If I can't find something by next fall then I'm open for suggestions---
She's advanced beginner moving toward low intermediate- does blues but takes her time. Still cautious since recovering from ACL surgery but confidence builds each time out and she's working to faster. I've been leaning toward mid 80's-90 under foot because I think they take the crud better than narrower skis and I don't think they are harder to get on edge--- at least that's my experience.
Another one that seems to be available more is the Volkl Kenja but I don't know much about those and whether they are remotely comparable to the Black Pearl. And another is the Rossignol Experience 88 which also seem to have higher availability. As I said I'm open to ideas and have patience to wait till the fall.
Ah, helps to know more. Any possibilities of sharing height/weight? I don't know if my experience as a petite woman is relevant or not but figure it might be given the length you are looking for. My skis range from 148 to 162cm, depending mostly on width and where I intend to use them.
When I was a confident intermediate and started demo'ing skis in the southeast about 15 years ago, I liked Rossi and K2. I had a hard time turning any Volkl. By the time Volkl came out with the Yumi, I'd become an advanced skier who didn't have an ACL (not a skiing injury). That's the only Volkl I've ever liked. I opted not to have ACLr surgery for assorted reason and have been a successful coper since 2013. While I can deal with Volkl skis now, there are many brands I much prefer. Fair to say that the Volkl Kenja and BP88 have very little in common. You won't find many women who like both.
My all-mountain skis were Rossi skis that were 75 underfoot for a while. Then I got the original Black Pearl, 88mm, for skiing out west. Now my skis for skiing in the east are the Head Absolut Joy, 78mm. I got new all-mountain skis that are 85mm and 10cm longer than the AJs for skiing big mountains out west.
I would consider the BP88 for the northeast but would be more inclined to stick to skis closer to 80 underfoot, including the BP82. I know cautious intermediates in the northeast who are very happy with the BP82.
Here are the skis I've demo'd in in northeast the last 4-5 years that were fun for me. The Atomic Cloud series is often mentioned for intermediates in the northeast. I'm not exactly a gear head, but I enjoy demo'ing. Can't describe why I like certain skis like a professional reviewer, but I can tell pretty quickly which skis are fun and which are too much work.
Rossi NOVA 8ca, 126-74-110, R 12m @156
Nordica Astral 78Ti, 114-78-99, R 14m @158
Atomic Vantage 85, 122.5-85-106.5 R 15m @157 (2018)
Nordica Santa Ana 88, 119-88-106, R 14m @158
I ended up with BP88 @145 at Taos a couple years ago. Was surprised how much fun they were being that short. It was a low snow season with no black terrain open. So I mostly skied them on groomers. When it snowed 9 inches in the middle of that trip, I changed to the BP98 @152. I was doing a Women's Ski Week (demo skis were free) and found the Taos instructors prefer shorter lengths since the emphasis is on skills related to skiing bumps smoothly.
