2023 Black Crows Divus

As a front-side specialist with a bit of all-mountain charm, the Black Crows Divus is one of the sharper-turners we’ve been on. The build is like an Orb, but a bit narrower, making it clean and precise in an on-piste carving format. While there are certainly narrower and more race-like skis out there, for Black Crows, this is about as front side as it gets. Built with a poplar wood core and fiberglass laminate, the skis get double titanal H-plate laminates as well as an aluminum tail insert. The arms of the H-shaped plates are able to articulate with the ski as it flexes torsionally, keeping the metal firmly planted on the snow. The upper arm is able to float alongside, making the Divus suppler and smoother, even at speed. The skis are mostly camber underfoot and through the tips and tails, providing excellent grip and rebound and a strong pop at the end of the turn. In the 177, the skis produce a 17-meter turn radius, so it’s a bit shorter of an arc than the Orb, but still on the longer side for a true front side specialist. They’re light, as well, tipping the scales at 1700 grams per ski, which is pretty good considering the metal laminates. Overall, if you’re an intermediate, advanced, or less-aggressive expert skier, you’ll love the precision, grip, and rebound out of the Black Crows Divus.

Marcus Shakun skied the 178, and unsurprisingly found it short. At 6’5, he’s got no business on a ski this short, but he had fun anyway. He scored it 5’s out of 5 for quickness and maneuverability, with 3’s going for overall impression, versatility, torsional stiffness, edge hold, forgiveness, playfulness, and stability. Flotation got a 2, and that’s not very shocking at all. Marcus calls it “A frontside Black Crow carver that loves short to medium radius turns. Soft ski, so is slightly forgiving. Likes to be on firmer snow digging trenches.” Another tall skier on the shorter 178, Bob St.Pierre notes that “it’s too short for me, but still a lot of fun.” He scored 5’s for overall impression, quickness, and maneuverability, and 4’s for torsional stiffness and edge hold. Lower scores of 2 out of 5 for versatility and flotation fall in line with the firm-snow preference of the Divus. Bob comments that “This is a fantastic ski for those who spend most of their time on groomed terrain, but still want an all-mountain style of ski versus a front-side carver. The Divus, at 82 mm underfoot, is pretty narrow, so you'd expect and want this ski to carve properly, and it does. Great in the bumps and other short-swing turns, the Divus has enough metal, but not too much, to add to the stability of the ski. You can really stand on it and get a lot of performance. At the same time, it's playful enough to break free from a carve to alter turn shape and style. Overall, it's an enormously pleasing ski experience.”

Dana Allen, on the 178, notes that while the ski “has a 17-meter turn radius, it felt surprisingly longer than that—more like in the low 20’s.” He scored it a 5 for stability, and 4’s for overall impression, versatility, torsional stiffness, edge hold, forgiveness, playfulness, quickness, and maneuverability. Those are some consistently high scores for this ski, and we’re all about it. Dana states that “For a ski that I thought was going to be overly quick and ski very short, this felt surprisingly stable as being the metal that extends beyond the binding to the front and back of the ski. Good stiffness. Overall, a surprising and fun ski.” Sounds very similar to Bob’s ending there. Connor Gorham calls his 178 a “solid size” and scored it more 5’s for quickness and maneuverability, with 4’s for playfulness, torsional stiffness, edge hold, versatility, and overall impression. Always melodious, Connor states that “Corn was on the menu for this Divus dandy. Cuts strong through the hardened mash, but not enough under the feet to feel ultimate confidence from foot to foot. These would dabble and dance on groomers and pushing sugar, but would take the crows route and avoid anything too Divus-ly deep.” From what I understand from that, Connor sees the Divus as a better option for firmer snow and groomed terrain.

Most skiers spend most of their time on groomed and smooth surfaces. Having a ski like the Divus either as a daily driver or a front side option in the quiver makes a whole lot of sense. Thanks to the shape, profile, and construction, the Divus spans a huge range of skier types and applications. Ideally suited for the front side, the Divus has a whole lot going for it both on and off the trails.