 or Chetler 120 is the better tool.
PRO is best for advanced-to-expert skiers who live on hard snow, ski fast, and want race-room construction that is not a gate ski. Bent 100 is best for intermediate and better skiers who value a light, quick, playful ride and drive the ski with finesse rather than muscle. The right choice depends on your terrain, ability, and riding style.
Van Deer PRO has the highest Stability score in this comparison at 9/10. That score compares composure; it does not by itself mean the product is the most versatile choice.
Van Deer PRO leads Carving in this comparison with a PTO score of 9/10.
Atomic Bent 100 has the highest Forgiveness score here at 8/10. Forgiveness is one factor in progression, not a claim that every beginner should choose it.
Not sure? Ask us.
