2023 Black Crows Camox Freebird

The 2023 Black Crows Camox Freebird gets a bit of an upgrade for this year, lightening the load and softening the flex just a little bit in order to push this model more to the backcountry and touring side of the spectrum. Built with a paulownia wood core and a laminate of carbon and fiberglass, the skis also have a titanal reinforcement under the mount zone for more technical and hybrid style bindings. With a semi-cap construction featuring full-cap in the shovel, the Camox Freebird has a lighter swing weight, is easier to maneuver, and quicker from edge to edge than we’ve seen in the past. In terms of weight, the 178 cm length gets just under the 1500-gram mark while the 183 is just over. These weight ranges put the Camox Freebird squarely in the middle of a touring-specific weight class, and that’s great news for skiers who want that paucity of weight while keeping the downhill fun to an absolute maximum. While some of the Black Crows Freebird skis have at least some things in common with their alpine counterparts, the Camox is a bit different—not a whole lot of similarities with this one, and that’s fine. With a turn radius of 17-meters and a progressive rocker profile in the tips and tails, the Camox Freebird is a whole lot of fun in softer snow while keeping the uphill efficiency right in line with where it should be as a full-time tourer.

Ryan Darlow was on the 178 and noted that it skis true to length, and he’d choose that size for himself. Ryan was a big fan of the Navis Freebird, so it’ll be interesting to see his take on Camox versus Navis. Slightly lower scores overall for Camox, Ryan gave a top score of 5 out of 5 for playfulness, with 4’s for overall impression, versatility, forgiveness, stability, and flotation. Quickness, maneuverability, torsional stiffness, and edge grip all got 3’s. While still high scores, relatively, they were slightly lower overall than he had for Navis. Ryan calls the Camox Freebird a “Very enjoyable in all types of terrain and easy to fall in love with this ski. It lacks the top end stiffness and pop but makes up for it with a playful turn that can perform in and out of carves. The ski is not snappy, and the tips are damp but it makes turning fairly easy with limited effort and can smash through soft snow like a much heavier ski.” By reducing stiffness and weight, those sacrifices will happen, but it still sounds like a great option for that touring skier looking for a blend of qualities.

Marcus Shakun was on the 183, and while he found it to be okay, he notes that he’d rather have the 188 if it were to be his own pair. Lots of 4’s out of 5 on Marcus’ scorecard, including stability, quickness, maneuverability, forgiveness, torsional stiffness, edge hold, versatility, and overall impression. 3’s for flotation and playfulness rounds out his card, and that’s a pretty high average for a ski that’s supposed to be more in tune with the backcountry. “Black Crows nailed it with the Camox Freebird. The sweet spot in width/stability mixed in with the right amount of lightness/maneuverability. Tough formula when making a touring ski to do all/most. Able to move it in and around the deep spring corn. Has its way of dipping and diving through it all. Making it so maneuverable with not a lot of effort and enjoying the ride. Kind of a nimble feel without being light on your feet like most touring specific skis No problem with stability almost has just enough give so you can ease into the turn as you want. Giving more or less as the terrain requires. Not great when on super firm, but not the worst. Manageable.” Sounds like a great mix of a whole lot of attributes there, and we’re all about that.

Thanks to the updates, we’re placing more emphasis on the touring aspect of the Camox Freebird—further distancing itself from the alpine version of the ski, as well as some of the other touring skis in this range. Black Crows has always taken a different approach to building skis in general, and that philosophy shines bright with the 2023 Camox Freebird.