2027 Black Crows Atris Birdie

For 2027, the Black Crows Atris Birdie gets a graphic change but returns otherwise unchanged. Up against a jam-packed category of competitors, it has made its mark thanks to its uncompromising performance and playful personality. With a shape designed for soft snow conditions, its ability to keep composure in variable snow at high speed gives it such versatility and a wider scope of capabilities. What makes this ski so unique is though it features a relatively simple construction; it is paired with a sophisticated shape that works wonders together. With an exceptional balance of energy and strength, it’s no surprise this ski is a popular choice for expert level skiers. At 105 mm underfoot, these skis bring playful freeride performance to the people.

While the Atris Birdie stands out in its shaping, the construction of the skis goes hand in hand to create that unique effect. The extent of the build here features a poplar wood core which is reinforced by fiberglass laminates. Despite how minimalist it is, the poplar gives the ski a dense and incredibly energetic feel while the fiberglass provides stability and damping. This combination of materials keeps the ski light but with exceptional torsional rigidity, making it impressively consistent and powerful at high speeds and through variable snow conditions. All in all, the Atris Birdie matches suppleness with strength, leaving creative skiers with a lot of options for how to ski the mountain. In the 172 cm length, the skis sit on the scale at a stated weight of 1800 g/ski. This speaks volumes for a ski with a 105-mm waist width, and it’s easy to see why it would make such a great daily driver for so many. Tester Annie MacDonald calls it a "Solid ski but not super lively! Much better in big radius turns and easy to get up on edge! Pretty solid at speed too!"

Black Crows puts a lot of thought and purpose into the shaping of their skis, and the Atris Birdie is a prime example. A classic freeride profile, with significant splay in both the tip and tail, the amount of float and level of playfulness is off the charts. With a nice poppy camber profile underfoot, it produces great energy and liveliness, not to mention an impressive edge grip for a ski at this width. As far as the sidecut, in the 166.3 cm length, the forebody has a 135 mm width, 105 mm waist width, and 122 mm tail width, producing a 19-meter turn radius. This speaks to its big mountain nature as it loves to make big, open, smeary style turns. That said, if you want to shorten your turns and be quick on your feet, they are happy to oblige. Tester Fiona Reed states that "This was a great and versatile free ride ski which performed very well on hardpack and groomers for its waist width. Today, there is some wind-blown stuff in between the melt freeze icy moguls which I tested out, and they were really fun where there was fresh. Super easy to hop turn, very poppy on side hits, and again quicker edge to edge than their length and width would suggest. Not the ski for me on the east coast despite a pretty solid edge hold but could see them being super fun with more snow + steeps."

If you're looking for fun and soft snow engagement, this is a great place to be. The Black Crows Atris Birdie is a big mountain, freeride ski with versatile attributes and an aggressive but playful style. Though it is geared towards advanced level skiers, its dependable, predictable flex pattern allows intermediates to access it and build confidence. The simple yet complimentary construction bodes well with the modern, freeride shape and allows creative skiers to have fun all over the mountain. This is a great ski for experts but also has the ability to be accessible and not overly demanding for progressing and improving intermediates looking for their first foray into freeride and powder skiing.