Powder Review: Armada ARV 116 JJ
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In a nutshell
In the class of playful pow skis, the ARV 116 JJ stands out as an exceptionally playful, exceptionally fun option.
Length Skied: 185 cm
Weight: 2261 g
Stated Dimensions: 139-116-135 mm
Stated Sidecut: 18 m
Recommended Mount Point: -5.5 cm (Factory) or -3 cm (Freestyle)
The Armada ARV 116 JJ is available now.
Intro
Ask most skiers to list a few playful powder skis, and chances are they’ll mention some iteration of the Armada JJ. It’s one of several skis that helped define the genre, and while it’s come a long way since JP Auclair and Julien Regnier originally dreamt it up, it’s always been a playful, intuitive powder ski.
While there were some changes to the narrower skis in the ARV/ARW lineups, the ARV 116 JJ returns for 2023-24 unchanged. I’ve spent time on, and really enjoyed, a bunch of JJs, dating back to a pair from 2008, so I was excited to spend time on the ARV 116 JJ, and, as luck would have it, I happened to have it on my feet for some of the deepest days of the year.
The 2024 ARV 116 JJ also has what might be my favorite graphic of the year. A friend dubbed it “Sex Panther” and I’d be inclined to agree. It looks really good on snow, and has a delightful scuzzy, retro vibe.
Length and Mount Point
I skied the 185 cm ARV JJ 116. That’s right in line with my usual preferences for powder skis. I can definitely imagine sizing up to the 192, if I was skiing more open terrain, but for the tight trees I spend a lot of time skiing the 185 was excellent. And I wouldn’t necessarily be bumping up in the length for float, but rather for stability.
Which leads me to a tangent: For most brands, this “what length should I be on?” conversation ends up being pretty one-dimensional when it comes to their playful pow ski. They only make one ski in this class, so you should size up if you want to go fast in the open, and stay at your usual size for tighter terrain.
But Armada makes SO MANY playful pow skis. So, sure, I could size up the ARV 116 JJ. But maybe I’d be happier on the 192 cm ultralight version? Or maybe I should be on a Whitewalker, or a Magic J, or even (fantasy land, but it’s fun to speculate) I’d be happier on an ARG II UL. It is very, very cool to be able to name five, fairly different playful pow skis, all from the same brand. One of my goals for next winter is to ski all of Armada’s aspirational pow skis back to back and try to suss out which skiers will be happiest on which.
Anyway, Armada makes the JJ in four lengths from 165 cm to 192 cm. That’s a solid range for a unisex pow ski. And, if you usually ski something a little shorter than a 165, you should definitely consider sizing up to the 165 cm UL version. It’s a very easy ski to drive, and you deserve to own a true playful pow ski even if you fall outside of traditional size runs.
The ARV JJ 116 has two marked mount points, Factory and Freestyle. I skied it at Factory, 5.5 cm back from true center, while Freestyle is only -3 cm from center. I’ve skied ARV JJs closer to center in the past, and think this ski works well at both lines. I don’t typically spin past 360° often, and I don’t spend that much time skiing switch, so I prefer these skis at Factory. They have just a little more top end in cut up snow there. But, if you’re looking for something to butter and hit jumps all the time on, the Freestyle line feels great as well.
Where does the Armada ARV 116 JJ shine?
The bare minimum for a 116 underfoot ski in fresh, light snow should be “quite fun.” Luckily, the Armada ARV 116 JJ does a whole bunch more than the bare minimum. The ARV 116 JJ is loose, playful, surfy, a hoot — all the adjectives you’d expect in a playful powder ski review. But I want to dive into its powder performance a little more here.
When it comes to playful powder skis, pretty much all of them do the same things. They float well, are easy to throw sideways, and are fun to butter and spin on. But, within that “they’re all fun to ski in fresh snow” generalization, there are nuances in how each ski accomplishes that common goal. While some pow skis (The Moment Wildcat Tour is a great example, and to a slightly lesser extent, the Atomic Bent Chetler 120) feel like sharp, light knives, slashing through the snow, the ARV 116 JJ feels a little more like a silicone spatula, spreading nutella. There’s a spectrum of how “on edge” skis feel when messing around in powder, and the ARV 116 JJ feels like it falls very close to the “not at all” end of that spectrum. That’s really, really cool in practice.
This ski isn’t loose in a “easy to throw around, but also gets bucked around” way, but more in a “easy to twist, slash, and bend in interesting ways in 3D snow” sort of way. Lots of powder skis these days have boat hulled, convex tips. But, the ARV 116 JJ is the ski that most feels like it has them. I’m not sure that I could, in a blind test, tell the difference between a Bent 120 with convex tips, and one with normal, flat tips. But I can 100% tell the difference between a Bent 120 and an ARV 116 JJ, and it feels like the sensation that lots of skiers attribute to those convex tips. It’s just not hookey, ever.
I tweaked my knee early this spring, and have had to adjust my skiing style a little to accommodate that. It really just affects moves like spins and butters, and I’m hesitant to commit to them while wearing a knee brace. But, the ARV 116 JJ is so loose, so smooth to butter, I felt like I was back to my old, jibby self immediately on this ski.
All that to say, this ski is really fun in pow.
And, in soft, cut up snow, like say, the aftermath of a pow day, it’s a blast too. It’s not ultra powerful, and you’re not going to monster truck through piles of cut up snow, but it’s easy to slash and hop your way through inconsistent snow. And, when you decide to just point it and let the skis run, they have more straight line stability than the Bent 120. They’re heavier, with better suspension, so that shouldn’t be a surprise.
For more comparisons to other pow skis, check out our roundup of the best powder skis.
Where does the Armada ARV 116 JJ make some compromises?
Some playful powder skis are surprisingly versatile, they can handle all conditions with shocking aplomb. The ARV 116 JJ isn’t that ski, at least for most skiers. If you want something ridiculous that’s fun to spin and butter no matter what the snow is doing, sure, you could ski the ARV 116 JJ every day. And it’s one of the skis I’d recommend to the “still skiing Hellbents every day” crowd. (Yes, I was once one of you.)
But no, this is not really a crud buster. Get a different ski for that.
Similarly, some playful pow skis lend themselves to being mounted a few centimeters back for more directional skiers. If you just want to lay out graceful arcs, with no skidding or slashing in powder, the ARV 116 JJ is not the ski for you. Sure, it can, but it will want to slide into more dynamic, goofy turn shapes at every opportunity.
What would a perfect day on the Armada ARV 116 JJ look like?
You’re rolling deep with friends, on one of those pow days where the snow has a nice gradual ramp to it, blower on top, and progressively more dense without ever feeling firm. You’ve stomped out a few lips, and now it’s time to huck your meat, try to add another 180° to that rotation, crash, and head back around to do it again.
