BlackCrows Octo birdie 2026/2027

The Black Crows Octo Birdie is a women's on-piste carving ski, 84 mm at the waist, that makes short carved turns feel easy rather than race-serious. Black Crows calls it "a UFO for carving" - a swallowtail piste ski that mixes angular carving with a newschool-flavored ease, aimed at groomed runs and the soft snow beside them. The tail is cut into a swallowtail around an aluminum insert, and the brand's own copy says the shape is "there again, for style" - so anything about what that tail does on snow is third-party opinion, not an official mechanism.

The build is glass, not metal: semi-cap construction over ABS sidewalls all around, a poplar and fiberglass core, and no metal sheet in the layup. That holds weight between 1450 and 1550 g per ski and keeps the character lively instead of damp. Every length carries the same 14 m radius, so the turn you buy is the turn you get whether you pick the 155.3 or the 167.2 - quick from edge to edge, with a finish that does not feel hurried. One independent test crew calls it more forgiving than race-bred carvers - and one of its testers put it plainly: "not as stiff as other carving skis." Both halves of that sentence matter.

It suits women who spend their days on groomers and want carving to stay playful; progressing intermediates can learn real carving on it, and advanced skiers keep it around because it is fun. It is not for powder-first or off-piste-first skiers - float at 84 mm is modest. Strong chargers who want locked-down high-speed grip and damping will find its ceiling, and anyone shopping one ski for the whole mountain should look at the Camox Birdie (97 mm) in the same line instead.

The Octo Birdie is sold flat, without bindings. We mount and adjust bindings in-shop and will help you settle on the right length - and if you need to size past the in-store run this season, the unisex Octo continues the same construction in longer sizes.