Black Crows Corvus Skis 2020

ALL MOUNTAIN SKIS

Often called one-quiver skis, all-mountain models are for skiers who consider the entire mountain their playground. They’re typically designed to be capable on and off the trail—on groomers, in powder, and helping you adapt in variable conditions—but they’re not experts in any one terrain. The name is a catch-all, though, and can be misleading, because there isn’t just one type of all-mountain ski. Some all-mountain skis are more carve-oriented models, while others are friendlier versions of big-mountain freeride skis, and they may feature traditional camber or rocker profiles or a blend of the two. The key is determining what type of skiing you do most and then you’ll be in the best position to choose your ideal daily driver.

All-mountain models typically feature waist widths between 90mm and 105mm (with narrower waists performing better in hard snow) and medium sidecut with a turn radii somewhere between 16m and 20m (with shorter radii making quicker turns easier).

FREE-RIDE SKIS

Designed for steep, technical terrain, the heritage of freeride or big-mountain skis lies in race technology which, combined with the off-piste characteristics of powder skis, makes them reliable at speed, but also able to handle ungroomed snow on big-mountain lines. Freeride skis are typically stiffer with a tougher construction too, so they’re best suited to strong, advanced-to-expert skiers who can control them in critical big-mountain situations. Like all-mountain skis, they may have a hybrid camber / rocker profile to help them adapt to variable snow conditions and terrain.

Freeride models typically feature waist widths between 95mm and 115mm (with narrower waists performing better in hard snow) and sidecut with turn radii of 20m and longer.