2021 Black Crows Captis Birdie

For lady skiers who want a quick, light, and incredibly fun ski without the bulk, the Black Crows Captis Birdie could be the way to go. Built and shaped just like the men's version, the Birdie loves to make short turns, and for a 90 mm underfoot ski, it floats pretty darn good. Black Crows has some interesting ski building techniques, and for the variety of skis that they put out there, the most impressive thing is that no two are the same. They don't have model lines like some of the other major companies, but rather individual skis that all do something a little bit different. For some skiers, this may seem like a daunting task, to select one out of many, but in many ways, it makes the process simpler. The only real challenge is for you to accurately and honestly portray yourself and that image into a ski. We'd say this ski is best for a skier in the intermediate and above ability level, who lives or skis in an area with mixed snow conditions, and who likes to explore all over the mountain without a real focus on one particular discipline. In reality, the Captis Birdie is the go-anywhere, do-anything type of ski that most all-mountain skiers really love.

Built with a poplar wood core, the skis are responsive and light. The two big construction and shaping takeaways from the Captis Birdie are the taper and the full sidewall construction. For a 90 mm underfoot ski, the Captis has relatively dramatic tip and tail taper which results in more of a five-point sidecut. The widest parts of the ski are closer to the midpoint, and this gives the ski a bit of hesitation at the top and the bottom of the turn. But if you stay in the middle of the sidecut, they turn a lot quicker than skis with longer effective edges. Additionally, the increased taper makes for a better floating ski in soft snow, so for skiers who want good flotation, but don't want to ski anything wide or fat, the Captis Birdie makes a lot of sense. In the tail, the taper makes for a more playful and smeary feeling, allowing the skier to dictate the shape and duration of the turn, and this creates the toy-like feel of the ski. Adding to that quickness is the full sidewall that loves to hold a tight edge. If this shape were combined with a semi-cap like we see on the Camox Birdie, the ski might be too light and quick. Rather, the full sidewall adds power and stability to the ski, blending the party and business aspects of the ski like only Black Crows can.

We had our Pinnacle Ski and Sports guru Laura McLaughlin get on the Captis Birdie a few times this year and she has some fantastic feedback for us. "I skied the 164cm, at 90mm underfoot, and with about a 17m radius turn. I found the ski soft and for myself, it liked to be skied in the center without chatter. Very easy to get forward and not feel like I was completely over powering it. It was underfoot in every condition that I put it through, (hard scraped surface to soft fluffy bumps on side). I was impressed with how light it was and how dependable it was. I remember handing it in and thinking; hmmm, I could own this ski!" That's some of the highest compliments we could get, for a ski shop person to think they can own a particular ski.

We love the individuality of the Black Crows skis, and their ability to make a ski for everyone. The Captis Birdie is a great example of a well-rounded ski with a fun and interesting blend of performance characteristics. We love it as a good east coast ski that floats above its 90 mm waist, and is super-quick thanks to that taper and rocker shape.