Sage Cattabriga-Alosa Digs Through Atomic Prototypes

The approach of fall means ski brands are starting to drop 2026 product and entice all of us to buy that N+1th pair of skis. But before you pull the trigger on your fourth pair of Bent Chetler's in six years, it's also a great time to reflect on past models, how skis have changed, if at all, and reminisce on the models we miss.

Sage Cattabriga-Alosa has recently been diving into all kinds of relics from old photos to old POWDER Magazine covers. Cattabriga-Alosa's latest deep dive is into a bag of prototype skis from his long-time sponsor, Atomic.

When Cattabriga-Alosa first joined the Atomic team, they already had the Bent Chetler and a ski called the Blog, which is similar to the current Bent 110 in its twin tipped, evenly flexed construction. They were also making the Atlas, which was a stiffer, flat tailed ski with rocker in the tip and was the 'classic Daron Rahlves ski.' Cattabriga-Alosa then helped to develop a ski called the Automatic, which evolved into the Backland 117, which is now the Maverick 115.

In Cattabriga-Alosa's ski bag of relics, he has an early version of the Automatic which features carbon stringers in the tip and tail as well as a carbon plate on a poplar core. Cattabriga-Alosa had also modified the ABS plastic that adds surface area without adding weight to the tip and tail, which Atomic calls HRZN tech.

At the bottom of the bag, he has a second pair of Automics that have titanium stringers in the tip and carbon stringers in the tail. The final production version of the ski ended up with titanium in the tip and tail, whereas the Bent Chetler adopted those carbon tip and tail stringers. This specific pair in Cattabriga-Alosa's possession is actually a display ski with graphics that point out different pieces of the ski's construction.

Tap or click below to watch Sage's video.

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